Lipsi

Lipsi is a small island in the northern Dodecanese, set in the calm stretch of sea between Patmos and Leros. It is a one-village island: almost everyone lives in and around the harbour town, also called Lipsi, which gathers around a bay overlooked by the blue-domed church of Agios Ioannis. With only a few hundred permanent residents and no airport, it has kept an easygoing, family-run character that many larger islands have lost.

The island is easy to reach despite its size. Frequent local ferries and day boats connect it to nearby Patmos, about half an hour away, and to Leros, with longer links to Kos and the mainland at Piraeus. Many people visit Lipsi as a day trip from Patmos, but its charm reveals itself in the evenings, when the day boats leave and the waterfront settles into an unhurried rhythm of tavernas and passeggiata.

Lipsi is small enough to explore in a day yet generous with beaches for its size. Platis Gialos, a shallow sweep of pale sand, is the island's showpiece, while Katsadia, Monodendri and Hohlakoura offer quieter swimming among low green hills. A network of quiet roads and paths links them, and a small local bus and taxi boats help those without their own transport. The landscape is gentler and greener than the rocky islands further south, dotted with tiny chapels and terraced fields.

The island has a modest reputation for its wine, made from local vineyards, and for its unpretentious cooking built around the day's catch. Its religious focus is the monastery church that holds the icon of Panagia tou Charou, unusual for depicting the Virgin holding the crucified Christ, celebrated in a lively August festival that fills the village.

Come to Lipsi for calm days, clear water and genuine hospitality rather than sights or nightlife. It pairs beautifully with Patmos and suits couples, families and anyone wanting a slower Greek island. High summer is liveliest; late spring and early autumn are quieter and just as warm for swimming.