When you arrive on Ikaria, the first thing you notice is the bright clear light of the Aegean Sea and the aromatic scent. The salt smell of the sea mixes with a spicy herbal scent. You inhale it with pleasure through your nose. It immediately makes you curious about the extremely green hinterland and at the same time makes you hungry for a delicious, spicy Greek dish.

Already on the way to the hotel you notice – this island is different. Lush greenery everywhere, stately trees, water. In shady places it even drips from the rocks in summer.

Nature appears archaically wild and “unkempt” the further you penetrate into the hinterland. As soon as you leave the small gardens, pretty fields, olive groves and vineyards behind you, an almost magical landscape opens up.

The nice thing is: you can just go for it. Everywhere, in the middle of nowhere, you come across old connecting paths, called Rími. They used to form a dense network between villages across the island as the only connecting routes. Some of them were lined with large stone slabs (dousemés), and they were just wide enough for two fully laden mules coming towards each other to pass each other.

In 1924, the island’s first road from Armenistis to Raches was built by residents using picks, shovels and their bare hands. The road network has slowly replaced the old stone paths, but in the hinterland they are still used by people and animals today.

As soon as you leave the gorse-scented Maggia in the coastal area and immerse yourself in the cool shade of the lush pine forests, the higher you venture, the more bizarre the landscape in the highlands becomes and you come across a dense network of goat trails in the kingdom of the wild goats. Some are still in use, as the fresh goat droppings and bleating nearby reveal, others are almost overgrown.

You often have the feeling that you are the first and only person to have ever ventured here and inevitably, unbridled explorer instincts awaken within you.

At the latest in the ancient, enchanted holm oak forest, by the gurgling springs and water landscapes, in the play of light on the leaf crowns filled with the hum of bees and dragonflies, you know that all the myths about nymphs, goblins and satyrs are absolutely true. Yes, you become obsessed with the idea of discovering them playing behind the next rock. You hear their teasing calls and childish laughter around every bend in the road and you know you are on the right path.

Hiking and roaming through wild nature is one thing. Ikaria’s landscape invites you to do so. If you prefer to just go for it, then get the cool app with the best road and hiking trail map for your smartphone.

To get started, I recommend you try out the three well-described hikes by our hiking expert Peter or one from Dieter Graf’s hiking guide. Then nothing can go wrong.

Ikaria is very spacious and there is no public transport. Even if you feel like hiking, not everything can be done on foot and you will miss the most beautiful Blue Zones hikes or excursion destinations such as the monastery of Onufrios or the beach at Seichelles. So I definitely recommend a rental car at least temporarily. I would be happy to help you rent a car easily and cheaply.

Wanderlust on your own

Hiking and roaming through wild nature is one thing. Ikaria’s landscape invites you to do so. If you prefer to just go for it, then get the cool app with the best road and hiking trail map for your smartphone.

To get started, I recommend you try out the three well-described hikes by our hiking expert Peter or one from Dieter Graf’s hiking guide. Then nothing can go wrong.

Ikaria is very spacious and there is no public transport. Even if you feel like hiking, not everything can be done on foot and you will miss the most beautiful Blue Zones hikes or excursion destinations such as the monastery of Onufrios or the beach at Seichelles. So I definitely recommend a rental car at least temporarily. I would be happy to help you rent a car easily and cheaply.