Pserimos

Were it not so close to Kos and Kalymnos, the little island of Pserimos, filled with remote beaches, might be idyllic.

Throughout the season, many boats and yachts arrive that they have had to build a second jetty at little Avlakia port. In midsummer, day-trippers blanket the main sandy beach that curves in front of Avlakia’s thirty-odd houses and huge communal olive grove; even during May or late September you’re guaranteed at least eighty outsiders daily (versus a permanent population of 25).

Three other beaches are within easy reach: the clean sand-and-gravel strand at Vathy is a well-marked, Marathounda is composed of pebbles but best of all is Grafiotissa, a 300m-long beach of near-Caribbean quality.