A Delos tour from Mykonos takes a short boat ride from the old port of Mykonos to the sacred island of Apollo, where you walk among temples, mosaic houses and the marble lions. Browse other Greek tours for more days out in the Cyclades.
This page covers the boat and the crossing, the history of the island, the main ruins, the museum, Mount Kynthos, opening days, families, shade and what to bring on a Delos tour from Mykonos.
What does a Delos tour from Mykonos include?
A guided Delos tour from Mykonos includes the return boat trip and entry to the site and museum. A certified tour leader and a wireless headset come with it. You hear the talk clearly while you walk among the ruins.
The tour leader on a Delos tour from Mykonos follows a set route around the main sights of the site. The group explores the island on foot. The walk ends at the museum, where you look around on your own. English tours run daily. French, Italian and Spanish tours run on set days of the week.
The entry ticket for the site is part of a guided booking. So is a separate entrance that skips the ticket queue. That skip-the-line benefit covers the site entrance only. A boat-only transfer does not include the site ticket, so read your booking before you pay.
Group size on a Delos tour from Mykonos depends on the tour. One tour takes up to 15 people, and another takes up to 35. The half-day guided tours need at least 8 people to go ahead. If fewer than 8 sign up, you are told, and you can reschedule or get a refund.
Hotel pickup is an extra option on selected tours, so check it when you book a Delos tour from Mykonos. On the boats you can buy cold water, drinks and snacks. A coffee shop also stands next to the museum, where you can take a break.
Where does the Delos boat leave from in Mykonos?
The Delos boat leaves from the Old Port of Mykonos Town, also called Chora. A Delos tour from Mykonos starts at a pier there, beside the Delos Tours ticket kiosk. The company’s address is Deliana Pier.
At one end of the moon-shaped bay stands the Town Hall. It is the only building in Mykonos with a tile roof. Opposite it you see a small chapel with a blue dome, dedicated to St. Nicholas. Walk past both, with the Town Hall on your left and the chapel on your right. The pier is straight ahead.
The tour pages point to the same area. One tour meets at the St. Nikolas church in the Old Port, and another at the Delos Tours ticket desk. Vouchers for a Delos tour from Mykonos are exchanged at the ticket desk outside the boats. Go there half an hour before departure.
Cruise passengers can start a Delos tour from Mykonos at the new port instead. The cruise-port tours begin with a sea bus ride from the new port to the Old Port. The sea bus stop is near the cruise ship landing point, and a sea bus runs every 10 minutes. A boat ride from Mykonos to Delos follows.
Your exact start depends on the option you book, so read the meeting point before you travel. One boat-transfer option names either the Old Port or the cruise ship port as the start. The port police can delay a departure for safety reasons, so arrive early for your Delos tour from Mykonos.
How long is the crossing, and how much time do you get on Delos?
The boat from Mykonos to Delos takes 30 minutes. Plan a Delos tour from Mykonos around that crossing and a set stay. The morning boats give 3 hours on the island, and the afternoon and evening boats give 2 hours.
On a Delos tour from Mykonos, the sea part is short. Delos Tours lists the trip at 30 minutes, and an archaeologist’s travel site gives the same time. A boat-transfer listing says almost 40 minutes each way. Another site says 20 to 30 minutes, depending on the weather and the sea.
Each boat out has a fixed boat back. The 10:00 boat from Mykonos returns from Delos at 13:30, and the 11:30 boat returns at 15:00. The 17:00 boat returns at 20:00. A boat-transfer ticket lists 2 hours of free time on Delos. In late October, the evening pair moves to 15:00 out and 18:00 back.
Tour lengths show the same pattern. A Delos tour from Mykonos with an evening tour leader is listed at 3.5 hours. An afternoon tour from the cruise port is listed at 4 hours. It begins with a sea bus ride between the new and old ports.
The tour leader walks a set route around the main features, then leaves you at the museum to explore. When possible, you can take a later boat back in the morning. For an evening Delos tour from Mykonos, that is not possible, as only one boat returns.
