10.03.09  Financial Times, 7 March 2009

A sparkle in the Aegean

With few soft lines and scant lushness to its unforgiving granite hillsides, Mykonos is certainly not the most beautiful of the Aegean Sea’s 1,400 islands. But every summer its traditional sugar-cube houses (pictured above) – built around immense stone boulders that the superstitious locals fear disturbing – fill up with beach-lovers who have paid handsomely to buy or rent them.

Sybarites from all over the world mingle easily with Athenian shipping tycoons, backpackers and Hollywood stars in the lounge bars and souvlaki shops lining the serpentine alleyways (pictured right) of Mykonos Town. For sundown they might head to the bars of Little Venice – an area of arcaded waterside houses left from three centuries of Venetian rule – and end up at the fish-restaurant-cum-club Sea Satin Market, near the island’s four famous windmills.

Since the 1960s, when Jackie and Ari Onassis dropped anchor here, Mykonos has enjoyed a reputation as an oasis of open-mindedness amid highly conservative Greek neighbours. But these days the nudism and gay nightlife of the 1980s have calmed down to make way for a more sophisticated scene that revolves around smart restaurants, designer shops and a slew of new of boutique hotels such as the Mykonos Grace.

“Mykonos has long been recognised as Greece’s undisputed ‘jet-set’ destination but it offers far more than the notorious party atmosphere,” says Philippe Requin, chief executive of the Grace Hotels Group. “It’s the ultimate cosmopolitan destination and attracts [people] of all ages seeking sun, relaxation, beach, yachting, walking, local culture and history.”

Azi Emami of Sotheby’s Realty in Athens confirms: “Interest in the island is now very broad – with [potential buyers] from North and South America, Australia and the Far East.”

The laidback ambience of the place is certainly part of the appeal, according to Jeffrey Siger, an American writer in his 50s who spends half of every year on the island and the other on his farm outside New York City. “The thing that keeps me coming back is that everything is so easy and you can take or leave the 24/7 party-life, which I actually find invigorating,” says the former lawyer and author of Murder in Mykonos, a whodunit that topped the Greek bestseller charts. “Despite all the changes to the island – the increased construction, traffic and visitors – it [has] still managed to retain its magic and the Mykonians their enchanting hospitality.”

The island’s population of 6,000 swells to 50,000 in July and August, yet there isn’t an obvious package-tourism presence and strict planning rules have prevented it being ruined by over-development. All buildings must be built in the Cycladic style – whitewashed cubes in local stone with wooden-framed windows and flat roofs less than 7.5 metres high.

One of the largest changes this year will be the opening of its first superyacht marina, reinforcing Mykonos’s status as Greece’s top luxury resort, Emami says. Marina Tourlos – north of the main entrypoint to the island, the port of Mykonos Town – will hold two to four cruise ships, eight to 12 superyachts and 100 regular yachts, offering boats complete protection from the fierce meltemi wind, which has pushed people away from the north of the island to the sheltered beaches of the south and east coasts.

Nearby are the most fashionable areas for villas – Ornos, Aghios Lazaros, Psarou, Kalo Livadi and Super Paradise (the party beach) – all of which are also within easy distance of Mykonos Town (or Chora), the heart of the island. And, global financial crisis notwithstanding, prices remain high, averaging at €6,000-€10,000 per sq metre, which is only seen elsewhere in the Greek islands on the lush, rugged Italianate Corfu, says Roi Deldimou of Beauchamp Estates, which opened a Mykonos office last summer.

Local agents list some apartments for less than €250,000 and, because it is a seasonal market, some value erosion might emerge after Easter. “But €600,000 is the starting price for a small, three-bedroom villa [and] there are now some over €10m as prices have tripled in the space of five years,” Deldimou says. “The closer to the beach, the more expensive the property and a waterfront plot will cost €2.5m alone.”

She is selling a sea-view villa near Paradise Beach, which comes with three independent guesthouses, a hammam, a gym and a striking Arabic-style domed bathroom, all set in a 5,000 sq metre plot of olive trees. The price is €5m and she says it would rent for €20,000 a week.

“Mykonos continues to be a law unto itself, with prices being paid for villas that bear no relation to the other islands,” says John Batty of Greek property specialist Aegean Blue. “Investment continues to pour into high-end properties, with the majority of buyers being high-net-worth individuals like Greek ship owners and entrepreneurs who compete for the biggest and best villas in the most stunning locations.”

For those seeking relative bargains, Batty suggests looking north of Mykonos Town in Agios Stefanos and Tourlos, which offer unspoilt locations with house prices lower than in the south. “A few weeks of meltemi at the height of summer are an acceptable trade-off,” he says.

Another downside to Mykonos – for those who don’t have a yacht – is access. Easyjet flies there direct from the UK from May to September, along with several charters, but most European airlines stop in Athens, leaving passengers to make local connections. The island also remains highly seasonal, with many restaurants relocating to the capital for the winter.

That doesn’t bother some residents, however. French architect Jean Pierre Heim says he visits his five-bedroom Mykonos villa every January because he finds it a more inspiring place to work than his homes in New York and Paris. Blue Rock Villa, which he built in 1991, sits atop a hill on the edge of the sea near Ornos on the west coast. It overlooks the archaeological site of Delos, the birthplace of Apollo now listed as a United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation World Heritage Site and a popular day-trip from Mykonos Town. Six-foot tall boulders have been artfully incorporated into airy indoor-outdoor living spaces with a 60ft-long infinity pool and a sunken gazebo at one end.

“My parents brought me here for summers as a child and I’ve always loved it. It’s a combination of the sun, energy, light and water. Once you come here you never want to leave,” he says. “A unique energy comes from the granite base and its location next to Delos, the mythical hub of the Cyclades group of islands which circle it. I also like the fact there aren’t too many foreign residents. In addition to a few British, Italians and Americans there are [only] half a dozen French families. So it’s like a suburb of Athens.”