Shannon's Mykonos

Mykonos is complicated. There is nowhere else quite like it in Greece. It is beautiful, glamorous, expensive, chaotic, overdeveloped, sometimes completely ridiculous - and yet, if you know where to look, there is still a great island underneath all of that. The mistake is to think Mykonos is only Scorpios, Nammos, superyachts and people trying desperately to be noticed. Drive away from Chora and the beach clubs and you can still find empty stretches of coastline, small tavernas, working farms, old monasteries and the village of Ano Mera, where life moves at a completely different pace. I have a bit of a love-hate relationship with Mykonos. At its best, it has incredible energy, some fantastic food, beautiful architecture and a sense of fun that few islands can match. At its worst, it feels like a wanker magnet has hit the island. My advice is not to choose between the two Mykonos experiences - do both. Have the ridiculous lunch at Scorpios if you can afford it, but the next day drive to a remote beach, find a simple taverna and eat grilled fish with your feet almost in the sand. Driving here is a nightmare, but that's the way to understand the island. Stay three or four nights, hire a car and deliberately see both sides of it: go to Scorpios once, swim at Agios Sostis, queue for Kiki's, drive inland to Ano Mera, find a proper Greek taverna, get out to Fokos and take the boat to Delos. Don't spend the entire trip chasing the most expensive table on the island. The best version of Mykonos might be the one you find when you stop trying so hard to be seen.

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