{"id":143269,"date":"2025-05-30T05:13:12","date_gmt":"2025-05-30T05:13:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/143269\/"},"modified":"2025-05-30T05:13:12","modified_gmt":"2025-05-30T05:13:12","slug":"eight-overlooked-european-islands-for-summer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/143269\/","title":{"rendered":"Eight overlooked European islands for summer"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n\t\t\t\t\tWith thousands of islands to choose from, Europe has plenty of opportunities to escape the crowds and high prices of tourist magnets
\n\u00a0\t\t\t\t\t <\/p>\n

Few things suggest summer more than an island escape, but the Crusoe lifestyle doesn\u2019t always come cheap. According to travel search engine Kayak<\/a>, which has a Budget Your Trip <\/a>tool, the average cost of a week in crowd-pleasing Mykonos over July and August is now \u00a33,196 per couple.<\/p>\n

Popular European islands can also get stiflingly busy. The Balearics<\/a> saw more than 2.5 million visitors last July alone. For context, the population of its biggest island, Mallorca<\/a>, is less than 1m. In Croatia, the island-dotted Adriatic coast recorded more than 100 million overnight stays last year.<\/p>\n

But there are plenty of European islands that have stayed under the radar, meaning tourist crowds are lighter and prices are lower. We\u2019ve found seven options on the Continent and looked at data for availability and pricing to help you decide the best time to visit each this summer.<\/p>\n

Serifos, Greece\"ViewChora village on Serifos island in Greece (Photo: Cavan Images\/Cavan Images RF\/Milan Gonda\/Getty)<\/p>\n

With boxy white buildings dotted down hillsides, blue-domed churches, and 19th-century windmills, Serifos looks like the lovechild of Mykonos and Santorini<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Yet, without an international airport to bump up prices and visitor numbers, the cost of a holiday here is nothing like that of many of its Cycladic neighbours.<\/p>\n

On booking.com<\/a>, 58 per cent of one to four-star hotels and apartments available in July and August were priced under \u00a3200 a night, compared to just nine per cent on Mykonos. Beachside Coralli resort <\/a>near Livadi has doubles from \u00a3109 in August.<\/p>\n

Ferries from Piraeus (Athens\u2019 port city) to Serifos take two hours on the quickest routes and dock at Livadi<\/a>, where a seaside promenade is lined with chatter-filled bars and tavernas.<\/p>\n

The island\u2019s capital, Chora, a short taxi ride uphill from the port, is a warren of whitewashed houses with blue shuttered windows, boutiques, tavernas and bars (don\u2019t miss the rooftop terrace at Gaidaros). Chrysoloras Winery<\/a>, a 25-minute drive from Chora, is another must. The sunsets here are as photogenic as Santorini\u2019s but without the selfie sticks.<\/p>\n

Data shows that demand for accommodation in Serifos peaks in the last week of July and the first three weeks of August, tailing off in September, creating a sweet spot for bookings just before the island\u2019s tourist industry closes for the season.<\/p>\n

Cres, Croatia\"AdriaticCres tower and bay in Croatia (Photo: xbrchx\/iStockphoto\/Getty)<\/p>\n

While attention from celebrities such as Beyonc\u00e9 and Julia Roberts has hiked up prices on Croatian islands <\/a>such as Hvar and Korcula over the years, Cres has remained comparatively out of the limelight, keeping costs in check.<\/p>\n

According to Kayak, the average cost of a night\u2019s stay (across all-star ratings) on the island in July and August is \u00a3136, compared to \u00a3199 in Hvar and \u00a3197 in Korcula. Rooms at the beachside Hotel Kimen<\/a> are available from \u00a3132 a night in July, rising to \u00a3150 in August.<\/p>\n

An 80-minute ferry ride from mainland Rijeka (one service a day in high season), Cres is an island of go-slow fishing villages, uncrowded beaches, oak forests, honey farms and hiking trails, some of which trace their way along original Roman roads. Its capital, Cres Town, meanwhile, hints at Dubrovnik<\/a> with its medieval centre, red-roofed buildings and a port skewered with sailboat masts.<\/p>\n

