7 Completely Annoying Reasons Why Mykonos is Overrated
Don’t get me wrong, I absolutely ADORE this country. There are so many reasons to travel to Greece, it’s the destination I find my mind wanders to when someone is telling me an incredibly boring story.
Imagining the gorgeous beaches, crystal waters and whitewashed buildings is ridiculously easy once you’ve been there. On top of that locals are some of the friendliest I’ve ever encountered.
While Mykonos does have a few beautiful vistas and I have no regrets visiting, there are a few things I personally didn’t like about it. In fact I’d go as far to say Mykonos is overrated and things turned out to be the complete opposite to what I had envisioned – I knew I should have gone to Corfu instead!
I’ve created this list to let you know things nobody seems to tell you when visiting Mykonos, Greece…
Here are 7 annoying reasons why Mykonos is overrated
If you’re planning an Athens itinerary, you may be wondering, “Is Mykonos worth visiting?” Let me put this out there: I’m not saying don’t go. On the contrary, I think you should go and not just take my word for it! In saying that, it’s important to know exactly what to expect when you go to avoid any nasty surprises.
Mykonos is undoubtedly lovely to see but it’s useful to keep these things in mind for your visit so you won’t find it as disappointing as I did. Don’t set those expectations too high and you should be sweet. Actually, let me rephrase that – I did have low expectations about these annoyances although some were far exceeded, and not in a good way!
Anyway, let’s get into the reasons why I believe Mykonos is overrated:
1. Irritating dining experiences
Incredibly narrow footpaths cluttered with dining chairs and crowds of people trying to get past don’t mix. Whoever thought this was a good idea obviously didn’t think about the challenge their customers would face simply raising a fork to their mouth to take a bite of their meal.
I witnessed tourists constantly knocking the elbows of diners and bumping into their chairs as they attempted to squeeze through these obstacle courses. It’s definitely not ideal for sunset-watching or keeping swathes of people moving efficiently.
2. The “Party Island of Greece” is always late to the party
Nightlife doesn’t actually start until the early hours of the morning. You can expect to be the only patron in a nightclub until about 11pm when a hoard of Tour Groupies on a Contiki tour will come through and make the bar feel alive… Until they head off to the next bar after 1 drink, leaving you on your lonesome once more.
Party-goers only start heading out to clubs around 1am. Call me old fashioned but I’d prefer that time to be the peak of my night so I can get at least a wink of sleep before the sun rises. Who wants to waste the entire following day nursing a hangover? Travel time is precious – once it’s gone, we can never get it back!
READ MORE:
Stunning Places to Discover in Greece Off the Beaten Path
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3. Beach access has to be bought
Having to pay €20+ for sunchairs and drink service on every beach in the morning when no one else is there (because the entire island has just gone to bed) is quite annoying. I get why that would make sense when it’s busy in the late afternoon, but come on.
I’m aware it’s like this at many beaches across Europe (and €20 is nothing in comparison to some other establishments) but as an Australian it’s a pretty strange concept when you’ve been spoilt with the luxury of throwing a towel anywhere on the sand and sitting where you like, for free.
Even though paying to sit at the beach was bothersome, I couldn’t help but think “ah well, when in Rome”. There were actually some fellow Aussies who came up beside my sunbed and complained about having to pay to go to the beach. They ended up sitting off to the side on some rocks to avoid having to pay.
4. Cacti, Desert & Donkeys
The only real picturesque area is Little Venice and the iconic windmills. Yes, some of the little alleyways with boutiques and restaurants are lovely if you can manage to navigate past without knocking someone off their chair whilst they eat lunch.
But, let’s be honest. The rest of the island can be summarised in 3 words: cacti, desert and donkeys. Believe me, my travel buddy and I hired a scooter to get around so we saw more than most. There are way more things to do in Santorini, that’s for sure!
