Mykonos has two very different coasts. The south is sheltered from the Meltemi wind and home to the island's famous organised beaches — from the party sands of Paradise to the boho glamour of Paraga and Scorpios. The north is wilder: whipped by the summer wind into a windsurf and kitesurf paradise at Ftelia, and dotted with empty, facility-free beaches like Agios Sostis and Fokos, reached only by rough tracks. This guide covers 8 of the best beyond the headline party beaches — relaxed, windswept and wild — with lounger prices, facilities and how to get to each. Most beaches are free to walk on; you only pay for loungers and shade.
€30–60 loungersElia Beach
Area
Southeast coast
Facilities
Beach clubs, loungers, watersports
“The island's longest beach at 800 m — a more relaxed atmosphere than Paradise, ideal for those who want beach-club service without the party tempo. It has a historically LGBTQ+ eastern end.”
€35+ loungersParaga Beach
Area
South coast
Facilities
Beach clubs, loungers, tavernas
“Between Paradise and Platys Gialos, split into two sections — chic Scorpios at one end and a chilled taverna side at the other. Loungers €35 (Scorpios €100+). About 15 minutes from Chora.”
€20–35 loungersKalafatis Beach
Area
East coast
Facilities
Watersports school, loungers, tavernas
“The island's windsurf and kitesurf capital — Kalafatis Watersports runs a school and rental. Quieter and cheaper than the south-coast club beaches. About 30 minutes from Chora; a car is best.”
€20–35 loungersFtelia Beach
Area
North coast
Facilities
Windsurf schools, restaurant
“The north coast's windsurf mecca — the Meltemi blows 25–35 knots in July–August, making it one of the Aegean's best wind- and kitesurf spots. Not the beach for a calm day of sunbathing.”
FreeAgios Sostis
Area
North coast
Facilities
Unorganised; no loungers
“An empty north-coast beach — no beach bar, no loungers (bring your own). Kiki's Taverna is a 5-minute walk. The nearest road ends 200 m from the sand.”
FreeFokos Beach
Area
North coast
Facilities
One taverna; no loungers
“The island's most remote beach — a 25-minute drive from Chora on a 4WD track, with no electricity. Fokos Taverna is the only building. No loungers, bring your own. Wild Mykonos.”
€30+ loungersPanormos Beach
Area
North coast
Facilities
Beach clubs, loungers, restaurant
“The north coast's more chic beach — Branco Beach Bar and Principote Beach Club. Calmer than the south coast but trendy. About 25 minutes from Chora.”
€25–40 loungersAgrari Beach
Area
Southeast coast
Facilities
One beach club, loungers
“A small crescent bay between Elia and Super Paradise — calm, organised and a perfect middle ground. Easiest reached by water taxi from Platys Gialos or a 15-minute clifftop path from Elia.”
Mykonos beaches in detail
1.Elia Beach
Elia is the island's longest beach — 800 metres of soft golden sand on the southeast coast, about 12 km from Chora — and one of Mykonos's most balanced beach-club beaches. The mood is noticeably more relaxed than Paradise or Super Paradise: music is present but plays in the background rather than as a dominating day-club set, and the clubs (Elia Beach Club, Atma) hold a solid mid-range price level with loungers €30–60 and lunch €35–60. The water is crystal clear and the seabed shelves gradually, making it good for swimming. The beach has historically had an LGBTQ+ eastern end while the western section draws a more mixed family and couples crowd, though today those boundaries are blurred. The KTEL bus from Chora runs directly (about €1 per trip, roughly hourly in high season), but a water taxi from Platys Gialos is often the more pleasant way to arrive. There is also a smaller naturist beach tucked behind the rocks at the far eastern end. For a long, beautiful stretch of sand with proper facilities but without the frantic party energy, Elia is one of the island's most satisfying beaches.
Hours
Beach always open; clubs midday to evening
Price
Loungers €30–60; lunch €35–60 per person
Getting there
KTEL bus from Chora roughly hourly (€1); or water taxi from Platys Gialos
Insider tip: The island's longest beach at 800 m — a more relaxed atmosphere than Paradise, ideal for those who want beach-club service without the party tempo. It has a historically LGBTQ+ eastern end.
