Day 1 — Arrive in Kamares, dinner in Apollonia
Ferries dock in Kamares around mid-afternoon. Drop your bag, swim off the town beach to wash off the boat, and have a first frappé at one of the harbour cafés while you watch the catamarans turn around.
As the heat drops, head up to Apollonia, the hilltop capital, fifteen minutes by bus or taxi. Wander the marble lanes of Steno, then sit down for dinner at Drakakis or Cayenne. Order fava, caper salad, and grilled octopus. Walk the lanes again after — Apollonia is at its best after 10pm.
Day 2 — Kastro and a sunset at Chrysopigi
Spend the morning in Kastro, the medieval village built into the cliff on the east coast. The Venetian houses still form the outer walls. Coffee at Leonidas with the Aegean two storeys below you, then walk down to the tiny pebble cove of Seralia for a swim.
Late afternoon, drive (or walk the coastal path, 45 minutes) to the whitewashed monastery of Chrysopigi, perched on its own little rock. Time it for sunset — the light turns the chapel pink, then gold. Dinner at Chrysopigi taverna, a few steps away, on revithokeftedes (chickpea fritters) and grilled fish.
Day 3 — Beach day on the south coast
Today is for doing nothing. Pick one of Platis Gialos, Vathi, or Faros and stay all day. Vathi has the best sand, Platis Gialos the easiest amenities, Faros the prettiest swimming around the lighthouse rocks.
Late lunch at Omega 3 in Platis Gialos for modern Sifnian seafood, or Manolis at Vathi for the classics, with your feet in the sand.
Day 4 — Pottery, Artemonas, a long lunch
Morning: visit a working pottery studio. Atsonios in Vathi or Lembesis in Kamares both let you watch the wheel and pick up a mastelo dish to take home.
Lunch in Artemonas, the prettiest village on the island, all neoclassical mansions and bougainvillea. Reserve at Mama Mia or Margarita for the slow Sunday-style revithada (chickpea stew baked overnight). Afternoon nap. Evening: stroll back down to Apollonia.
Day 5 — A short hike, then ferry
If your ferry leaves in the afternoon, do the gentle walk from Kastro down to Poulati monastery and back (45 minutes round trip, mostly downhill on the way out). One last swim at the Poulati ladder, then back to Kamares for the boat.
