The islands nobody books: Naxos, Tinos, Milos, and the Ionian

Santorini and Mykonos are beautiful and overrun. For the same light and better beaches at half the price, try Naxos (long sandy beaches, mountain villages), Tinos (marble villages and pilgrimages, 20 minutes from Mykonos), Milos (volcanic coves), or the green Ionian islands like Kefalonia. On the mainland, Nafplio makes an easy two-day trip from Athens with Mycenae and Epidaurus on the way.