Demand for accommodation in Cres starts to peter out towards the last week of August, with the best availability to be found in September.<\/p>\n

Gl\u00e9nan Islands, France\"ThisTropical looking Gl\u00e9nan in Brittany (Photo: MathieuRivrin\/Moment RF\/Getty)<\/p>\n

Barely bigger than dust motes on a world map, the seven islands of the Gl\u00e9nan archipelago<\/a> are sprinkled nine miles off the coast of Brittany. With their choux-coloured beaches and piercing blue waters, they have a reputation for being the French Maldives<\/a>.<\/p>\n

As with their Indian Ocean counterparts, days here revolve around the sand and sea. Visitors can hire a kayak in \u00cele Saint-Nicolas, where the ferries from mainland B\u00e9nodet and Concarneau dock, and paddle around the isles. Experienced divers can book scuba trips through CIP Glenan. <\/a>Alternatively, smaller islands such as \u00cele de Guiriden are prime picnic spots.<\/p>\n

The best port from which to catch a boat to the archipelago is Concarneau, which is an hour\u2019s drive from Brest Brittany airport (served from the UK by easyJet and Volotea) and two hours 45 minutes from St Malo ferry terminal.<\/p>\n

Accommodation is limited, but when booked in good time, rooms at Sextant Sea Refuge<\/a> can be reserved from \u20ac105 (\u00a388.50) a night. At the time of writing, there was better availability in July than in August. Hotel rooms on the mainland, meanwhile, can be snapped up for around \u00a3100 a night.<\/p>\n

Egadi Islands, Italy\"EgadiThe rugged cliffs of the Egadi Islands (Photo: Maremagnum\/Corbis Documentary RF\/Getty)<\/p>\n

The Egadis form a constellation of five islands and islets just off the north-west coast of Sicily. On Favignana<\/a>, the largest of the islands, hikes to hilltop castles and swims in siren-blue coves like the one at Cala Rossa can be complemented by visits to the limestone gardens, which are in disused quarries.<\/p>\n

Marettimo is a place for boat tripping, hiking and long seafood lunches. On car-free Levanzo, meanwhile, unpeopled beaches and coastal walking trails await. Fast 30 to 40-minute ferries run between Trapani on Sicily\u2019s west coast and Favignana daily in summer.<\/p>\n

While hotels.com<\/a> data reveals that the average cost of a night\u2019s hotel stay (across all star categories) on the better-known Italian island of Capri is \u00a3466 in July and \u00a3531 in August, hotels such as the blue-and-white painted Plaia Resort <\/a>in Favignana can be booked from \u00a3130 a night in the Egadis. July is a prime time for bookings, as prices can swell with the heat in August.<\/p>\n

Leros, Greece\"beautifulLeros island in the Dodecanese (Photo: Freeartist\/iStockphoto\/Getty)<\/p>\n

A 90-minute ferry hop from better-known Kos, Leros<\/a> is a lazy-paced, undilutedly Greek island in the Dodecanese.<\/p>\n

Highlights of a stay here include climbing the 500 steps from Agia Marina, where ferries dock, to the clifftop castle of Pandeli for views across the island, taking in the 18th-century windmills that stand to attention on the hillside above Panteli beach (one is now home to a cocktail bar called Harris<\/a>), and tucking into bowls of baked feta and salted mackerel among tables of residents on Alinda Beach.<\/p>\n

Don\u2019t leave the island without sampling a Leros cheese pie. Typically made from pastry, feta and cinnamon, they can be picked up pre or post-ferry journey from Paradosiako bakery<\/a> in Agia Marina.<\/p>\n

Data from Kayak shows that the average cost of a night\u2019s hotel stay on the island in July and August is \u00a3112, compared to \u00a3226 on Kos. Rooms at the beachside Alinda Hotel <\/a>are available from \u00a386 in July. Demand for accommodation peaks in mid-August, with better availability in late June, early July and September.<\/p>\n

The Wadden Islands, Netherlands\"ViewAmeland is the fourth inhabited Dutch Wadden Island (Photo: iStockphoto\/Creative Nature\/Getty)<\/p>\n