2.Paraga Beach
Paraga is one of Mykonos's most characterful south-coast beaches, a compact bay between Paradise and Platys Gialos that neatly splits into two very different moods. At one end sits Scorpios, the island's cult boho-luxe beach club, with its famous sunset ritual, DJ sets and a barefoot, white-clad crowd — expect to pay €100 and up for a lounger and to book well ahead. At the other end, things are far more low-key: relaxed tavernas, cheaper loungers from around €35, and a chilled, come-as-you-are atmosphere that has drawn a bohemian crowd since the island's hippy days. The result is a beach that lets you choose your own experience — glamour and spectacle, or a simple swim and a plate of grilled fish. The water is calm and clear, and there is a small campsite and budget accommodation nearby, keeping the vibe younger and more mixed than the pure glamour beaches. It is about 15 minutes from Chora by bus, car or water taxi. For a beach that offers both the see-and-be-seen scene and a laid-back retreat within a few hundred metres, Paraga is hard to beat.
Hours
Beach always open; Scorpios midday to late
Price
Loungers from €35; Scorpios €100+
Getting there
About 15 minutes from Chora by bus, car or water taxi
Insider tip: Between Paradise and Platys Gialos, split into two sections — chic Scorpios at one end and a chilled taverna side at the other. Loungers €35 (Scorpios €100+). About 15 minutes from Chora.
3.Kalafatis Beach
Kalafatis lies on the east coast of Mykonos near Ano Mera and is the island's most established windsurf and kitesurf beach after Ftelia. The Meltemi wind blows more gently here than on the north coast but steadily enough for reliable windsurfing conditions from June to September — Kalafatis Watersports has run its school here since 1985, renting boards, sails and wetsuits from €25–45 an hour and offering lessons from beginner to competition level. The beach itself is 600 metres of golden sand, noticeably less crowded than the south coast and with a considerably friendlier price level (loungers €20–35, lunch €25–40). The Aphrodite Beach Resort at one end is one of the island's oldest hotels and lends the beach a relaxed, mid-range atmosphere. Because the KTEL bus from Chora runs only twice a day, a rental car or ATV is by far the easiest way to get here. For active travellers who want to windsurf or kitesurf, or simply for anyone seeking a longer, calmer, cheaper beach away from the beach-club circus, Kalafatis is one of the island's most rewarding stretches of sand.
Hours
Beach always open; watersports daytime in season
Price
Loungers €20–35; windsurf rental €25–45/hour
Getting there
About 30 minutes from Chora; a rental car or ATV is recommended (limited buses)
Insider tip: The island's windsurf and kitesurf capital — Kalafatis Watersports runs a school and rental. Quieter and cheaper than the south-coast club beaches. About 30 minutes from Chora; a car is best.
4.Ftelia Beach
Ftelia sits in a sheltered bay on the north coast of Mykonos and is the island's absolute wind-sports mecca. When the Meltemi blows from the north in summer — which is nearly all of July and August — the wind accelerates over the mountain ridge and slams down onto Ftelia bay at a constant 25–35 knots from midday onward. That makes it one of the Aegean's best wind- and kitesurf spots, and Ftelia Watersports plus a handful of other schools offer rental, lessons and advanced coaching from €30–50 an hour. For anyone who doesn't windsurf, Ftelia is less suitable: the wind makes sunbathing awkward, sand blows about and parasols risk taking flight. The beach itself is beautiful, though — 700 metres of soft sand with Late Neolithic archaeological finds (around 4,500 BC) in the dunes — and the single restaurant, Ftelia Beach Restaurant, keeps a high standard. It is about 20 minutes from Chora, best reached by car or ATV. Come here for the thrill of the wind and the waves rather than for a still, sun-baked lounger day — this is Mykonos at its wildest and most elemental.
Hours
Beach always open; schools daytime in season
Price
Loungers €20–35; windsurf rental €30–50/hour
Getting there
About 20 minutes from Chora on the north coast; car or ATV recommended
Insider tip: The north coast's windsurf mecca — the Meltemi blows 25–35 knots in July–August, making it one of the Aegean's best wind- and kitesurf spots. Not the beach for a calm day of sunbathing.
5.Agios Sostis
Agios Sostis is one of Mykonos's most beautiful undeveloped beaches, a peaceful stretch of golden sand on the north coast that offers a glimpse of the island as it was before the beach clubs arrived. There is no beach bar, no music, no organised loungers and no facilities of any kind — you bring your own shade, water and everything else — and the nearest road ends about 200 metres from the sand, so you finish the journey on foot. That mild inconvenience is exactly what keeps it quiet and natural, a favourite of travellers and locals who want to escape the crowds and the commercial scene. The water is clear and clean, and the setting feels genuinely wild. Just above the beach sits the legendary Kiki's Taverna, the famous off-grid, no-electricity grill house, about a five-minute walk away — which means you can pair a morning on an empty beach with one of the island's most beloved lunches. Because it faces north, it can catch the Meltemi wind, so check conditions. For unspoilt, free, back-to-nature beach time a world away from Nammos and Scorpios, Agios Sostis is a treasure.
