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:
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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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We came back from Mykonos last Wednesday. I totally agree with you! We have been there for 10 days. It is a nice island, yes. We really enjoyed the trip. But it is totally overrated, overpriced and if you have bad weather, Mykonos offers no possibilities what you can do.
And so many Instagram people there 🙁 … sometimes I was thinking they only travel to Mykonos for social media pictures…For us it was a good experience but we wont come back in future.
It’s a shame there isn’t much else to do if the weather isn’t on your side! I really don’t understand the Instagram appeal when there are so many other lovely islands. Thanks so much for your comment Phil, and safe travels home!
I stumbled onto this post while looking to see what I may have missed on Mykonos. I am here in shoulder/off season but agree with everything you mentioned. I had just spent three weeks all over Greece, stopping in Paros, Naxos, Milos, Athens, and in the Meteora monasteries/Delphi area. I must say Mykonos is a rather disappointing stop at end of my trip. There are much better beaches, cuter small towns, more atmospheric neighborhoods in the other places I have visited, all at half the prices I am paying in Mykonos (at least for food). Athens city itself has fantastic nightlife. Now that I’ve been here, I must admit I also don’t understand the appeal.
Oh wow, it sounds like you had a magnificent trip around Greece, Jen! There really isn’t much to Mykonos (which is fine if that’s what people expect!) but yes, I guess it comes across as having much more than it does on social media. Thanks for your comment and I hope you can enjoy the rest of your trip!
Just came to Mykonos as my 6th island, immediately preceding one was Naxos. Wow was it a shock. No idea why this place is so famous when it doesn’t have half the natural beauty of Naxos, or an ounce of history of Rhodes or Kos (aside from Delos of course). Prices are insane and the restaurants are super pretentious and overcharge for everything. I regret my choice of coming here that’s for sure.
I’m sorry to hear Mykonos was such a shock to you, Golfntravel98. It’s a shame it has morphed into what it has, but I certainly agree there are many more things to see and do on other islands! I hope the remainder of your trip is enjoyable, though 😊
All people commenting that mykonos is really expensive and really overcrowded, what did you expected? The island is full of famous names restaurants and hotels such as zuma, cavoo tagoo, nobu, etc. is it a surprise? I guess when you are booking you can see in advance the cost of the place. This is an island for those who like places like ibiza, monaco, dubai, porto cervo etc. it is this type of tourism and yes it is very expensive and some people dont mind paying for exclusivity and up notch services. As far as being overcrowded- may, june, sep and octobre- not as many turists, easy to navigate the island get bus cab etc and prices on sunbeds are so much cheaper. Now as far as the party not starting till late, not true, mykonos is famous for their sunset parties in bars- scorpios, 180, beach bars. And for having restaurants with party, people break plates, sing loudly, rest like remezzo, interni you can listen to happy bday every hour singed in greek. Again this is not for everyone, i love mykonos but in order to enjoy it i always pair it with much calmer islands so i can have the best of both worlds
Thanks for sharing your perspective, Marisa! You make some great points.
Glad to hear you enjoy Mykonos and we can agree it’s not for everyone ☺️
I have been to Mykonos 3 times becauae of those I travelled with and YES I found it is exactly as you described. I was told that its because I was grumpy gay boy … even us gay guys don’t like pretentious posing pouting preening flouncing Mykonos types. Thanks for review Alyse x Andrew x
It’s a such shame about the vibe, isn’t it? Thanks for your comment, Andrew 😊
Nice sharing, I must say that your shared information is very useful for me as well as other visitors.
Thanks, imally!
If you go to Mykonos, the most important is to take the small boat and visit Dilos Island.
So much history there.
Ooooh, that sounds lovely! I’ll have to look into that for my next trip to the Greek Islands. Thank you, Konstatinos! 🙂
Just returned from Greece and was also sorely disappointed by Mykonos! We also went to Delos Island. It was worth the visit only because it got us off of Mykonos for a day trip but seriously, it’s not worth the trek back to go to Delos. The tours that go there are not very good because they all use these Bluetooth speaker sets to try and talk to the tour groups (you have to go with a tour because it is an uninhabited island) and you can’t hear anything, and not to be crass, but the island is a literal pile of marble.
Oh that is a shame to hear, Liz. Thank you for the head sup about Delos as well, good to know!
I have travelled to the Greece and the Cyclades islands three years in a row. Mykonos has a south of France type vibe together with wonderful beaches. My best beaches are undoubtedly Naxos’s long, white sandy beaches. Santorini has an amazing sunset. The island is filled with crowds of cruise liner passengers riding poor donkeys up the hill. The beaches are horrid black sand beaches. Everyone has to go to Santorini at least once in their life to experience a sunset and then its time to leave and there’s no reason to ever return.
Oooh I would love to visit Naxos! I’ve visited Santorini a few times. Luckily I have visited during times when crowds haven’t been to overwhelming, it’s undoubtedly beautiful. I really love Rhodes, that’s quite underrated! Thanks for your comment and happy Greek Island hopping 🙂
I totally agree with you Alyse! I’m in Mykonos at the moment and wish I had found your article before I booked. I’m in the most beautiful spa hotel with amazing views … but find the attitude of the staff really disappointing. They act like they’re doing me a favour bring the overpriced drinks to my sunbed. Same thing in the overpriced restaurants. I have been to four other Greek islands and this is the only one I would not revisit. It’s all about the looks and instagram pictures and no thought given to the personal experiences of those who are spending their cash and vacation time here.
Oh Lesley, it is such a shame to hear that! I’m sorry to hear it’s the only island you wouldn’t revisit. Completely agree that it all seems to be about Instagram pictures and not about the individual experiences. It’s a bit sad to see travelling is like this for some people, but each to their own. Maybe you should let the staff know you have an online following of 50k people and see how differently you are treated 😉 Despite this I hope you get to enjoy the rest of your time in Mykonos and thanks for your comment!
I just found this and had to laugh! I’ve never been to Mykonos but can totally see where you’re coming from. I had irritations about Santorini too, although mostly a little different to yours (how expensive stuff is and the ENDLESS posers is the same, though), which I wrote a post about – I think it’s a little controversial as many people love the place, but it’s just not for me. Hey, we all prefer different things when we travel and thats ok!
Haha thanks so much, Rachel! I think Santorini has changed a bit in recent years (in terms of types of visitors) thanks to social media. I noticed a big change in the 5 years between my visits. While it is truly beautiful, everyone wants to get that Instagram shot! So yes Mykonos pretty much the same in that regard. True though, everyone prefers different things – each to their own 😉
If you are not at least 3 of the following:
really rich
young
beautiful
gay
This island is not really for you. You will find other islands are much nicer.
The locals outside the main town are really nice, especially if you speak a little greek. But in the main part of town and the beaches you will feel you are just a cash cow.
I tick only 1 maybe 2 of the boxes above and that was my experience
Oh I’m sorry to hear you had a disappointing experience too, Elias! Here’s hoping to better experiences on other Greek Islands 🙂