I’ll admit to being very disappointed at the prospect of leaving Santorini at first. But in the end, the contrast kept things interesting during our seven days in Greece. While we’d stayed at a quaint private villa nestled high on a hilltop that overlooked the sea in Santorini, our Mykonos digs were at the Grace Hotel which is known for its impeccable service and beautiful pool.
The gorgeous views, attention to detail and freshly prepared meals at the Grace made it hard to leave. We slept in every morning and then lounged by the pool, each admitting that this was our first proper non-working vacation in ages.
During our first full day in Mykonos, we ventured into town and strolled along the waterfront.
Unlike the rocky terrain and steep inclines of Santorini, the town is a little more walkable with smooth paths featuring hundreds of shops and cafes. Remember though, if there’s something you like, buy it on the spot — the streets are so maze-like that it’s unlikely that you’ll find your way back!
Many of the signs are hand-painted which only adds to the charm of the town.
The temperature on Mykonos is cooler than Santorini and it hovered between the high 70s and low 80s for every day that we were there. I mostly packed along simple basics like this outfit with a Forever 21 tank, vintage wrap skirt, MOMA lace-up sandals and Dries van Noten sunglasses.
I loved this scene so much: This doorway opens directly to the sea.
Scenes like this felt like they were ripped straight out of an old film. Besides all the tourists wandering about, everything felt very much frozen in time.
Even more surreal was seeing this post office box along the edge of the water.
We attempted to stay offline as much as possible and engage in doing a whole lot of nothing. It was a welcome change — but it did take me a few days to adjust.
We went nail polish shopping but found it impossible to settle on just one color.
And in between pool time and going to town, we visited the beach directly below our hotel.
Instagrams are fun but no trip is complete without a handful of Instax shots.
We ventured out during our first night in Mykonos for dinner and honestly, it was pretty sub-par. The following nights, we had dinner at our hotel and the sea bass was unbelievably good.
Even though I was head over heels with Santorini, Mykonos quickly grew on me for different reasons. While Santorini was all about exploring and watching the sunsets, Mykonos was about pure relaxation and many poolside drinks.
As our boat pulled away from Mykonos Tuesday afternoon, I was sad to go but excited to know that we had one last night in our Santorini villa, overlooking the Aegean Sea. If you’re visiting the Greek islands, please stop off at more than one — it keeps things exciting and they all have subtle differences that you’ll grow to appreciate.
In an upcoming post I’ll be sharing more specifics about everywhere we stayed, what we packed and how we arranged transport between the islands. Do you have any other questions you’d like me to cover?