Antiparos: ten minutes from Paros, and a different island

It is the island people add to a Paros trip and then wish they had booked properly.

Getting there

Two crossings, and the difference matters:

• From Pounda, on the west coast of Paros, a small car ferry runs the short hop across the channel very frequently in season. This is the one to use with a car or scooter.
• From Parikia, the Paros port, a passenger boat runs directly to Antiparos village in season. This is the one to use on foot.

Neither needs booking in advance in the way an inter-island ferry does, but both thin considerably out of season, and wind can stop the small boats. Greek island ferries explains how the wider system works.

The village

Antiparos town is a single main street of whitewashed houses running from the harbour to a Venetian kastro, a fortified core built in the fifteenth century where the outer houses formed the walls, like the kastelli at Emporio on Santorini.

The street holds the shops, tavernas and bars, and it is busier in the evening than the size of the island suggests, partly because Antiparos has a long-standing reputation as a quiet retreat for people who can afford to be anywhere.

The cave

The Cave of Antiparos is the island’s headline sight: a large stalactite cave in the mountain in the island’s centre, entered down a long flight of steps into a single vast chamber.

Two things are worth knowing before you go. It is a serious descent and climb on steps, several hundred of them, and there is no other way out. And the cave has been visited for a very long time: the walls carry inscriptions left by travellers over centuries, which is either vandalism or history depending on how old it is.

Beaches

The island’s beaches are small, sandy and mostly undeveloped:

• Psaraliki, a pair of sheltered sandy bays a walk south of the village, shaded in part by tamarisks, and the easiest option without transport.
• Soros, on the east coast, with a taverna and calm water.
• Sifneiko, sometimes called Sunset beach, on the west side, facing the channel.
• Agios Georgios, in the far south, looking across to the uninhabited island of Despotiko, where an important ancient sanctuary is being excavated.

None of them are big. In August the island fills, and the beaches feel it, but the scale stays domestic.

Despotiko

Off the south-west coast lies Despotiko, uninhabited, where archaeologists have been uncovering an archaic sanctuary of Apollo for years. Boats run across from Agios Georgios in season, and the site is open ground with excavation in progress rather than a finished monument.

It is the most interesting thing on the island for anyone who likes ancient sites, and it is genuinely quiet.

How long to stay

A day trip works: the boat over, the cave, a beach, lunch in the village, the boat back. It is the standard Paros excursion.

Three or four nights is the version people recommend afterwards. The island is small enough to feel known by the second day, which is the point of it, and evenings in the village are the best part.

For where to base a wider Cyclades trip, where to stay in Paros covers the bigger island next door, and island hopping in the Cyclades sets out how these islands connect.

Last checked August 2026. Ferry frequencies, cave access and seasonal opening change - see our editorial policy.

Common questions

How do you get to Antiparos?

By small car ferry from Pounda on the west coast of Paros, a crossing of a few minutes, or by passenger boat from Parikia to Antiparos village in season.

Is Antiparos worth visiting?

Yes, either as a day trip from Paros for the cave and a beach, or as a quiet base for a few nights if you want a slower island.

What is there to do on Antiparos?

The cave in the island’s centre, the village and its Venetian kastro, a handful of small beaches, and the boat to the excavations on Despotiko.

How long is the ferry from Paros to Antiparos?

A few minutes from Pounda, and longer from Parikia, with frequent crossings in season and far fewer out of it.

Can you visit Antiparos without a car?

Yes. The village, the Psaraliki beaches and the boat to Despotiko are all reachable on foot or by local bus, though a scooter or car opens up the rest of the coast.

Is Antiparos expensive?

It has a reputation as a discreet retreat, and some accommodation is priced accordingly, but the village tavernas and beaches are ordinary Cycladic prices.

• Attractions

  Things to do

  What is worth your time here, and what to skip.

  See the attractions →
• Beaches

  The beaches

  Which shore, which sand, and how you actually get there.

  See the beaches →

Next

Read the Paros guide, island hopping in the Cyclades, or best beaches in Paros.