Five Wadden Islands lily-pad their way through the North Sea off the north-west coast of the Netherlands<\/a>. Each one is belted by dune-backed beaches (Ameland\u2019s is 27 kilometres long), dense with nature reserves and scored with cycling and walking trails \u2013 there are 140 kilometres of biking tracks on Texel<\/a> alone. Activities include seal-spotting, mud flat walking, horse-riding and coast rafting (like the white-water version, but with waves, not rapids).<\/p>\n

Evenings consist of lazy dinners in restaurants that showcase local produce such as Texel lamb.<\/p>\n

Demand for accommodation in the Wadden Islands<\/a> is uniformly high throughout summer. Yet the good choice of guesthouses and quality hostel and campsite accommodation keeps them an affordable option.<\/p>\n

Data from price comparison site Hostelz<\/a> suggests that the average cost of a private hostel room is \u00a379 a night on Texel. A two-bedroom chalet at popular Duinpark & Camping De Robbenjager <\/a>costs \u00a3169 per night in late July.<\/p>\n

La Graciosa, Spain\"ViewThe village of Caleta del Sebo on La Graciosa island (Photo: David C Tomlinson\/The Image Bank RF\/Getty)<\/p>\n

A 25-minute ferry ride from \u00d3rzola on the north coast of Lanzarote, La Graciosa <\/a>is the incognito Canary.<\/p>\n

Protected as a part of the Chinijo Archipelago Natural Park<\/a>, it\u2019s Tarmac and car-free (apart from a fleet of 4\u00d74 taxis). The best way to get around is by mountain bike or on one of four hiking routes that lasso the island.<\/p>\n

Caleta de Sebo, with its spill of single-storey whitewashed houses, is La Graciosa\u2019s only town. There\u2019s a clutch of bars and restaurants here that specialise in seafood caught by the fishermen who you\u2019ll see mending nets on the quayside where ferries dock.<\/p>\n

With less than 50 accommodation options across the island, demand is consistently high in summer. At the time of writing, availability was better in late June, when a stay on the moored two-bedroom boat Hermes in Caleta de Sebo <\/a>costs from \u00a384 a night. A studio stay at the sea view Loft La Caletilla apartments<\/a>, meanwhile, is available from \u00a3215 in late June. Data reveals that the average cost of a night\u2019s stay in Lanzarote is \u00a3221 and in Tenerife, \u00a3220.<\/p>\n

Holm\u00f6arna, Sweden\"Holm?nTraditional buildings on Holm\u00f6arna island (Photo: Amanda Sveed)<\/p>\n

The off-radar islands of Holm\u00f6arna<\/a> freckle the Gulf of Bothnia around 30 miles from Ume\u00e5, on Sweden\u2019s east coast. Ume\u00e5 is connected to Stockholm by domestic flights as well as high-speed (six hours) and sleeper trains.<\/p>\n

From there, it\u2019s a 30 to 40 minutes drive to the port of Norrfj\u00e4rden, from where free, 45-minute ferries depart to Byviken on Holm\u00f6n. Known as Sweden\u2019s sunniest island, Holm\u00f6n is the largest in the archipelago, although it is still dinky compared to some of the country\u2019s better-known islands, with a single restaurant and a sole general store.<\/p>\n

Cycling (pick up a bike from the boat museum), hiking and sunset-watching at spots like Bergudden lighthouse, make up the to-do list here. There\u2019s also a 30-minute boat trip to neighbouring Stora Fj\u00e4der\u00e4gg<\/a>, an island nature reserve home to a summer hostel, seals and birds.<\/p>\n

While dorm beds are available in a restored lighthouse and 19th-century rectory from \u00a380 a night, it\u2019s also possible to stay on the Holm\u00f6arna islands for free. Islanders have restored rustic fishing cottages that are free of charge. Some are available on a first-come, first-served basis and can\u2019t be booked, others, such as Siksk\u00e4rs, can be booked a week in advance. A map of them is available on the Visit Holmon<\/a> website.<\/p>\n