Amorgos Yacht Anchorages: The Complete Guide

Amorgos sits in the Cyclades.

The Cyclades are dominated by the summer Meltemi (Etesian) northerly, strongest mid-July to mid-August (around Force 5 to 7, gusting higher in open water).

Plan south legs downwind and overnight on lee and south coasts.

May, June and September are calmer.

This guide covers the island's main anchorages with the practical detail charterers and captains actually use: depth where a published cruising source documents it, holding, and shelter direction.

Where a figure was not documented we say so rather than guess.

Amorgos is a longer passage from the central Cyclades (about 25 nm from Naxos), which keeps the crowds away, but the east coast is generally untenable in the Meltemi.

Ashore: The Monastery of Hozoviotissa, chiselled into the cliff some 300 m above the sea, the windmill-topped Chora, ancient Minoa above Katapola, and the cliffs made famous by Luc Besson's The Big Blue (1988).

Amorgos is the far edge of the Cyclades week and the reward for the passage: about 25 nautical miles from Naxos, which keeps the fleets away, with the Hozoviotissa monastery chiselled into the cliff and the Chora above.

The four records are all on the west and south, because the east coast is generally untenable in the Meltemi: Katapola, the main port, three to five metres over sand with some rock and weed, good holding and good Meltemi shelter, anchor-moored to the west or south quay; Aegiali at the north end, around six metres over mud and weed, good shelter with some swell when it blows hard; Kalotiri under Nikouria island, five to ten metres over sand, protected from the Meltemi with strong gusts; Kalotaritissa at the south-west tip, three to five metres over sand and weed with the more all-round shelter of the south anchorage.

A yacht that carries the Cyclades wind gets here comfortably: on the Greek Charter Index 2026 a 20 to 22 metre sailing catamaran runs EUR 31,500 to 43,500 a week, a 23 to 24 metre EUR 54,900 to 90,000, a 26 to 31 metre motor yacht EUR 35,900 to 75,000, per yacht before VAT and APA.

Where can a yacht anchor at Amorgos?

Amorgos has 4 anchorages in this guide: Katapola (west coast, main port), Aegiali / Ayias Annas (north end, second port), Kalotiri / Nikouria (W of Aegiali), Kalotaritissa (SW tip). Each entry below gives depth, holding, shelter direction and what is ashore.

Which Amorgos anchorages are sheltered from the meltemi, the summer north wind?

Katapola (west coast, main port): Good shelter from the Meltemi. Aegiali / Ayias Annas (north end, second port): Good shelter from the Meltemi, some swell when strong. Kalotiri / Nikouria (W of Aegiali): Protected from the Meltemi by Nikouria island; strong gusts.

How deep are the anchorages at Amorgos?

Katapola (west coast, main port) 3-5m; Aegiali / Ayias Annas (north end, second port) around 6m; Kalotiri / Nikouria (W of Aegiali) 5-10m; Kalotaritissa (SW tip) 3-5m. Depths are typical sand-bottom anchoring depths; the captain drops on current chart data.

What is the holding like at Amorgos?

Katapola (west coast, main port): Sand with some rock and weed, good. Aegiali / Ayias Annas (north end, second port): Mud and weed, good. Kalotiri / Nikouria (W of Aegiali): Sand, good but not everywhere. Kalotaritissa (SW tip): Sand and weed.

When is the best time to anchor at Amorgos?

The Cyclades are dominated by the summer Meltemi, the northerly that blows hardest from mid-July to mid-August, around Force 5 to 7 and gusting higher in open water, and Amorgos sits in open water: the east coast is closed in it and the west coast ports are the whole island. Fewer yachts come here than to Paros or Naxos in any month. May, June and September are calmer and the passage from Naxos is a pleasure rather than a decision, and on the Greek Charter Index the shoulder months price 15 to 25% below peak on the same rate card with three to four months of lead time rather than a year.

What does the captain plan around at Amorgos?

The 25 miles from Naxos are done early, downwind if the Meltemi is up, and the yacht is in Katapola, three to five metres with good holding and good Meltemi shelter, by lunch; the monastery is a taxi and a stair from there. Aegiali, around six metres, for the north end and the villages above it, with some swell when it blows hard; Kalotiri under Nikouria, five to ten metres over sand under the church, for the swim, gusts expected; Kalotaritissa at the south-west tip, three to five metres, minding the permanent moorings and chains, when the wind goes round. The east coast stays off the plan in a Meltemi. Depths and holding here follow published cruising sources; the captain confirms the anchor drop against current charts on arrival.

Cyclades

Saronic

Ionian

Sporades

Dodecanese

Crete