Cyclades: the most typical islands of Greece

The Cyclades archipelago is a group of islands in Greece located in the Aegean Sea, between Attica and Eubea in the north-west, and the island of Crete in the south.

The Cyclades islands are the islands that have the most typical characteristics of the islands of Greece. They are in fact barren and arid islands, but bathed by a crystal clear sea, often with rocky coasts but sometimes with beautiful beaches. In the islands there are wonderful inhabited centers made of white houses perched on the slopes of the mountains. In addition there are Orthodox monasteries, Venetian castles and archaeological remains.

The Cyclades are made up of over 200 islands and islets, but the main ones are around twenty. Among these, the most important and known from a tourist point of view are Santorini and Mykonos. While the island of Naxos (429 sq km) is the largest and most fertile of the archipelago.

The capital of the archipelago, Ermoupolis, is located on the island of Syros. The Cyclades region covers a total of 2,572 sq km and includes a population of over 120,000 inhabitants.

BARREN AND MOUNTAINOUS ISLANDS WITH A SPECTACULAR SEA

The Cyclades are geographically mountainous and often barren and arid islands, some (Santorini and Milos) are of volcanic origin. But all of them are united by the beauty of the sea that surrounds them.

In the archipelago, between 3,000 and 2,000 BC, the so-called Cycladic civilization developed, an agricultural-pastoral civilization that did not disdain trade.

The islands are important from a historical point of view. In fact, the island of Delos is also part of the archipelago. This island was one of the most sacred centers of ancient Greece. Furthermore, on many islands there are important archaeological remains from the Cretan, Classical, Hellenistic and Roman periods.

In the Middle Ages the islands passed under the control of the Byzantines and Venetians. But in the 16th century almost all the islands were occupied by the Ottoman Turks.

The main islands of the archipelago are those of: Amorgos, Anafi, Andros, Antiparos, Delos, Folegandros, Ios, Kéa, Kimolos, Kythnos, Mílos, Mykonos, Náxos, Páros, Santorini, Serifos, Sifnos, Sikinos, Syros, and Tínos.

The climate of the Cyclades: when to go.