Why was Delos sacred in ancient Greece?
A Delos tour from Mykonos visits the island that myth made the birthplace of the twin gods Apollo and Artemis. UNESCO cites Callimachus of the third century BC, who called Delos the holiest of all islands.
The story behind a Delos tour from Mykonos starts with Leto, pregnant by Zeus and fleeing the vengeance of Hera. She gave birth on Delos after a difficult labour. A Homeric hymn adds that the island had been floating until then, and it became anchored to the ocean floor.
Two landmarks keep the story alive. Mount Kynthos is the mountain of Zeus. Close to the wheel-shaped lake, Leto suffered labour pains for nine days and nights. Apollo was the god of daylight, and Artemis was the goddess of night light. Delos even gave the Cyclades their name, because the other islands form a circle around it.
A Delos tour from Mykonos reaches an island that was holy long before this myth. Wikipedia says Delos was a holy sanctuary for a millennium first. Every four years until 316 BC, the Feast of the Delians held athletic, horse-riding and music contests. UNESCO ranks it with the Olympic and Pythic Games.
Strict rules protected the holy ground that a Delos tour from Mykonos visits today. In the sixth century BC, Athens had every grave within sight of the temple dug up. The bodies were moved to a nearby island. A later decree banned burials and births on Delos. Pregnant women and the seriously ill were taken to Rheneia.
How did Delos grow into a busy trading port?
Delos became a busy trading port because its harbour lay on the sea route from Italy and Greece to Asia. A Delos tour from Mykonos visits the site of that port. UNESCO says the site shows the image of a great cosmopolitan Mediterranean port.
Pilgrims came first, and trade followed them. UNESCO says the sanctuary of Apollo drew pilgrims from all over Greece, and Delos was a prosperous trading port.
Strabo says the festival of Apollo was a business event as well as a holy one. Romans went to it more than any other people. A Delos tour from Mykonos lands on the island that held this festival.
Rome then made Delos a free port, Strabo writes. UNESCO says that all the commercial activity of the eastern Mediterranean gathered on the island after that. Importers also moved there when the Romans destroyed Corinth, and the temple’s immunity and the convenient harbour drew them.
An estimated 30,000 people lived on Delos in 90 BC, yet the island is only 5 kilometres long. A Delos tour from Mykonos explores the site on foot.
Rich merchants, bankers and ship-owners from all over the world settled there, says UNESCO. Archaeology Travel estimates that 750,000 tons of goods passed through the port each year in the first century BC.
Close to the harbour lay the Agora of the Competaliasts, the main market square. A round marble monument to Hermes stood in the centre. One Delos tour from Mykonos lists the Agora among its stops.
Attacks ended the boom. Forces of Mithridates looted Delos in 88 BC, and the pirates of Athenodorus struck in 69 BC, says UNESCO. A Delos tour from Mykonos shows what the excavations unearthed: the sanctuary and a good part of the Hellenistic town.
What can you see in the Sanctuary of Apollo?
The Sanctuary of Apollo holds three ruined temples to Apollo, and the Temple of the Delians is the largest. A Delos tour from Mykonos visits this sanctuary zone. The temples formed the religious centre of the island, says Visit Greece.
The Temple of the Delians is also called the Great Temple. It has six Doric columns on each short side and 13 along each long side. Money from the Delian League funded the build, which started in 476 BC.
Work stopped in 454 BC, when the League’s money moved to Athens. It restarted after 314 BC, but the temple was never finished. Only the foundations, the platform and broken columns remain.
Next to the temple stood a giant statue of Apollo made in the sixth century BC. The upper torso and pelvis still lie in place, and a foot is in the British Museum.
A Delos tour from Mykonos visits the sanctuary. The Temple of the Athenians stands between the Great Temple and the Poros Temple. Nikias opened it in 417 BC. The Poros Temple is the oldest temple of Apollo on the island.
