Latest news with #Zakynthos
Daily Mail
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Shocking moment mass brawl breaks out at nightspot on Greek holiday island of Zante
This the shocking moment a swarm of holidaymakers brawl at a beach club in Zakynthos. A pair of topless young men in white shorts appear to be fighting with several older men, also all dressed in white, while a huge mob encircle them. One of the older men then kicks another as it seems 'they don't even know which one to fight' and grabs their shirt aggressively as carnage breaks at a nightspot on the Greek island. At one point what seems to be a member of bar staff chucks a bucket of ice water over the crowd to try and disperse the violent mob. But their best efforts have little effect as seconds later the group are hurling each other around and throwing fists. In the footage shared on social media, one of the young men can be seen swinging a savage punch at an older man's face in what was ironically dubbed a 'wholesome moment at the white party'. Shocked members of the crowd can be seen pointing and laughing at the shameless fighters. One person commented that the fight started when they were 'trying to take a picture and asked them for some space' although this was unclear as to who was being referenced. One shocked user wrote: 'Absolute sausages, may as well just stay at home.' Another joked: 'Great to see Brits abroad enjoying themselves! Enjoy your holidays boys.' 'I was trying to keep track and just gave up, JUST throwing hands for fun…' another added. Police in Zante have been contacted for comment as well as organisers of The White Party. This last month has seen a string of savage fights of tourists while on their holidays. A chaotic poolside brawl broke out at a hotel in Ibiza last week leaving one woman unconscious after she was hit in the head with a chair. Raging tourists holidaying at the Marco Polo hotel in San Antonio started aggressively yelling at each other when one women then suddenly dropped to the floor after being walloped by a plastic chair. Despite her collapse the fight continued while she lay on the ground unmoving. Harratt, 23, has since accused another man of starting the brawl by punching his friend, dubbing him a 6'6 bully During the fall, she collided with one of the instigators, who subsequently fell in the pool. MailOnline later revealed that the man at the centre of a shameful Ibiza swimming pool brawl was professional footballer Kian Harratt, according to one holidaymaker - the Oldham Athletic striker, 23, has since claimed the fight was started by a '6'6 bully' who punched his friend. In another incident, a British tourist was violently sucker-punched by a Spanish local after getting caught up in a brawl with Benidorm bouncers. Footage taken by a fellow bar-goer shows the unnamed Brit being slammed onto the floor by another man in the Spanish resort. According to an eyewitness, the man and his group were asked to leave the unknown bar by another reveller before a bouncer intervened and things got 'heated.' The Brit, who is dressed in white, can be seen being shoved by a group of men, while his friend steps in. As the exchange escalates, video shows the man being brutally punched in the face and falling on the floor, as his leg bends backwards towards his hip. A woman wearing a pink cowboy hat rushes to his aid and crouches over him, as a group of men continue to scuffle with the bouncers. An onlooker said: 'It's always the d***head Brits - it makes you ashamed to be a Brit sometimes. 'We'd been in there for two hours or so - it seemed a nice bar and all of a sudden we heard a bit of a commotion. 'There was a smaller guy who we think was a local and he looked like a bouncer but looked a bit too small to be one. 'He was asking them to leave, and then the larger bouncer came over and things got a bit heated. 'It looks like the smaller guy then knocks him out. 'He was out cold, and his leg looked dislocated.' The condition of the Brit who was floored in the Benidorm bar fight is not known.
