Ios, one of the largest Cycladic islands, was for long one of the least populated. The construction of roads and a boom in tourism in recent years have altered that, inevitably compromising to some degree the island’s solitary beauty and grandeur and sweeping away its traditional structures. Its picturesque chora and fine beaches have attracted a sometimes dissonant type of tourism, but beyond the main resorts the island has retained much of its character. With its surprising variation of landscape, Ios can be unexpectedly delightful in the quieter months.

This is a chapter from Blue Guide Greece the Aegean Islands: what to see, where to stay and eat, history, archaeology, art, culture, leisure. With superb, award-winning maps. Written and edited by a team of three experts: historian, art historian and archaeologist, two of whom lead cultural tours in Greece. "Blue Guides still hold the cultural high ground" Sunday Times.