A Delos tour from Mykonos names these stops in the sanctuary zone:
- the Stoa of Philip
- the Propylaia
- the Colossus of the Naxians
- the Temple of Apollo
One Delos tour from Mykonos names the Sanctuary of Artemis as well as the Temple of Apollo. Slightly further north runs the Sacred Way. There, the Treasuries of the Cities held offerings from Greek city-states to the god.
What is the Terrace of the Lions?
The Terrace of the Lions is a row of marble lions. The people of Naxos gave it to Apollo just before 600 BC. You can see this iconic terrace on a Delos tour from Mykonos.
Nine to twelve lions stood on the terrace when it was new. Each one crouched with a snarl beside the Sacred Way. Together they formed a grand avenue, like the sphinx avenues of Egypt. The lions faced the Sacred Lake and guarded the sanctuary.
One four-hour Delos tour from Mykonos walks the Sacred Way and lists the Terrace of the Lions among its stops. Naxian sculptors carved the lions between 620 and 600 BC.
Strong north winds threaten the fragile marble on Delos. So the original lions now sit in the island museum, and exact replicas stand on the terrace. A Delos tour from Mykonos therefore shows you copies outdoors, while the real lions stay sheltered.
One lion left the island for good. A Delos tour from Mykonos cannot show it to you, because it was removed from Delos. It now sits above the main gate of the Venetian Arsenal.
Which mosaic houses can you see in the theatre quarter?
The Theatre Quarter holds merchant homes with mosaic floors, like the House of Dionysus and the House of the Dolphins. You can see them on a Delos tour from Mykonos.
The quarter spreads around the ancient marble theatre. Its narrow streets hold mansions that rich merchants owned. The lanes are uneven, so the houses have irregular shapes. One afternoon Delos tour from Mykonos lists the ruins of houses and mosaics among its sights.
Merchants, bankers and shipowners from all over the world settled on Delos. They had builders make luxury homes with painted walls and mosaic floors.
The House of Dionysus takes its name from the mosaic in its courtyard. The floor shows the wine god, with wings, riding a big cat. Sources name the cat a panther or a tiger. The floor dates to the late 2nd century BC, and columns frame the courtyard.
Tiny pieces of glass, terracotta and stone, each about one millimetre square, make the picture. Visitors on a Delos tour from Mykonos see a replica, because the original floor now rests in the island museum.
Look for the House of the Dolphins on a Delos tour from Mykonos. It lies in the same district, at the foot of Mount Kynthos. Its courtyard floor holds a circle inside a square. In each corner, a small winged figure rides a pair of dolphins.
An artist named Asclepiades of Arados signed this mosaic. Only two mosaics on Delos carry an artist’s name, and this is one of them. A symbol of Tanit, a Phoenician goddess, marks the entrance floor.
The House of the Masks lies near the House of the Dolphins. Theatre masks in its mosaic give the house its name. Dionysus appears there too, riding another big cat.
Planning a Delos tour from Mykonos? Visitor pages also list the House of the Trident. Its floor shows a black dolphin curled around a red anchor. These sea symbols suggest that the owners worked with ships.
What is in the Archaeological Museum of Delos?
The museum holds the statues, reliefs, pottery and everyday objects dug up on the island. Six rooms hold statues and reliefs, two hold pottery, and one holds items from daily life. A Delos tour from Mykonos can include a visit.
The Archaeological Society of Athens built the museum at the start of the 20th century. It began with five rooms, and two later extensions brought it to nine. The museum does not hold every find. A large quantity are on display in Athens.
On a Delos tour from Mykonos, one highlight is an ivory plaque made between 1,400 and 1,200 BC. It shows a Mycenaean soldier with a helmet of wild boar teeth, a shield and a spear. Diggers found it at the Artemision, together with gold, ivory and bronze items.
On a Delos tour from Mykonos, the museum shows parts of two kouroi. A kouros is a statue of a standing young man. One is a torso from the 6th century BC. The other is an inscribed base from the 7th century BC, found in the Sanctuary of Apollo. It reads “Euthycartides the Naxian made me and dedicated me.”