The Sun
7 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Sun
I've had the real Mamma Mia romance & am madly in love with a Greek waiter – now we're living together
A SINGLETON'S family holiday became a 'Mamma Mia story' when she hooked up with the Greek waiter who poured shots in her mouth - moving there two months later. Beth Winstone jetted off to Zakynthos, Greece, with her mum and grandma in August 2023 and visited the restaurant her family had gone to every year. 12 12 12 12 The 23-year-old admits she was not looking to find love after coming out of a 'bad' relationship just months earlier but met Gabriel Alia while he worked as a waiter at his uncle's restaurant. Beth said Gabriel, 25, took her out for a drink on the third night of her holiday, and she fell in love instantly, meeting with him every day for the remainder of the trip. But when Beth returned to the UK, she said she got a flight back to Greece only two weeks later to see Gabriel as she didn't want to be apart. The Greek waiter 'asked Beth to be his girlfriend', and the two have been inseparable since, with Beth claiming she has found true love and that Greek men are 'different' to British men. The content creator said Gabriel bought her drinks and danced with her, helping her to 'get out of her shell' after her breakup. Beth, from Birmingham, West Midlands, said: "In August 2023 my grandad died and my gran had already booked to go to Zante and I booked at the last minute, a month before we were meant to go. "We went back to [a] restaurant [that the family liked to visit] and that's when we met. I was previously in a relationship, it ended and it mentally destroyed me, it was really bad. "I had absolutely no expectations in my head, I didn't want to speak to anyone ever again and then that happened. "When we were in the restaurant, I was just sat there oblivious because I wasn't looking for anything. He kept trying to speak to me and asked if I ever smiled because apparently I had a moody face. "It just went from there, he took me out on the third night of the holiday for a drink. After that, we'd see each other every day of the holiday, in the night after he finished work. "When I got back home, two weeks later I flew back out on my own for five days, because he was still working. "I came home and two days later at 2am in the morning I bought tickets for a flight from Manchester to Zante at 6am. I surprised him, he didn't know I was going. "The first time I went back after two weeks he asked me to be his girlfriend, but I was still a bit unsure because of the long distance. But I said yes, obviously. "It's the way he was with me, he'd made me laugh and stuff and take me out, not what most men do nowadays, he wanted to get to know me and meet my family and stuff, they loved him. It was meant to be. "Greek men are different from English men, let me tell you that. I definitely had a Mamma Mia story, that's what all my friends said. "The relationship is getting better and better, we haven't been apart a day since we met. He is the love of my life." 12 12 12 12 In the hit Mamma Mia film, starring Meryl Streep and Amanda Seyfried, strong-willed Donna Sheridan (played by Streep) goes on holiday to Greece and has a summer of romances - resulting in the birth of daughter Sophie (played by Seyfried). After going back and forth between Zakynthos and Birmingham, the couple now live together in the UK with Gabriel working for Beth's dad at his scaffolding business Beth said: "I went back to Greece in October with my mum and nan, I quit my job as a waitress and then moved there for a whole week. "Once summer season finished in Greece he flew back to England with me to meet my dad. 12 12 "We moved back to Greece in November, we got a house in Zante, and then after Christmas we decided to move back to the UK because it was really hard for me to find a job there in the winter. "We tried both and we decided we like it here more. "I moved over there just after two months of meeting him but I knew it was something, and it was. "I absolutely didn't expect to be with a Greek man at all, I was just going on holiday with my mum and gran and my cousin, it all just happened so fast." Beth explains she had been visiting Zante with family since 2012 and had met Gabriel before when she was younger, but had not recognised him. Beth posted her and Gabriel's story on social media, in a video that has gathered more than 500,000 views. One commenter said: "Greek men are built different, you'll be together forever." Another said: "Marry him & move back to Greece." A third said: "I witnessed a true love story." What is Mamma Mia about? MAMMA Mia! is a musical romantic comedy film released in 2008, directed by Phyllida Lloyd and based on the hit 1999 stage musical of the same name. The story is set on a beautiful, fictional Greek island, though it was filmed on location in Skopelos, Greece. The film features the iconic music of ABBA, with songs written by Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus, who were also involved in the film's production. The film stars Meryl Streep as Donna Sheridan, a spirited single mother, and Amanda Seyfried as her daughter Sophie, who secretly invites three of Donna's former lovers—played by Pierce Brosnan, Colin Firth, and Stellan Skarsgård—to her wedding, hoping to discover which one is her real father.
