Festival
Join a summer panigyri
Look for posters announcing a saint's-day feast. Pay a small fee for food and wine, which funds the village, then dance the Ikariotikos until dawn. 15 August is the biggest night.
Villages island-wide, July–September
Ikaria · Things to do
Things to do in Ikaria
Beaches, trails, festivals, food and wine: the experiences that make this island its own.
Experiences
Our favourite things to do
Ideas for every kind of day, from a lazy swim to a full-day hike.
Beach
Hike down to Seychelles beach
A short, steep path from the road ends at a cove of white boulders and clear turquoise water. Bring shoes, water and shade; there are no facilities.
Near Manganitis, south coast
Hike
Walk the Chalaris gorge from Nas
Follow the river inland from the beach at Nas past rock pools and plane trees to a small lake. Easy to moderate, and best in late spring when the water runs.
Nas, north-west coast
Wellness
Soak in the hot springs at Therma
Choose between the municipal spa and the free natural pool in a sea cave at the edge of the village, where the hot spring mixes with the sea.
Therma, near Agios Kirykos
Food & wine
Taste Ikarian wine and honey
Small family wineries still make wine from native grapes such as Fokiano, often aged in clay. Pair it with thyme honey and herbs from the village shops.
Christos Raches & the western villages
Nature
Explore the Ranti forest
One of the last ancient holm-oak forests in the Aegean, crossed by marked trails linking villages, chapels and watermills.
Above Christos Raches
Only in Ikaria
What makes Ikaria different
The things that make Ikaria unlike any other Greek island.
A Blue Zone of long lives
Ikarians reach 90 at about two and a half times the rate of Americans. Herbal teas, a mostly plant-based diet, steep daily walks and strong community are the usual explanations.
Panigyria that last till dawn
Summer saints' days are celebrated with village-wide feasts of goat stew, wine and the fast, circling Ikariotikos dance. Everyone is welcome, and the music rarely stops before sunrise.
A village that wakes at night
In Christos Raches shops and kafeneia traditionally open in the evening and stay busy past midnight, a habit dating back to the island's pirate-wary past.
Radioactive hot springs
The mineral springs at Therma have drawn bathers since antiquity and still feed the municipal spa and natural rock pools by the sea.