Later works include Artemis killing a deer and an actor from the stoibadeion, which was dedicated to Dionysus. Both date to the 2nd century BC. A small Corinthian alabastron, a container for perfumed oil, shows the lady of the beasts between two swans.
The site ticket covers the museum. Two tour pages list it as a stop on a Delos tour from Mykonos. One archaeologist writes that the expert leaves you at the museum after the main route. You then explore alone.
Can you climb Mount Kynthos during a Delos tour from Mykonos?
Yes, if your Delos tour from Mykonos leaves free time. Mount Kynthos rises 113 metres in the middle of the island. One travel writer puts the climb to the top at 20 minutes.
Anyone on a Delos tour from Mykonos who tackles the hill starts at the southeast corner of the Theatre Quarter. A path leads steeply up. On the way, a Grotto of Hercules is covered with stone slabs. In ancient times, two flights of steps climbed to the top, on the north and west sides.
The hill is a bare granite rock. On the summit lie the foundations of a large building in the Ionic style. UNESCO calls Kynthos, the mountain of Zeus, an essential landmark of the island’s sacred geography. The view takes in Mykonos, Naxos, Paros, Syros and Rheneia.
Group tours follow set routes, so check the stops before you book a Delos tour from Mykonos. One tour page lists the agora, the Temple of Apollo and the museum, with 1.5 hours of free time. Another lists the House of Dionysus, the theatre and the market, with about one hour of free time. Neither names Kynthos.
The climb takes 20 minutes up, so weigh it against that free time.
A private expert on Delosguide.com describes his groups as small and flexible. He says a hike to the summit of Delos was one of Rick Steves’ highlights on a filming day. Ask any private Delos tour from Mykonos whether it can add the climb.
You can still meet Kynthos in the museum. It holds a Melian amphora from the sanctuary of Zeus on the summit, dated 620 to 600 BC.
How does a Delos tour from Mykonos with a licensed expert differ from going alone?
A Delos tour from Mykonos with a certified expert explains each ruin as you reach it. It also skips the ticket queue at the site. Going alone means a basic leaflet map and a wait at the ticket office to buy your own entry.
Not much information stands around the ruins, so the stones are hard to read alone. On a Delos tour from Mykonos, the expert explains what otherwise looks like a pile of rocks. The led tours walk the narrow city streets, then the main street, the market and the sanctuary zone.
Group size differs from tour to tour. One operator needs at least 8 people for a Delos tour from Mykonos to run. Another tour limits its group to 15 people over 4 hours, and a third takes up to 50. On the larger tour, a free wireless system helps the group follow along.
Language is the next point to check. One operator’s schedule lists English every day, French on Sunday and Thursday, Italian on Wednesday and Spanish on Tuesday. German, Portuguese and Russian are offered only as private tours. One certified expert also runs private tours on Delos and Mykonos for small groups and individuals.
A Delos tour from Mykonos does not have to include an expert. The free leaflet from the Mykonos ferry ticket office has a simple map. Without an expert’s tour, the last people off the boat can queue up to 30 minutes for a ticket. An expert’s route follows the main features, then leaves you at the museum to explore alone.
What is a Delos and Rhenia boat trip like?
A Delos and Rhenia boat trip is one kind of Delos tour from Mykonos. The cruise stops at Delos and at Rhenia, an uninhabited island, where you swim and eat lunch on board.
Rhenia lies just west of Delos, and nobody lives there today. Its area is 14 square kilometres, while Delos covers 3.43. One cruise page describes four sandy beaches in protected coves.
The order of stops differs between operators, so a Delos tour from Mykonos by boat can start with either island. One yacht sails to Delos first, then crosses a narrow strait to Rhenia. Another boat leaves the Old Port for Rhenia, serves a barbecue lunch, and reaches Delos after.