Telegraph
10-06-2025
- Telegraph
Europe's most overcrowded holiday islands – and the unspoilt alternatives to visit instead
Across the Mediterranean, rumbling concerns about over-tourism have risen to a crescendo over the past couple of years. Both the conspicuous absence of visitors during the pandemic and the talk of building back more sustainably are distant memories: now it seems that all people really want is their moment in the sun. On Europe's most popular islands, it's putting a strain on resources and infrastructure as water becomes scarce, roads are jam-packed and rubbish mounts. Still, they come. In Spain, where tourism accounts for 15.6 per cent of the total GDP according to World Travel & Tourism Council figures, industry revenue was up 36 per cent on 2019 in the first nine to 11 months of 2024, despite well-publicised anti-tourism protests. Surprisingly though, the busy Balearics are not the most over-touristy place in the Med, nor are the much-Instagrammed Greek holiday paradises of Mykonos and Santorini. According to a recent report by Which? Travel, that dubious accolade goes to Zakynthos – where there are 150 tourists for every resident. Below, we've rounded up the busiest islands in Europe, and some of their sleepier alternatives. The overrun Rhodes The neon-clad party resort of Faliraki has much to answer for: it's where the island's reputation as a hard-living, cheap-boozing place was born, and now 3.5 million visitors per year head here every year in search of a slice of hedonistic heaven (that's 26 for every one resident). Cruise ships dock in the port of Rhodes Town too, tipping the tourism scales even further. It led it to be labelled the second most over-crowded city in Europe by holiday rentals portal which crunched inbound arrivals data from Euromonitor International to place Dubrovnik first in the table. Rhodes, however, beat notoriously busy Venice into second place. Things could soon start looking up for the island though. It partnered with operator Tui to found Rhodes Co-Lab, an organisation that aims to transform it into a sustainable destination by 2030 using initiatives that include moving away from fossil fuels, increasing local agriculture and aquaculture by 50 per cent and protecting the island's cultural heritage. Majorca According to Which? data, Majorca had the most overnight stays in Europe in 2023, clocking up more than 51 million of them. In 2024, seven per cent more visitors passed through Palma's airport than in the previous year, and numbers were expected to rise again in 2025. Among the consequences is a new summer traffic problem, with hire cars clogging the ring road around Palma and the winding lanes of the countryside during July and August. Then there's the lack of housing for locals, with around a third of all properties classed as second homes. It has resulted in understandable friction. In March, an open letter signed by a clutch of campaigning organisations warned the latter not to visit this year. It explained: 'We do not need more tourists; in fact, you are the source of our problem.' Ibiza The number of annual visitors to Ibiza has almost doubled since 2001, according to the non-profit organisation Ibiza Preservation. With more than three million overnight stays annually, compared with a year-round population of just 160,000, the island has lost much of its farmland and has the highest amount of waste per head of any Balearic island. The organisation claims that only four per cent of food eaten is grown locally, while a decimation of fields and forest has led to increased risk of wildfires. Water is scarce too, though no restrictions are currently in place for tourists. On June 15, this year's over-tourism protests will kick off in Ibiza Town, as part of a nationwide campaign. Malta It may not get the Instagram mileage of the Balearics or Greek islands, but Malta is engaged in a quieter battle with over-tourism. In 2022, it already had the eighth highest number of tourists per resident in the world, according to and, in 2024, the number visiting rose by almost 20 per cent year on year. More hotels are being built, and the island will need to attract almost five million tourists per year to fill them by 2027. But Malta and its neighbours are already struggling to cope with those that do come. Back in 2023, residents complained to The Times of Malta about 'a 'suffocating' stench, traffic chaos and double parking' in the island capital Valletta and some of its busiest resorts. And some local operators refuse to take visitors to the nearby island of Comino in the summer. Once one of the prettiest local