Mykonos Port of Call

​By Senior Travel Planner Meghan Umlauf

My family and I recently took a Royal Caribbean cruise of the Greek Isles that left from Civitavecchia, Italy. Mykonos was our second port of call after a glorious day at sea and stopping in our first port of call - Santorini!  I have shared more about our pre-stay in Rome in my post “Rome in a Day and a Half” and our day in Santorini in my post “Santorini Port of Call”

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On the water taxi

We were scheduled to have a full day in Mykonos - being able to get off at 8am and all aboard by 6pm.  With Mykonos being known for its beaches and in town shopping - this is all we had planned to do here - on our own!  For the readers reference - I had travelled in Greece 20 years ago and had been to Mykonos then - so after researching the internet for the latest travel options, I felt comfortable that my husband and I (with our teen children) could navigate the island on our own.

The first challenge was to understand where the ship would be docking.  As you will learn searching the internet, Mykonos island has two ports: The old port in Mykonos Town, and the New port at Tourlos area, about 2 km north of Mykonos Town.  Almost all cruise ships dock at the new port in Tourlos, while some cruise ships just moor/anchor off-the old port. We docked at the new port and took a “sea bus” or water taxi over to Mykonos Town for about $2 a person round trip.  Once you get off the ship, the water taxi stand is not a far walk with clear signage. 

Once arriving to the iconic cobblestone, white building town of Mykonos we focused on getting the bus stop that would take us to Platys Gialos Beach - one of the best on Mykonos, and close by!  We headed to Fabrika Square just a few minutes walk through the winding streets of Mykonos Town  (mostly by following the signs)  and purchased our bus tickets here.  A one way ticket is about $1.80 per person  and you can buy a round trip at the ticket kiosk found in this area!  

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Platys Gialos Beach

The bus drops you right in front of the beach entrance - basically a dead end street, as many streets are in Mykonos.   Be sure to take a minute to watch the tight squeezes these busses get themselves out of (and into)!  This beach is lined with taverna’s that have capitalized on the tourists - providing beach loungers, tables and sun shade of varying quality in front of their establishment, charging for their use - some offering a credit to then eat at their restaurant!  Most of the tavernas have their “deals” posted - some you have to ask the attendants milling around the boardwalk that lies in between the restaurants and the beach.  We ended up settling ourselves at one midway down the beach.  We chose  it for no other reason than it seemed they were all about the same cost and I had to go to the bathroom!  So, for 20 Euros we got 2 loungers with a small table and umbrella - and apparently since we ordered drinks right away they put us in the front row!  While this seemed an ideal location (easy access to the water) it became very apparent that we would have to tolerate the peddlers walking up and down the beach trying to sell us their wares…
We had a relaxing morning enjoying the drink delivery and people watching - as well as the crystal clear water.  Eventually, we ate lunch here as well.  I will tell you I was a bit disappointed, as it was not the authentic Greek cuisine I was looking forward to.  I think they were trying to cater to a tourists palate - rather than stay true to Greek traditions.  Still better than anything in America I have had - just not as good as the food in Santorini!

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Watching the time - and the bus schedule - we wrapped up and headed back to the bus stop to get back to Mykonos Town for some shopping!  We meandered throughout the tiny streets that seemed to wind around the town aimlessly, which would explain the slow pace that we were moving at!  We again were asked to take Instagram worthy photos of my daughter (who is 16) walking the beautiful streets of town - take some time to notice the colored doors of the buildings around you as well as the pink bougainvillea flowers that are just beautiful against the stark while buildings!

While we enjoyed the sites we managed to get in some shopping!  My husband purchased a beautiful blue linen shirt that caught his eye and I found an exclusive to Mykonos Pandora Evil Eye charm for my collection!  The Evil Eye (Mati) is a very popular item to Greece culture - known to ward of the evil eye given by others to cause bad luck - and can be found in varying forms all over the island!  Other items we found here - a turkish beach towel, my daughter had been wanting, as well as olive oil lavender soap to give as gifts back home - wrapped up with an evil eye charm attached!

The water taxi back to the cruise ship also had a schedule and to get back to the ship for all ashore by 6pm, so we had to make the 5:30 taxi.   I wish we had more time in this port, but we really enjoyed this day as much as our last!  ​

Look for my next post about our stop in Piraeus Greece and our adventures in Athens!

Want to cruise to Mykonos?  Contact me today to find out how!