A Delos tour from Mykonos on a cruise adds a swim. At Rhenia the boat anchors close to the shore. The itineraries list 2 hours at Rhenia on one cruise and 2.5 hours on another. One cruise includes snorkel gear, and another lists stand-up paddleboarding. Lunch on one boat is chicken and pork skewers with salad, rice and tzatziki.
Before you book a Delos tour from Mykonos by boat, check that the cruise lands on Delos. One small catamaran cruise only sails past the island for a photo stop. Another cruise lists the site ticket and a tour leader at Delos. A third lets you add an expert in advance. Group size runs from 10 people to 45.
Why can nobody stay overnight on Delos?
Nobody can stay overnight on Delos because the whole island is an archaeological site. Only the caretakers and archaeologists live there. A Delos tour from Mykonos is always a day trip, so you sail home the same day.
The island has no hotels or other places to sleep. The Mykonos visitor website says that overnight stays without special permission are prohibited, and so is mooring a vessel. Camping is forbidden, and so is staying after opening hours. A day trip is the only way to visit.
Evening tours exist, but they return the same night. In the evenings there is only one return ferry each day. Your Delos tour from Mykonos ends with that boat, so do not miss it.
Almost nobody lives on Delos. The Hellenic Heritage platform of the Ministry of Culture gives a population of less than 25 people. These are mainly staff working in the archaeological sites. Pausanias wrote in the second century AD that Delos had no inhabitants apart from the custodians of its sanctuaries.
The rule is ancient. In the 6th century BC, Athens purified the island by digging up the graves. It moved the bones to the neighbouring island of Rhenia. Later, nobody was allowed to die or be born on Delos. A Delos tour from Mykonos crosses ground that Athens once kept free of births and deaths.
On which days is the site closed, and in which months do the boats run?
The boats for a Delos tour from Mykonos run from April to November, when the site is open daily. The Ministry of Culture platform lists the site as closed from 1 December to 31 March. It is also closed on Easter Sunday and Labour Day.
The same page names these closed dates: 1 January, 25 March, Easter Sunday, Labour Day, and 25 and 26 December. Only Easter Sunday and Labour Day fall inside the open months. One ferry timetable shows no sailings on those two days either. Plan your Delos tour from Mykonos for another day.
Two travel sites give the boat season for a Delos tour from Mykonos as April to November. One adds reduced ferries in December, yet the site is closed then. A third site says the visits happen mostly from April to late October. It adds that there are hardly any boats and no guided tours from November to March.
Closing time steps down through the autumn, and the last admission is 20 minutes before it. Check these hours before you book a Delos tour from Mykonos in autumn.
- 1 April to 31 August: 08:00 to 20:00
- 1 to 15 September: 08:00 to 19:30
- 16 to 30 September: 08:00 to 19:00
- 1 to 15 October: 08:00 to 18:30
- 16 to 31 October: 08:00 to 18:00
In November the site closes at 16:00, the earliest closing time of the open months. The Ephorate of Antiquities of the Cyclades posts changes to these hours on its website. Ferries for a Delos tour from Mykonos run throughout the week, says one Mykonos travel site, with fewer on Mondays.
Is a Delos tour from Mykonos a good choice for families with children?
A Delos tour from Mykonos suits families whose children can walk on rocky, unpaved paths. One tour page says the site is explored on foot. A travel site calls the paths rocky and unpaved.
Delos Tours is one operator on the route. Its booking form has separate lines for children aged 0 to 6 and 6 to 12. It calls its guided trips half-day tours. A family planning a Delos tour from Mykonos with this operator picks the number of children in each age group.
Group size matters with children. One tour page caps its standard group at 15 people and says children can only take part with an adult. Delos Travel offers a private group, which is just your own party. Its morning tour page lists wheelchair users as not suitable. Read these rules before you book a Delos tour from Mykonos.
Children find their own interest on the island. A reviewer of the Ancient Delos tour wrote that the kids loved all the cats on the island. A travel site also captions a photo of one of the island’s feline residents. Animal fans have something to look for on a Delos tour from Mykonos.