5. Everyone runs on “Island Time”
Forget using the shuttle buses. They are meant to run every half hour from the town down to the port but they had a habit of not turning up. Yes, I’m aware some people like to run on “island time” and sometimes you just need to go with the flow.
But as a visitor, I’d rather spend that waiting time doing something I enjoy. No one likes being left in the lurch, especially late at night.
6. People prove Mykonos is overrated
There’s quite a pretentious vibe on the island. Most people are trying to “be someone” documenting their every move on their phones or video cameras. It’s as though having an Instagram or Snapchat account is a prerequisite for visiting this island.
This always makes me wonder: While people spend so much time distracted on their phones, are they really enjoying the experience and being in the moment? What’s more important than being where you are, right now?
Likes and comments, apparently. Mykonos is an Instatourist’s heaven.
Drinks at empty bars were €12 during my visit, they’re probably double that now. They should be paying me €12 for bringing some life to their establishment, seeing as no one else will be there until 1am!
Why, Mykonos, why?
7. More expensive than Athens and other islands
I’m not sure if this is because Mykonos is like a “celebrity Instagram” destination or something else, but I found eating out and drinking to be much cheaper in Athens, Rhodes, Crete and Santorini.
Heck, in Athens you can get a bottle of water for €0.50, while in Mykonos they were charging up to €4 in some places during my visit. Isn’t that just a tad ridiculous?
Maybe this is also because Mykonos is a popular cruise ship destination. Operators know floods of tourists will rush through quite quickly, without the time to shop around for lower prices before heading back to their ship. They will pay through the nose for convenience.
TIP: I always like to say: You can save time or money – usually not both!
Economic leakage
As I’ve explained in my guide for how to be a more responsible tourist, visiting destinations on cruise ships have social and economic downsides:
- Cruise-goers don’t get to spend very long in a particular destination before shipping off to the next. This leave little time have meaningful interactions with locals, leading to a shallow experience.
- They’re rushing around to the popular spots with crowds of other tourists (both from their ship and not) all at the same time, because their time is limited. This isn’t an ideal way to see a destination.
- They’re visiting those destinations but the majority of their tourist money is going back to the cruise ship company, not the local communities. They eat, sleep and do activities mostly on the ship, not at the cities. This is a lose-lose situation for all parties except the cruise ship company.
TIP: Did you know there are solutions for visiting popular destinations without contributing to overtourism issues? Read my guide to 10 overtourism solutions for more!
Do you think Mykonos is overrated, too?
Phew! In saying all that, if you’ve been following me a little while you’re likely to know I’m a massive fan of travelling efficiently to get the most out of my precious travel time.
Unfortunately, I had no idea beforehand that Mykonos was probably not well suited to my travel style. My travel style is all about being an invisible tourist – immersing ourselves in the local culture and benefitting the communities of places we visit by using our travel money more mindfully (side note: I’ve actually written a book about to help achieve this, too!)
Waiting around for unreliable public transport, paying through the nose for drinks in a bar with no atmosphere and dealing with crowds of people weaving through confined spaces just isn’t for me. Maybe it’s not for you as well.
If you do decide to bite the bullet and go, please forget trying to dine in a narrow alleyway during the summer months and go watch the sunset atop a white-washed hillside instead!
Hate crowds (like me) but love Europe? Why not take a look at my other top tips and advice for visiting Europe you won’t hear anywhere else!
Do you think that Mykonos is overrated too? Did you happen to know these nuances about Mykonos before your visit? Let me know in the comments below! If you found this helpful, I’d also love if you’d come and join me on Facebook, follow me on Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, or don’t forget to pin it to Pinterest!