spots, it's now packed with Instagrammers and the resulting litter has led to a rat problem. The under-visited Dugi Otok Croatia has an over-tourism problem, with more than 20 million overnight stays per year. But only around 0.005 per cent of them involve this secret (though not exactly inconspicuous) spot off the coast near Zadar. It may because much of the 27-mile long island is uncultivated, or because its tiny capital Sali lacks the glamour or show-off monuments of the country's better-known seaside cities (it makes up for it with a harbour busy with sorbet-shade terraces and surroundings dotted with 700-year-old olive trees). There's a lively festival in Sali each year in the first week of August, the rocky coves and wooded hills of the Nature Park Telašćica and one of the country's best beaches – the long sweep at Sakarun, where the water is as clear as vodka and the scent of pine forest carries on the breeze – to enjoy. Pantelleria This wild isle off Sicily isn't completely without visitors. But though the population doubles in summer, that still means there are less than 15,000 people exploring its crater lake, hot springs and herb-scented trails at any one time (compare that with the 3.6 million who flock to Capri every year). There's culture too: Pantelleria's traditional way of harvesting grapes for its famous wines has made it onto Unesco's Intangible Cultural Heritage List. And, though sand is not really on the menu, Pantelleria's dramatic rocky coves are literally the stuff of legend – the playgrounds of Odysseus during his long kidnap by Circe. Samothraki, Greece For every Mykonos or Santorini, there's a harder-to-access Greek island where tourists are thin on the ground. Among them is Samothraki in the northern Aegean, accessed by the summer ferry from Limnos (or year-round one from mainland Alexandrouplis) and with a healthy tourist bed to local ratio of 0.5 to one, according to research by the Sustainable Samothraki project. This is not a place for days on the beach and long lunches in tavernas but rather tramping through golden wheat fields or driving up empty switchbacks towards remote churches and icy waterfalls. There aren't any swish hotels either, just a smattering of three-stars on the north coast, between the swooping rocks and tumbling waters of the Fonias Gorge and the ancient columns of the Sanctuary of the Great Gods, once home to a mystery cult that drew dignitaries from across the region. Porto Santo, Portugal Sometimes you have to get away from the Med to escape the crowds and this island dwells in the Atlantic, a 90-minute ferry ride from its big sister Madeira. Well-known among Portuguese tourists for its buttery beaches and sleepy seaside towns, it hasn't yet hit the big time with the wider world, despite Madeira being Portugal's fourth most-visited region. Not deemed worthy of its own official statistics, Porto Santo is thought to see around 20,000 visitors per month in summer. The sand really is the thing here: there's a great nine km line of the stuff at Porto Santo's namesake beach, as well as a chain of sleepy coves with tiki umbrellas. Sea kayak or hike between them and break up the sunbathing with trips to the rock formations at Pico de Ana Ferreira or hikes up the mountain of Pico Branco for blustery views out to sea.
Daily Mail
15-05-2025
- Daily Mail
Why this infamous Greek party island is shedding its reputation and going upmarket
Shipwreck Beach on the island of Zante (also known as Zakynthos) is one of Greece 's most photographed spots, with the skeletal remains of a ship lying in the centre of its golden sands. We're whizzing towards the shore on a speedboat tour of the southernmost of the Ionian islands, to which Corfu and Kefalonia also belong. It's a beautiful location surrounded by high limestone cliffs that attracts thousands of holidaymakers, many taking day trips from the resort of Laganas with its bars and cheap hotels popular with young Britons. Yet there's another side to Zante that remains virtually untouched by tourism: a patchwork of olive groves and farms covering large parts of the island linked by quiet lanes and one-track roads. Devastated by an earthquake in 1953, many islanders left Zante - and much of the landscape has remained undiscovered ever since. But not Shipwreck Beach. It's become such a popular attraction you're no longer allowed to swim off the sands due to restrictions to control overtourism. Instead, on our early morning visit we escape before the main daily crowds arrive and head to a nearby beach for a dip in the aquamarine waters, and then cruise into the Blue Caves. Here