Amorgos

Amorgos is essentially a mountain ridge rising from the sea, 126 square kilometres long and narrow, with an almost unbroken cliff wall on its southeastern side and small harbours on the other. The Chora, inland and high, is one of the finest in the Cyclades: white cube houses, thirty-odd churches, windmills on the ridge above and a Venetian castle rock in the middle. Below it, the monastery of Hozoviotissa is built into the cliff face. Walking is the island's speciality, with a network of restored paths linking villages, chapels and beaches; the route from Chora down to Agia Anna and along the coast is the best known. The island became famous in 1988 as the setting of Luc Besson's film The Big Blue, and the wreck of the Olympia lies on the western shore.

What you actually see

• The Chora - a hilltop white town with windmills and a castle rock.
• Hozoviotissa - the monastery pressed into the cliff below the Chora.
• The walking network - restored stone paths across the island.
• The Olympia wreck - a beached freighter on the western coast.

When to go

May, June, September and October for walking weather and open tavernas; the meltemi blows hard in high summer and can disrupt ferries. Winter is very quiet with reduced boats.

Honest expectations

Getting there is a long ferry from Athens, and connections between the two ports need planning. Beaches are small and mostly pebble. In August the Chora and the monastery are busy despite the distance.

Nearby

The Small Cyclades, Koufonisia among them, lie west; Naxos is the main ferry hub.