Already in 1994 I met a Swedish girl at Folégandros who talked very highly about Antíparos. Since then I'm been thinking of going there some day. 

During spring 1998 when I planned my travel to Greece I found some nice information on Internet about the islands, as well as positive reviews in several guidebooks.

Early June I was convinced to go to Antíparos and actually reserved a room in advance for the first time ever.

When I later arrived to the island one day, around midnight late June, I never stayed at the reserved room after all, caused by some misunderstanding I suppose. But I found a nice room anyway.

Most people stay in Antíparos town and I think that is a good solution, since you have easy access to several good beaches in about 5-10 minutes of walk and in the evening you have a lot of taverns, restaurants, bars and similar places to choose from.

I stayed at Hotel Mantalena situated on the islands small fishing harbor with wonderful views across the sea. The distance form the hotel to the main-street of Antíparos town is just about 100 meters, so I think the location is ideal. During night there was one or twice some disturbance from motorbikes, but as a whole it's quit calm. If you like you can enjoy breakfast or drink on one of the hotel's verandas. Call this number for more information/reservation: 0284-61206/61365, or fax number: 0284-61550.

There are of course many alternatives to select from if you like to stay in Antiparos. Perhaps you will find your own favorite.

If you prefer a more secluded stay you can choose between several places, among others close to Soros beach to the south (east). There are for instance apartments at Soros run by Kostas and Maria, who also have a tavern there. In the southwest at Ágios Geórgios is an another calm place to be. These places are calm but still they are easy to reach by motorbike or car. The road to the south is quit good, improved lately with EU funds.

There are good beaches on Antíparos from which several are close to Antíparos town. Let's start from the north (the list below is not complete, but I mention the most interesting):

If you start to walk from the ferry quay towards north, you will within ten minutes walk reach the campsite, and just right to it you find the beach Psaralidháki. This beach is a CO-beach. Around the beach there are small dunes with some vegetation, so if you are lucky you can find a more secluded spot.

  If you at this point look to the north you will se a small island called Diplo, where there are two beaches. You reach those beaches by swimming or maybe walking if you are tall enough, across the narrow passage. Unfortunately I haven't visited this island yet.

  A few meters to the east from Psaralidháki beach you will find beach in a small bay called Naturist beach and is one of few offically recognised naturist beaches in Greece.

  West from Antíparos town (start to walk from the main street) there is a rather big beach often called Sunset beach. Another name is Sifneiko. If you come here in the evening you can watch the beautiful sunset.

A five minutes walk south from the quay you find the beach Psaraliki I. The distance from here to Paros is so narrow that there is never any big waves here. As the beach is also shallow it's very suitable for children. They love it here! You can stay in the shadow beneath some tamarisk if you like. Furthermore there is a sun-chair service for those who like that.

  A few minutes to the south you find beach Psaraliki II, which is divided by a small point from Psaraliki I. On the point there is a strategically situated tavern. In contrast to Psaraliki I this beach is very much a CO-beach. Otherwise the conditions of this beach correspond very much to Psaraliki I.

 If you follow the path south from Psaraliki II, you will reach Panagia beach after about 10 minutes. Or follow the main road south out of Antíparos town, maybe 500 meters. There are several tamarisks along the beach and there is also a tavern close to the beach.

To reach other beaches on the island it's much easier if you have some kind of vehicle, a motorbike for instance.

The next beach you reach when you travel south on the main road is Glifa, which actually consists of two beaches. The disadvantage with those beaches is the nearness to the   road. Perhaps that's why I never saw any swimmers on this beach.

A little further south you will see four windmills on a hill. On this side of the hill there is a beach. I'm afraid I don't know the name of the beach.

Next beach to the south is Apandima, which is a rather small uninspiring beach. It was here the boats use to dock with tourist who were to visiting the cave, before the road was built.

By continuing south you will soon find a sign pointing left (east) down to Soros.

Soros beach can be divided in three parts. The southern part where the beach is a little more widely and with normally some visitors. Close to this beach there is a nice tavern with good Greek food. Kostas and Maria run this place. They also have several apartments for rent just a few hundred meters from the beach, as I have mentioned above.

The part in the middle where the beach is rather narrow, have hardly any visitors in the end of June.

The northern part of Soros beach, that you reach if you pass over some cliffs from the south, is rather secluded from the rest of the beach and here is naturism put into practice. It's a nice sandy beach with good swimming. Three are few visitors here, at least in June. An alternative way to reach this beach is to turn left some hundred meters before the main road down to Soros. You will pass a pension/studios on the way down to the beach.

If you not turn left to Soros, but continue the main road that is now turning right (westwards) you will soon get to the area of Ágios Giórgios. Here you find several small beaches or coves.

The first two beaches closest to the summerhouses in the area have most visitors, but of course not as many as the beaches around Antíparos town.

The third beach north of Captain Pipinos tavern is the best in this area with about ten visitors a day in late June.

The is a very small beach at the north end of Ágios Giórgios, close to a small church. A beautiful place to be late in the afternoon!

The island Despotiko divided from Ágios Giórgios by a rather narrow passage is uninhabited and has several good  beaches.

On the west side of the island there is a quite nice beach called Livadia. To get there, follow the main road to the south, turn right (west) of the main road after the second gas station. Half the distance to the beach is the road of good quality; the second part is a dirt road, rather bumpy. This beach is pretty nice, but with the disadvantage of seaweed along the beach (if it's not be removed) and if you are unlucky you may step on some oil. They were in 1998 constructing a house close to the beach. Perhaps it will be a tavern or a pension or both?

Perhaps the big cave on Antíparos is considered to be the great attraction on the island. I'm probably not the right person to tell, since I never got inside the cave, even if I tried. I was a little bit to early one morning (I'm the kind of guy who like to take advantage of the time I'm in Greece, so I don't sleep late in the mornings). Probably you can find more stalactites in St. Petersburg, Russia then in the cave itself, as the cave have been robbed during the centuries, not only by Russian officers around the year of 1770, but by others as well.

I still think that the beaches are the best assets of the island. If you prefer to mingle with lots of people you select a beach close to Antíparos town. But if you prefer seclusion and stillness you go south to Syros or Ágios Giórgios.

If you enjoy good beaches you should go to Despotiko Island, mentioned above. Captain Pipinos at the tavern with the same name will take you there. Be prepared with water an food though; you won't get any on the island. You may be the only person on the island the day you are there!

A pleasant event take places June 23 every year. Children take their May 1 garland, which now is dry. They put them together in a stack and then put it all in fire. Then they should jump quickly over the fire. This takes place by the harbor. I don't know if this only occur on Antíparos; I haven't seen it elsewhere.

There are a lot of restaurants and taverns to choose from, especially in Ántíparos town. I would like to mention one or two places.

First of all a tavern called Taverna Yiorgis, run by Yiorgis and his family. The place is situated on the main street some hundred meters from the fishing harbor. Here you get good traditional food, friendly service and nice atmosphere. 

Another place is Tavern 5F, perhaps not so traditional, but run by a nice family. I was here during lunchtime several days and I liked their salads, specially their tuna fish salad!

A quite different tavern is Anna's in Ágios Giórgios, not far from Captain Pipinos tavern, about 200-300 meters inland from his place. I had lunch there one day and I was the only one there. Anna is friendly, serve nice food and the place is very peaceful; a place for relaxation and inner peace.