Amorgos, Greece: The Chora, Villages, Beaches & Hotels

Amorgos is the most easterly of the Cyclades islands, 117 square kilometres in size with around 1,800 inhabitants, long-stretched, rugged and mountainous. It is one of the least touristed of the large Aegean islands. Two ports serve the island — Katapola in the west and Aegiali in the north-east — the quiet Chora climbs the hills between them, and the Hozoviotissa monastery clings to the cliff below the Chora. The first sight of Amorgos from the ferry is imposing, but ashore it is friendly and unspoilt.

Sea

Aegean · Cyclades

Size

117 km²

Population

~1,800

Ports

Katapola · Aegiali

Villages of Amorgos

Amorgos keeps its life in a handful of villages, led by the hilltop Chora and the two ports of Katapola and Aegiali, with the traditional villages of Langada and Tholaria on the hills above the Aegiali bay.

Chora (Amorgos Town)

The Chora is the island capital, set high in the hills between the two ports and almost free of traffic. It is a typical unspoilt Cycladic town of white cubic houses, pretty churches, old stone windmills and small squares, crowned by a 13th-century castle on a rock at its heart. A winding road climbs to it from Katapola through a fertile green plain. From the end of the Chora's main street, stairs lead down the cliff to the Hozoviotissa monastery and on to Agia Anna beach.

Katapola

Katapola is the main port, in a sheltered bay on the west side of the island and the more populated part of Amorgos. It holds most of the tavernas, restaurants and accommodation, and its waterfront is the busiest place on the island. The town beach is modest, but taxi boats and a 30–40 minute walk reach the finer beaches of Maltezi and Agios Panteleimon behind the western headland. On the hillside above the port lie the remains of the ancient city of Minoa.

Aegiali (Egiali)

Aegiali, in the north-east, is the second port, smaller than Katapola but more picturesque. It has a long, good sandy beach with a small Venetian ruin on it, views over the islet of Nikouria, and a hilly skyline topped by several villages. It is a quieter base that appeals to seasoned island-hoppers, and the Aegialis Hotel & Spa on the hill above the village looks out over the whole bay.

Langada

Langada is one of the two traditional villages on the hills above the bay of Aegiali. It is a whitewashed hillside village reached by road from the port and linked to its neighbours by old stone footpaths, and it makes a base for walkers exploring the terraced slopes of the north-east. From here paths climb into the mountains and drop back down to the beaches of the Aegiali bay.

Tholaria

Tholaria is the second hillside village above Aegiali, named after the vaulted Roman tombs (tholoi) once found nearby. Like Langada it is a quiet, whitewashed village with wide views over the Aegiali bay and the sea. A footpath from Tholaria leads down to the long sandy beach of Levressos, and the two villages are joined to Aegiali and to each other by the island's network of old walking trails.

Sights and the Hozoviotissa monastery

The marquee sight of Amorgos is the Monastery of Hozoviotissa, a white monastery built into a sheer cliff below the Chora and one of the most striking sights in the Cyclades. Stairs from the end of the Chora's main street lead down to it and on to Agia Anna beach. In Katapola lie the remains of the ancient city of Minoa, named after King Minos of Crete, who legend says also ruled Amorgos. The village of Arkesini in the south keeps the remains of a Hellenistic tower and, at its entrance, the ancient temple of Agios Onoufrios, and more Hellenistic watchtowers are scattered across the island. The full round is on the Amorgos sights guide.

Beaches of Amorgos

Amorgos keeps a good number of beaches, most of them small coves reached on foot or by boat. The organised sandy beach at Aegiali is the easiest, long and shallow with tavernas and sunbeds; beyond it lie the quieter coves of Fokiotrypa and the naturist beach of Levressos. On the Katapola side, the fine beaches of Maltezi and Agios Panteleimon sit behind the western headland, while Agia Anna, near the Hozoviotissa monastery, is a pebble cove on the east coast. Remote beaches such as Mouros and Kalotaritissa in the south often have no taverna, so bring your own water and shade. The full run is set out on the Amorgos beaches guide.