Platys Gialos, Ornos, Psarou and How the Southern Beach Water Taxis Work

The southwestern corner of Mykonos, just 3.5 to 5 kilometres south of Mykonos Town, holds the island's most sheltered, family-friendly bays and the departure jetty for the famous Southern Beach Water Taxis. Because KTEL buses run every 15 to 20 minutes from Fabrika Square in Chora straight to Ornos (10 mins) and Platys Gialos (12 mins), you can reach the water in minutes.

1. How the Southern Beach Water-Taxi Boats (Kaikia) Work

Instead of driving up and down steep, narrow inland roads between the southern coves, hop onto the Mykonos Water Taxi fleet of colourful traditional wooden boats (operating daily from roughly in the late morning to in the early evening between May and October):

• Main Boarding Hub at Platys Gialos Pier (plus morning departures from Ornos): take the 12-minute KTEL bus from Fabrika to Platys Gialos and walk to the stone jetty at the western end of the beach.
• The 7-Beach Hop-On / Hop-Off Route: boats depart every 30 minutes heading east, stopping in order at: 1. Platys Gialos → 2. Paraga → 3. Paradise → 4. Super Paradise → 5. Agrari → 6. Elia (with select boats continuing to Kalo Livadi and Kalafatis). You can buy a single one-way ticket between any two beaches or an All-Day Hop-On / Hop-Off Boat Pass that lets you visit three different beaches in one day.

2. Ornos Bay, Psarou and Agios Ioannis (Kapari)

• Ornos Bay (3 km south of Chora): sitting on a narrow sandy isthmus with water on two sides (wind-swept kitesurfing beach Korfos on the north, and mirror-calm Ornos Beach on the south), Ornos is the best beach on the island for families with young children and shallow swimming, lined with relaxed bakeries and fish tavernas.
• Psarou Beach (Next cove west of Platys Gialos, 10-minute coastal walk): the most famous luxury yacht bay in Greece (home to Nammos), encircled by steep hills that keep the emerald water completely still.
• Agios Ioannis & Secret Kapari Cove (On the Western Peninsula): facing due west toward sacred Delos Island (and famous as the filming location of the 1989 film Shirley Valentine). Walk five minutes past the little white chapel of Agios Ioannis down a dirt path to Kapari, a tiny, unorganized pocket of soft sand and smooth granite boulders with the best beach sunset on Mykonos.