Until next time,
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I’ve been to Mykonos about 80 times since the early 1980s and recognise most of the comments made here. First, never go in July and August for that is when the crowd are unbearable. Second, never make judgments: some save all year or two years to have their holiday here whilst others have enough to go several times a year; you could be sat next to a millionaire in the cafe or a bus driver from Tooting but it doesn’t matter and if it does then go somewhere else. Third, Mykonos is so much more than little Venice and the rest of the island is not just cacti, donkeys and dirt – you just need to explore. Fourth do go to Delos but once you have done the historic tour explore the hill villages on Tinos for a day trip to an utterly different world (unless you want to have a picnic on the southern beach on Delos, in which case get someone to guide you there). Fifth, Mykonos is at its best when treated as a rendez-vous to meet friends once again because it is the second week in September. Sixth, the island is as expensive as you want it to be but it will punish anyone with pretensions.
Thanks so much for sharing your insights, Adrian! Great advice 😃
Mykonos is the worst place I have ever been , I don’t care billionaire, millionaire , it’s so overrated!
And I will never return
Drinks , food wasn’t even off a high standard !
Mykonos is off my list for many many years now. I always prefer a small vacation in nearby Tinos Island, which lately has become an excellent destination. Excellent beaches, most picturesque villages all around the island (people say they’re the most beautiful villages in Cyclades) and great great food (lots of special dishes you won’t find elsewhere). Sometimes I take the morning ship, only half an hour to Mykonos and return in the afternoon. That’s all. No more. Just a coffee, maybe a swim in Kalafatis, which is a free beach and back to Tinos for a guaranteed sublime dinner.
Sound like I need to add Tinos to my list of Greek islands to visit, Emmanuel!
Thanks for sharing your advice and for reading 😊
As a fellow Aussie, I completely agree with you. Just left Mykonos today and I won’t be coming back again.
There’s no cheap bars on the island. Even the ones away from the waterfront charge 20 Euros for cocktails. Heck I thought Santorini was expensive charging 12 Euros for a cocktail with a beautiful view of the Caldera, until I came to Mykonos.
Food is expensive as well. Tried 6 different restaurants and the food wasn’t great. The gyros had no flavour.
So makes me feel like the hospitality industry is just catered to churn out tourists rather than provide them with a genuine local experience.
Thanks so much for sharing your insights, Sudin!
What’s even more painful for us Aussie is the weak dollar to euro 😭
As you say, suddenly 12 euro for a cocktail sounds cheap compared to what they’re charging in Mykonos!
It’s such a shame to see places like this become tourist traps with little to no authentic local experiences to be had.
I just read your article about why Mykonos is overrated. Last time I was there was 1965 and it was dirt heap but still pretty touristy compared to other islands. Never been back, even if you paid me.
One thing you don’t mention is that there is no such thing as a private beach in Greece. Even if you own a complete island the beach is public, anyone can go sit and swim there. Only problem with Mykonos is dealing with toughies who will force you to pay. Remember by law they have no right , only if you have/ use their lounger or whatever. You can just put your towel on the ground and do whatever.swim, sunbathe. 2 very beautiful islands completely ruined- Mykonos and Santorini. There are many more plus beautiful beaches on mainland Greece.
Hi Liza, thanks for sharing your insights – I wasn’t aware of that!
Good to know 😃
You’re right though, it is such a shame that two beautiful islands have been ruined (in the peak tourist season anyway).
Went 45 years ago and Mykonos was fabulous, I was only 21, there was Pierros which was a great bar and we all stood outside, I believe it is Jackie o bar now. Everything was cheap as chips and I should know cos I didn’t have much money with me. Went back with my husband 3 years ago and with my husband and was very disappointed I had raved about it, overpriced, overrated and just not a nice place. Will NEVER go again.
So sorry to hear the, Lesley!
On the bright side, at least you got to go in Mykonos’ golden days and were able to enjoy it then 😊
Im not sure why every article about Mykonos being overrated is basically apologizing and saying you should still go. If you are going to Greece and you dont know someone living in Mykonos then there is no reason to go to Mykonos. There are plenty of way better islands and Mykonos didn’t have a single thing worth the visit compared to other islands. Even if it wasnt overpriced that would be my opinion. But it’s way overpriced and over crowded for an island that shouldnt even rank in the top 10 of Greek Islands. Just say “don’t go to Mykonos unless you know someone from there otherwise it’s a waste of time.”
