Be charmed by Folegandros’ unspoilt beauty

Take a 20-minute walk up a tiny, winding, windy path from the Chora to the church of Panagia, and you can almost see Folegandros’ entire landscape, from one end to the other, surrounded by a glistening blue sea. It’s as bare, windswept and rough as Aegean islands come, a pocket-sized rock of a home to a tightly-knit population of as few as 300 people in winter and often no more than 800 at any one time, even in the busier summer months. It has no airport, and the ferries run only a few days a week during winter, when weather allows; it’s no coincidence that it was used as a political exile at times during the 20th century.

What to see and do in Folegandros

Mexican artist Bosco Sodi and his wife Lucia Corredor fell in love with Folegandros when their boat moored at its only port in 2018 during a sailing trip across the Aegean. Sodi walked past a local estate agent on his way to buy breakfast pastries and spotted a ‘magical’ piece of land for sale. He visited it, reserved it on the spot and then worked with Athens studio Deca Architecture to create a holiday home. Off the back of his first experiences on the island, he produced a series of richly layered, large-scale paintings for gallery Axel Vervoordt, and you can feel the place’s almost-primordial and deeply liberating power through them.

‘Here you can be completely free,’ Sodi says. ‘I love taking long walks through the beautiful landscape and feeling the salt in the air. In the mornings, I wake up early and work. Our house is not fancy. When we first arrived on the island, we invited some of the local people to dinner so they could get to know us. It’s a very small community.’ Sodi, who is now a member of the local nonprofit association Friends of Folegandros, advocating for the island’s preservation, is currently working with art dealer Boris Vervoordt and landscape architect Bas Smets on a small sculpture park here. ‘It’s near the beach, and we want it to have benches and shade for all to enjoy,’ the artist says.

French interior designer Severine Nenciarini, meanwhile, first came here 15 years ago on a detour from holidaying on nearby Milos. ‘At first, you feel as if you’ve arrived on a simple rock. On both sides, there is the immense sea, distant islands, terraced landscapes and incredibly pure air. Time seems to stand still.’ It led to her building a home here with the help of Athens-based architect Stéphane Ghestem. She styled it inspired by its sense of place, working with local craftspeople and shops, as well as an antique dealer from the capital. There is no swimming pool or WiFi. Staying here means going back to basics, in keeping with the island’s unspoiled scenery and lifestyle.

Danish artist Lisbet Schou first arrived on Folegandros in 1984 for a painting course. Captivated by its ‘wild beauty’, she returned annually and eventually settled in 1992 with her Greek soon-to-be husband. She set up a ceramics workshop to produce pieces she uses in her restaurant, Pounta, located on the Chora’s main square, engulfed in trees and bougainvillaeas. It serves simple, primarily local food. ‘Each Aegean island has its own charm,’ Schou says. ‘Folegandros is small. It’s kind of a bother to reach, so the tourists that arrive are the ones that really want to come.’

This is reflected in the relatively small number of hotels on the island. The first five-star establishment, Anemi, opened in 2007, followed by Gundari, designed by Athenian practice Block 722, in 2024. So if you are looking for an island on which to see and be seen, this is not the place; but for an immersive and restorative experience where three days feel like a month, you can’t go wrong with Folegandros.

A version of this article appears in the June 2026 Travel Issue of Wallpaper*, available in print, on the Wallpaper* app on Apple iOS, and to subscribers of Apple News +. Subscribe to Wallpaper* today.