Hours
Always open; unorganised
Price
Free (bring your own shade)
Getting there
North coast; the road ends about 200 m from the sand, then a short walk down
Insider tip: An empty north-coast beach — no beach bar, no loungers (bring your own). Kiki's Taverna is a 5-minute walk. The nearest road ends 200 m from the sand.
6.Fokos Beach
Fokos is the most remote and wildest beach on Mykonos, a beautiful, undeveloped bay on the exposed north coast reached only by a rough, unpaved track about 25 minutes from Chora that really requires a 4WD or ATV. There is no electricity, no beach club, no loungers and no music — just a long stretch of sand, clear water, and a single building: the famous Fokos Taverna, which cooks a short menu of fresh fish and simple Greek dishes right on the beach. Bring your own shade, water and cash, because there are no facilities and no card machines here. The effort of getting to Fokos is precisely the point — it filters out the crowds so completely that even in August you can find yourself almost alone, a rare and precious thing on this island. Because it faces north, it catches the Meltemi wind, so it is best on a calmer day. For travellers who want to trade beach clubs and bottle service for genuine solitude, wild scenery and a long lazy lunch at the edge of the Aegean, Fokos is the ultimate escape — Mykonos stripped back to sand, sea and sky.
Hours
Always open; taverna in season
Price
Free (bring your own shade)
Getting there
North coast; a 25-minute drive from Chora on a 4WD/ATV track
Insider tip: The island's most remote beach — a 25-minute drive from Chora on a 4WD track, with no electricity. Fokos Taverna is the only building. No loungers, bring your own. Wild Mykonos.
7.Panormos Beach
Panormos is the north coast's most fashionable beach, a wide sandy bay that has become the stylish, slightly more grown-up counterpoint to the south coast's party beaches. Its two big names — Principote Beach Club and Branco Beach Bar — bring a chic, design-led scene with DJ sets, elegant loungers, good Mediterranean food and a see-and-be-seen crowd, but the beach is longer and more open than the packed south-coast spots, so it feels more spacious and relaxed even when busy. Loungers start from around €30, rising at the smarter clubs. Because it faces north, Panormos can catch the Meltemi wind, which keeps things cooler and gives it a slightly wilder edge than the sheltered southern bays, though the club sections are set up to make the most of calmer days. It is about 25 minutes from Chora and best reached by car, as bus service is limited. For travellers who want a trendy, well-designed beach-club experience with more room to breathe — and a change of scene from the Paradise-and-Psarou circuit — Panormos delivers style and space in equal measure.
Hours
Beach always open; clubs midday to evening
Price
Loungers from €30; club dining higher
Getting there
About 25 minutes from Chora on the north coast; car recommended
Insider tip: The north coast's more chic beach — Branco Beach Bar and Principote Beach Club. Calmer than the south coast but trendy. About 25 minutes from Chora.
8.Agrari Beach
Agrari is perhaps the most underrated beach on Mykonos — a 200-metre crescent-shaped bay tucked between the far more famous Elia and Super Paradise. Its single beach club (Agrari Beach Club) keeps mid-range prices, the volume stays low, and because there is no direct road down to the sand — you have to either take a water taxi or walk about 15 minutes over the cliffs from Elia — the crowds never build to anything like those on the neighbouring beaches. The water is crystal clear, the seabed sandy and gently sloping, and at the western end a few large flat rocks make for good snorkelling. For families or couples who want proper beach-club service without the party tempo or the crush, Agrari hits a genuine sweet spot: organised enough to be comfortable, quiet enough to feel like a discovery. A water taxi from Platys Gialos costs around €7–10 per trip. In a place where the best-known beaches can feel like open-air nightclubs by mid-afternoon, Agrari's calm, clear-water crescent is a welcome reminder that Mykonos still has peaceful corners if you know where to look.
Hours
Beach always open; club daytime in season
Price
Loungers €25–40; lunch €30–50 per person
Getting there
By water taxi from Platys Gialos, or a 15-minute walk over the cliffs from Elia
Insider tip: A small crescent bay between Elia and Super Paradise — calm, organised and a perfect middle ground. Easiest reached by water taxi from Platys Gialos or a 15-minute clifftop path from Elia.