we leap into the vivid, teal-coloured water, created by sunlight reflecting off the limestone walls, giggling at the sight of our legs and arms glowing Smurf-blue beneath the surface. Our watery tour is part of discovering the other side of Zante including a new wave of luxury hotels whose owners hope to change the island's reputation and encourage visitors to explore beyond the southern coast resorts. Our first base is the recently opened King Jason Zante, an adults-only, all-inclusive resort where the big draw is the Maldivian-style rooms, many with terraces that open straight onto the patchwork of pools that form a lattice down a hillside. It's blisteringly hot when we arrive, touching 40C, so the cool, modernist design - lots of pale grey concrete and glass walls - is welcome. The suites continue the Maldivian ethos, with the king-sized bed in the centre of the room, a retractable screen separating the open plan bathroom behind. It's a world away from the simplicity that lies outside. The next day we hire a car and follow the winding lanes into the island's quiet hinterland, stopping to drink thimbles of thick, bitter coffee on the ramshackle square in the quiet village of Keri. THE sun beats down as we wander along silent alleyways leading between one-storey whitewashed houses with faded blue doors and window shutters. Muted conversations float out from the darkness inside. 'This is what makes Zante special,' says Venia Xenou, whose family owns the Olea All Suite Hotel, which re-set the bar for luxury accommodation when it opened in 2018. 'Farming is still the most important economy here. Tourism is growing but the trick is to do it without disturbing the traditional way of life. We look at other islands, where overtourism is a problem, and think no, we don't want that here.' The Olea All Suite could have been the template for the King Jason, with the same arrangement of swimming pools and rooms opening directly onto the water. The vibe is slightly different, though. Guests are a little younger and there's more of a club, Ibiza-style feel, although the sandy-floored, open-sided Cocoon bar and restaurant (shoes definitely optional) is straight out of an Indian Ocean resort. The vibe is slightly different at the Olea All Suite, where guests are a little younger and there's more of a club feel The biggest treat is the Flow restaurant, set high on the hillside, where tables and a clutch of spherical basket chairs are positioned to make the most of the gorgeous view across the valley below. Dinner at Flow - succulent seabass fresh off the boat and flamegrilled lamb - is so lovely it seems impossible to better. Yet our final night at the Lesante Blu - a waterfront resort with a stretch of private beach - proves to be the most memorable of all. As the sun dips, a violinist steps on to the square of lawn between the restaurant tables and begins to play, accompanied by a background DJ. The sound is exquisite, the whole elegant experience the polar opposite of the hectic streets of Laganas. As the music emanates, I think of all the post A-level students on our flight, giddy with excitement for their first trip away. It makes me hope that rather than simply turning into a fully-blown 'party island' - or becoming a luxury retreat - Zante will adapt to accommodate both.
Times
11-05-2025
- Times
How not to follow the tourist crowds — according to our experts
I vowed to choose my holidays more carefully when I found myself in Santorini one July queuing to take a photo of the sun setting behind the island's famous blue domes (Siobhan Grogan writes). More patient people nearby had been waiting hours to guarantee their prime spot, armed with snacks to see them through until nightfall. Which was probably wise given that their chance of finding a restaurant table nearby was precisely zero, unless they had booked weeks in advance and wanted to blow their entire holiday budget on a main course. Beyond Santorini, overtourism is now a serious problem across Europe for residents and holidaymakers. Popular destinations such as Barcelona, Mallorca and Paris are swamped by record numbers of visitors each year, leading to crowded attractions, protests and demands from locals to enforce measures to prevent the problem from getting worse. Many cities, including Amsterdam and Venice, have already levied tourist taxes in the hope of deterring future travellers. A new report from Which? has analysed European Commission tourism numbers to calculate three outcomes: how many nights tourists spend in a region compared to the number of residents, the most overnight stays overall and the