Older children are covered too. One family toured Delos and Mykonos with a private operator. Their teenagers generally do not love history tours, they wrote, yet kept talking about the tour leader. The same operator lists a 3-hour Delos tour and a 5 to 6 hour tour of Delos and Mykonos.
The crossing is part of the day too. One travel writer found a crossing rough and was helped by one tip: keep your eyes focused on the horizon. A travel site also says the ferries have toilets and a small shop selling drinks and snacks.
How much shade is there on the site?
A Delos tour from Mykonos has little shade. One travel site calls Delos an open-air archaeological site with not much shade. It describes the island as rocky and barren, with no vegetation.
The same travel site says the archaeological site covers the whole island, with ruins spread across it. The island measures 5 km long and 1.3 km wide. A Delos tour from Mykonos walks through that open-air site.
Visitors name the heat. One travel writer makes a plain point. Standing in summer heat to hear a tour leader is not always a great way to visit. A reviewer of a Delos tour from Mykonos wrote that it was hot, but not too hard a trek.
Not all of the visit is open-air. The tour pages send you inside the museum, where finds from the island are on show. The Ancient Delos page lists free time at the museum before the ferry back.
For a later Delos tour from Mykonos, Delos Tours lists a daily 3:30 pm English tour in season. It warns that schedules change with the weather. A tour page also says cold bottled water, drinks and snacks are sold on the boats. The morning tour page promises wind in your hair and sun on the boat ride.
What do you wear and bring to Delos?
Wear light clothing and comfortable closed shoes on a Delos tour from Mykonos. Bring a hat, sunglasses, sunscreen, water and a jumper for the wind. The paths are rocky and unpaved, and you explore the site on foot.
Choose light, cool clothes, because they keep the sun off your skin. Pack a jumper as well, because of the wind on the island. Comfortable, flat sneakers or other closed shoes suit the rocky ground. Flip flops and high heels do not suit it.
Summer days on Delos can get really hot. Sunglasses matter too. The site is made of marble, and the reflections of the sun can dazzle visitors. Add a hat and sunscreen to your bag before a Delos tour from Mykonos.
The island is uninhabited, so bring water and a snack with you. The boats sell cold bottled water, other drinks and snacks, and they have toilets. If you get seasick, pack sea-sickness pills, because Mykonos can get very windy.
Take your passport on a Delos tour from Mykonos if you qualify for a reduced site ticket. The Greek Ministry of Culture runs the site tickets, and they are separate from the ferry company.
What else do travellers ask about a Delos tour from Mykonos?
Which languages does a Delos tour from Mykonos offer?
English tours run daily at 10:00, with a second tour at 15:30 from late spring. French runs on Sunday and Thursday, Italian on Wednesday and Spanish on Tuesday. German, Portuguese and Russian are private tours only. A group tour needs at least 8 people. Check the day for your language before you book a Delos tour from Mykonos.
Do you need to book ahead?
Booking a Delos tour from Mykonos ahead is a good idea in peak season. You can buy at the ticket booth where the boat docks, in tourist shops in Mykonos, or online. Vouchers are exchanged at the ticket desk half an hour before departure. Online bookings can be cancelled free up to 24 hours before.
What happens if the wind is strong?
Boats are sometimes cancelled in bad weather. The timetable says times can change with the weather, so confirm your Delos tour from Mykonos at the port. The port police can also delay a departure. If the Delos boat sails but other services are disrupted, no refund is given.
Is there a map of the site?
A free leaflet called Delos is handed out at the Mykonos ferry ticket office and the site ticket office. Its map is simple but shows the main features. A free leaflet in the Mykonos archaeological museum marks nearly 100 features. It gives three routes of 1.5, 3 and 5 hours. A drawing shows the sanctuary and ancient town as rebuilt.
How big is Delos?
The island is about 5 km long and 1.3 km wide, and the ruins spread across all of it. Archaeologists still dig there. A certified local expert says only 25% of the site has come to light so far. A Delos tour from Mykonos reaches an island that is still being uncovered.