This is a fair point, Stew!
However I do recommend people seeing things for themselves, as we don’t all agree on everything (and that’s perfectly okay!)
Hi there. Just found your blog.
I am in Mykonos at the moment. I totally agree with it being ridiculously overpriced at the restaurants in little Venice but it is gorgeous . We are fortunately staying out of town in a villa on the sea front. It has been heaven. We have done mostly all our own catering so hasn’t been too bad. The villa has a salt pool and we have spent most of our days just relaxing with our family that we haven’t seen for a while. If that is the type of holiday that you are looking for then I highly recommend it. The views are sensational. We did the Delos trip which I found very interesting as well as snorkelling. We leave for Paros in a couple of days so will be interested to see the difference. Enjoyed your blog.
I’m so glad to hear you found the perfect way to enjoy Mykonos, Beverley!
Thanks so much for reading and taking the time to comment 😃 Enjoy the rest of your time in Greece!
Spot on! We did arrive on a cruise (All gay, all day, which is not the easiest for us gays to find. Where we can be ourselves like everyone else)
My husband was gobsmacked (he’s Aussie) when I said Mykonos was overrated so I googled it and found you!
The island was ugly, prices were ridiculous and he paid €100 PER CHAIR at Super Paradise, and we even had an anniversary dinner there plus multiple
Drinks. Not worth the money at all (food was good, but not cheap)
I’m glad we only had 8 hours. I’d have been ticked to have spent money to stay there more than that. Overrated indeed! Santorini or Corfu for a longer visit.
We did two days in Athens and I want to come back to Athens now!! Amazing, clean city, with a lot to do and see.
Holy moly, sounds like prices have gone up significantly since my last visit!
Thanks for finding me, it’s great to now there are other like-minded folk like us out there.
I absolutely adored Athens, but it can be hit and miss depending on the neighbourhood you’re staying in. Thanks so much for your comment, Todd!
Athens clean city???? lol I think we have been in two different citties than. In Europe Athens are considered next to Naples in Italy, most dirty city.
I was there today and there is literally garbage everywhere and some kind of weird acidic/trashy smell in the air. There is even a street where apparently cats, dogs AND people go to relieve themselves… The smell of this street is forever burned into my memory… I was googling around about all this and saw a few news articles that actually mention that the island has a huge problem with trash. I was only there for a few hours because my final destination was the island Naxos (highly recommended). Was very surprised that this was not #1 on the list, even more so that it was not even mentioned. I do agree with all the reasons you mention, but for me, the trash is the main reason I don’t like the island. It even makes some of the things you mention more absurd. How can a place this trashy be that expensive? Is there some kind of “Instagram filter” that removes all the trash for those pretentious people walking around? I don’t want to be rude to anyone, but why are more people not mentioning this? Is it very recent that it got out of hand?
In about 14 days I’ll be heading back home and sadly i have to go back to Mykonos to catch my plane. I will try to avoid as much of it as possible, straight from port to airport… I love Greece i hope Mykonos doesn’t give too many bad impressions for first timers in the country.
I’m sorry to hear that, Erik! That’s so awful.
Perhaps it is a more recent thing as it wasn’t very obvious during my visit some time ago. However my partner and I hired a scooter to visit the rest of the island, so it could have been we didn’t spend too much time in the Old Town to notice 😅 But I completely agree with you, Mykonos is not Greece as there are so many beautiful (and not rip-off) destinations to visit.
Thanks for reading and for your comment!
I 100% agree with this. I wish I had seen your blog post before going. It is absolutely overrated and not worth the visit. I was underwhelmed with the experience and couldn’t wait to get out of the island. Santorini has way more to offer.
Sorry to hear you couldn’t wait to leave, Abbas, that’s a shame. But it’s good to know we can spend much longer on Santorini and the other islands to have a great time.
Thanks for your comment!