most overnight stays per square kilometre. It discovered that the Greek island of Zakynthos — also known as Zante — is Europe's worst-hit hot spot in terms of a tourist-to-local-resident ratio, with six million overnight stays in 2023 to only 40,000 residents, or put simply, 150 more people each night for every person that lives there. Istria in Croatia and the Canary Island of Fuerteventura follow close behind, with 133 and 119 stays respectively for every resident. Mallorca is the most visited place in Europe overall, with more than 51 million overnight stays in 2023 compared to a population of just 966,000. Meanwhile, Paris has by far the highest number of tourists per square km, with 418,280, followed by central Athens (88,535) and Copenhagen (63,944). However, you can still holiday without the crowds if you look elsewhere in Europe, according to Which?. The survey found that the seaside resort of Haapsalu in Estonia had just 120 overnight stays by tourists per kilometre in 2023. If you really want the sunset to yourself, you could also consider the Dytikos Tomeas Athinon region near Athens or Teleorman in Romania, which respectively recorded just six and two overnight stays per 1,000 residents. Here's the travel desk's pick of some more alternative destinations where the locals will actually be glad to see you. This article contains affiliate links, which can earn us revenue I spent my university year abroad in a little town west of Toulouse, which at the age of 21 I unfairly thought was the most boring place in the world (sorry, Auch). While this southwestern French city — more a country town than a big hub — can't compete with the razzle-dazzle of Paris or Provence, it has more laid-back charms: a walk along the Garonne river, admiring the pink architecture (which gives it its moniker the Rose City); eating steak frites and drinking local-ish Bordeaux wine in the sun at Brasserie de l'Opera, in the grand Capitole square (mains from £6; Toulouse's Romanesque basilica of St Sernin is one of the finest in Europe. If you're into planes — this city is the home of the plane manufacturer Airbus — don't miss the fascinating Aeroscopia museum (£12; The boutiquey townhouse-style Hotel des Arts in the old quarter, near the Capitole square, is the place to stay. Need more reasons for the swap? Toulouse is cheaper and the weather's Room-only doubles from £139 ( Fly to Toulouse • The laid-back French city with a Spanish vibe and all-year sunshine The last time I visited Amsterdam, hotel and Airbnb prices were so high we ended up staying in a seaside town called Zandvoort, 25 minutes away by train. Commuting … on holiday? Extremely bad vibes. For a cheaper (and much less crowded) city break, I'd recommend Ghent, over the border in Belgium. Does it have as much going on as the Dutch capital? No, but there's plenty to keep you busy over a long weekend. The 1432 Ghent Altarpiece at St Bavo's Cathedral rivals Rembrandt's The Night Watch, the highlight of Amsterdam's Rijksmuseum, in scale and vivid detail (£14; The city's gabled canal houses are as pretty as those in nearby Bruges, another hectic tourist hub. And with more than a quarter of Ghent's population being students, the nightlife scene is diverse and lively — grab a beer at grungy Afsnis (drinks from £2; then check out a folk or punk gig at Trefpunt (prices vary; Decked out with house plants and abundant mid-century brown and orange, Yalo Urban Boutique Hotel is a stylish, central place to crash B&B doubles from £182 ( Take the train to Ghent via Brussels While the crowds rush onwards to the Algarve, stay put in the region's overlooked capital for its cobbled old town, laid-back seafood restaurants and three sandy islands just off shore for beach days. There's a smattering of sights including a 15th-century cathedral (£4; Largo da Sé) and the spooky Bone Chapel (£2; Largo do Carmo), fashioned from the skulls of Carmelite monks. Potter around sunlit squares, join a dolphin-spotting boat cruise (£49; or visit the Roman ruins of Milreu six miles away (£2; Estoi). The four-star Hotel Faro overlooks the historic marina and has a rooftop pool and bar, sleek modern rooms and a free shuttle to its own beach club B&B doubles from £94 ( Fly to Faro • 10 of the most beautiful places in Portugal (and how to see them) Canals, cicchetti and crowds — Venice has, and always will be, an absolute honeypot for tourists and, as a result, pickpockets too. Just over an hour down the road is the much calmer, and lovelier, Verona. Entirely walkable, the city is the perfect size for a long weekend, which you can spend exploring Giardino