Where to stay in Hydra

There is only one town on Hydra, so the choice is not really which village but how far up the hill you are willing to sleep. Rooms around the harbour put you in the middle of the evening life and save your legs, at the cost of noise from the quayside bars and the highest prices on an island that is already expensive. Climb into the lanes above and you get quiet, better views and lower rates, but every arrival means hauling luggage up steps, which is why the mules at the port charge to do it for you. Kaminia and Vlychos, a walk west along the coast, are calmer and closer to swimming, though you commit to a dark walk back after dinner or a water taxi. Nothing here is cheap in high season, and the island books out early for summer weekends, so decide months rather than weeks ahead.