The Sifnos Vagabond feature, a 10-page spread in a leading Swedish travel magazine, presents the Cycladic island as “Greece in its authentic form”, the Municipality of Sifnos said.
Fredrik Brändström, the editor-in-chief of Vagabond, wrote the piece after a press trip the municipality had planned. Visit Sifnos, the island’s official tourism account, also shared the feature on X on Monday 12 October.
The Sifnos Vagabond article describes an island of walking trails, small family hotels, village churches and slow-cooked food. It is best seen outside the busy summer months, the magazine said. As a result, it offers Scandinavian readers a quieter alternative to Mykonos and Santorini, where mass tourism has taken over.
Greek City Times covered the island’s pottery, trails and food in its travel guide to the island on 14 October. Vagabond has also championed the region before, with a special tribute to the Cyclades in 2021.
Sifnos Vagabond story starts on foot
The Sifnos Vagabond story opens on a two-hour spring walk between the villages of Apollonia and Kamares. The route passes terraced fields and gnarled olive trees. During the whole walk, Brändström wrote, his group did not meet a single person.
The island has more than 100 kilometres of signposted trails in the mountains and along the coast, Vagabond reported. In addition, the magazine points readers to local hiking guides and to the island’s only horse-riding operator.
Anna Graikou, a hiking guide from Thessaloniki, first visited Sifnos in the 1990s. She has now worked as a guide for 10 years, she told the magazine. “Oregano and thyme grow everywhere. You never need to buy spices if you live on Sifnos,” she said.
Sifnos is said to have 365 churches, one for each day of the year. Graikou also offered a practical reason for that. “If you built a church on your land, you didn’t have to pay tax,” she told Vagabond.
Small hotels and a quiet harbour
Tourism on Sifnos remains low-key, the Sifnos Vagabond feature said, partly because the harbour is too small for large cruise ships. There are no big hotel complexes either. Instead, most hotels are small, often family-owned places with 10 to 20 rooms.
Giorgos Christofilopoulos runs a shop on the main street of Kamares. After the pandemic, he moved his family there from Athens. “It is very peaceful here all year round, except in August,” he said.
He warned against overbuilding, however, and pointed to neighbouring Paros as an example. “Tourism is important, of course, but not at any price,” Christofilopoulos told the magazine.
Still, he described the winters as tough. The weather is harsh, and prices are slightly higher than on the mainland. After October, he said, it is impossible to keep his shop open.
The feature also visits Kastro on the west coast, the island’s former capital, which has only about 50 residents. Brändström counted it among the most beautiful places on Sifnos. For quieter corners, he sent readers to Cheronissos, on the island’s northern tip.
Revithada, pottery and Tselementes
Food runs through the whole article. When the family arrived in Platis Gialos, their host greeted them with revithada. The chickpea soup simmers overnight and remains the island’s signature dish.
According to their host, the dish is a Sunday tradition that is still alive. Women wanted Sundays free to go to church, so they let the soup cook while they slept, he said.
The article also mentions mastelo, the island’s clay-pot dish, according to the municipality. It also recalls Nikolaos Tselementes, the Sifnos-born cook known for his lasting influence on Greek cooking. Greek City Times reported in September that the island’s cuisine featured on Culinary Wonderland.
Pottery earns a place in the Sifnos Vagabond spread as well. Several ceramic workshops still operate on the island and welcome visitors, the magazine said. It also covers traditional villages, the many churches and religious festivals.
Behind the Swedish travel magazine visit
The Sifnos Vagabond coverage is part of an effort to raise the island’s profile abroad through press trips and travel media partnerships, the Municipality of Sifnos said.
Giannis Rafeletos, the municipality’s Deputy Mayor for Tourism, said international exposure helps the island win attention in foreign markets.
“Promoting Sifnos in major international media such as Vagabond is a step towards strengthening the destination’s recognition in markets abroad. Through targeted communication and partnerships with reputable travel media, we aim to highlight the special features of our island: its gastronomy, culture, pottery, trails, natural environment and, above all, the genuine hospitality of its people and the quality of its tourism services.”
Giannis Rafeletos, Deputy Mayor for Tourism, Municipality of Sifnos
Rafeletos added that the aim is tourism development that respects and protects the island’s identity. Visit Sifnos described Vagabond as Sweden’s leading travel magazine when it shared the article.
For travellers, the Sifnos Vagabond guide notes that the fastest ferry from Piraeus takes about two and a half hours. Outside the high season, it suggests renting a car or scooter, because buses run less often.
Source: To Vima
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