Giusti, a gorgeous Renaissance garden that's all bubbling fountains and romantic turrets ( settle in for some opera at the 30m-high Arena di Verona ( and take the funicular to the top of Colle San Pietro (round trip £2.50; to watch the sky turn the same colour as the £2.50 Aperol you'll have in hand (you won't find that in Venice, either). Book a room at Byblos Art Hotel, which feels half gallery, half hotel thanks to the 200 works on its B&B doubles from £280 ( Fly to Verona The sprawling Unesco-listed region of Cilento is just a couple of hours down the coast from the glitzy, glamorous Amalfi but features on far fewer Brits' itineraries. They are missing out. The vibe here is deliciously authentic, with beautifully preserved Greek temples in Paestum, charming buffalo mozzarella farms featuring intriguing deli shops, one of the country's largest national parks, which is ripe for hiking and biking, and miles of sandy beaches. Base yourself in the seaside town of Santa Maria di Castellabate, with its palm-tree lined promenade, wooden fishing boats and pretty pastel-coloured buildings, and feast on delicious pizza and pasta at Le Gatte (mains from £15; Stay in the town's grandest hotel, Palazzo Belmonte, with lovely gardens and a B&B doubles from £115 ( Fly to Naples or Salerno Nobody likes Barcelona. You might think you do, but you don't really. Far too touristy, far too expensive and they can't even be bothered to finish that big, weird church thing. So bugger Barcelona and get thee to Girona, 60 miles north. Smaller, quieter and infinitely more charming than its Catalonian cousin, Girona only really gets busy in May, during the spectacular annual flower festival. Other than that you'll pretty much have the city to yourself, meaning you can comfortably stroll the cobbled streets of the medieval Jewish Quarter or stare at the River Onyar from one of the many bridges. Even if you can't bag (or stretch to) a table at the three-Michelin-starred El Celler de Can Roca (tasting menus from £265pp; you should try to stay at the Roca family's stylish 15-room hotel, the Casa B&B doubles from £220 ( Fly to Girona Look, don't get me wrong, I love Santorini. The steep cliff face with its built-in white architecture, the sunsets, the tiny boutique hotels covered in bougainvillea … it's not surprising that 3.4 million tourists come every year. But I spent a good chunk of my last visit — in late October, the off-season — navigating the sweaty queues that snake through the streets of Oia come sunset time. I should have returned to Naxos, Santorini's Cycladic sibling to the north and my other Greek island love, instead. What it lacks in dramatic caldera views and direct flights, the island makes up for in affordable tavernas, hiking trails, ancient history (make time for the excellent Archaeological Museum, free entry; and — hurrah — no queues for your sunset snap. Chora, the lively old town, is a handy base for getting around and exploring neighbouring Cyclades (pretty Paros is a 30-minute ferry ride away). Stay at Arco Naxos Luxury Apartments, a charming bunch of self-catering pads in the town Room-only doubles from £90 ( Take the ferry to Naxos via Mykonos • I've been to more than 40 Greek islands — this one is my favourite Of course Mallorca is gorgeous, we all know that, from the wannabe pro cyclists who come to test their mettle and muscles on the steep Tramuntana mountain ascents to the toddlers who paddle in the pretty coves and the louche open-shirted lounge lizards who to try to catch a scent of a bygone hippy past in Deia. But Menorca is the Balearic to go for now. It might not quite have the same lusciousness as the green hilly parts of Mallorca, and it isn't that much like Ibiza, with all that stands for, but it has a starker, more arid beauty all its own. You feel very on-the-money pleased with yourself when you discover a tucked-away boutique farm stay such as Son Vell, an airy mansion with a vast deep swimming pool in a stone irrigation tank and palm-filled tropical gardens. Or when you're eating hipster fried fish small plates in chichi Ciutadella's Ulisses bar in the town's covered market (small plates from £8; and are told, 'Oh, this is where everyone who's bored of Ibiza is coming now.' The most famous white sand calas, or beaches, may still get busy in summer but the island is covered in cool little corners that are only now starting to be discovered by tourists, and they remain well dispersed across the rural B&B doubles from £465 ( Fly to Mahon • 19 of the best hotels in Menorca Where do you go to avoid the crowds? Spill your secrets in the comments
