Kythnos anchorage guide · Cyclades
Kythnos Yacht Anchorages: The Complete Guide
Where to anchor a yacht around Kythnos: documented depth, holding and shelter for the island's main anchorages, drawn from published cruising sources.
Last updated August 2026
Kythnos 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.
Ashore: The Chora and Dryopida villages, the Katafyki cave, the Loutra hot mineral springs (the island was once known as Thermia), and the Vryokastro ancient site above Episkopi bay.
Kythnos is the first Cycladic night out of Athens.
It is 45 nautical miles from Alimos on our distance table, 15 from Kea, 25 from Syros and 25 from Sifnos, which puts it at the turn of every Cyclades week that starts in Athens: a fast motor yacht such as ALFA, MARY or M FIVE at 23 to 24 knots reaches it in under two hours, ONE at 33 knots in an hour and a half, a catamaran at eight knots in a long morning.
The island's gift is Kolona, the double-sided sandspit bay in three to ten metres, and its problem is the Meltemi, which is why the five anchorages here are chosen by wind: Loutra for the port with the best protection, Agios Stefanos for the best holding on the island, Kanala for a lee from the north.
On the Greek Charter Index 2026 a 22 to 25 metre motor yacht runs EUR 21,000 to 47,500 a week, a 26 to 31 metre EUR 35,900 to 75,000, a 20 to 22 metre sailing catamaran EUR 31,500 to 43,500, per yacht before VAT and APA.
Athens to Athens was the most common request on this desk in the 2026 season.
The anchorages
5 anchorages around Kythnos
Use this guide to understand your captain's routing, request specific anchorages on your preference sheet, judge whether Kythnos fits your charter style, and pair it sensibly with nearby islands.
Loutra (NE coast)
Holding
Stern or bows-to the NE breakwater quay
Shelter
The port giving the best Meltemi protection on the island.
Space for about 12 yachts; the more yacht-friendly harbour.
Best for: Meltemi shelter
Kolona / Kolonna (NW sandspit)
Depth
3-10m
Holding
Weed, not always good, drop on a sand patch and check
Shelter
Very well protected from both the Meltemi and southerlies.
Iconic double bay; rolls in northerlies, take a long line to the N shore in summer.
Best for: Scenery, swimming
Kanala (SE)
Depth
8-15m
Holding
Sand, good
Shelter
Sheltered from N, exposed to S-E.
Agios Stefanos (E coast)
Holding
Muddy seabed, the best holding on the island
Shelter
Gusts from the NW.
Tavernas ashore.
Merichas (main ferry port, W)
Shelter
Wide bay with frequent violent katabatic winds from the N.
More prudent to use the marina; laid moorings.
Best for: Ferry port
When to visit
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 Kythnos, on the western edge of the group, meets it first out of Athens. Merichas, the ferry port, takes frequent violent katabatic gusts from the north and is better used from the marina; Loutra on the north-east coast is the port with the best Meltemi protection; Kolona is very well protected from both the Meltemi and southerlies but rolls in a northerly. May, June and September are calmer, 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.
Captain's note
Leave Alimos early and cross the 45 miles in the morning calm, before the Meltemi builds after midday. Then choose by the night wind: Loutra, stern or bows-to the north-east breakwater, space for about twelve yachts, in a Meltemi; Agios Stefanos on the east coast, mud and the best holding on the island, when the gusts come from the north-west; Kanala on the south-east, eight to fifteen metres over sand, sheltered from the north; Kolona, three to ten metres, drop on a sand patch through the weed, check the set, and take a long line to the north shore in summer, for the swim and the photograph. Merichas is the marina, not an anchorage. Syros and Sifnos are 25 miles on, Kea 15 back, all morning passages. Depths and holding here follow published cruising sources; the captain confirms the anchor drop against current charts on arrival.
Questions about anchoring at Kythnos
Where can a yacht anchor at Kythnos?
Kythnos has 5 anchorages in this guide: Loutra (NE coast), Kolona / Kolonna (NW sandspit), Kanala (SE), Agios Stefanos (E coast), Merichas (main ferry port, W). Each entry below gives depth, holding, shelter direction and what is ashore.
Which Kythnos anchorages are sheltered from the meltemi, the summer north wind?
Loutra (NE coast): The port giving the best Meltemi protection on the island. Kolona / Kolonna (NW sandspit): Very well protected from both the Meltemi and southerlies. Kanala (SE): Sheltered from N, exposed to S-E.
How deep are the anchorages at Kythnos?
Kolona / Kolonna (NW sandspit) 3-10m; Kanala (SE) 8-15m. Depths are typical sand-bottom anchoring depths; the captain drops on current chart data.
What is the holding like at Kythnos?
Loutra (NE coast): Stern or bows-to the NE breakwater quay. Kolona / Kolonna (NW sandspit): Weed, not always good, drop on a sand patch and check. Kanala (SE): Sand, good. Agios Stefanos (E coast): Muddy seabed, the best holding on the island.
When is the best time to anchor at Kythnos?
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 Kythnos, on the western edge of the group, meets it first out of Athens. Merichas, the ferry port, takes frequent violent katabatic gusts from the north and is better used from the marina; Loutra on the north-east coast is the port with the best Meltemi protection; Kolona is very well protected from both the Meltemi and southerlies but rolls in a northerly. May, June and September are calmer, 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 Kythnos?
Leave Alimos early and cross the 45 miles in the morning calm, before the Meltemi builds after midday. Then choose by the night wind: Loutra, stern or bows-to the north-east breakwater, space for about twelve yachts, in a Meltemi; Agios Stefanos on the east coast, mud and the best holding on the island, when the gusts come from the north-west; Kanala on the south-east, eight to fifteen metres over sand, sheltered from the north; Kolona, three to ten metres, drop on a sand patch through the weed, check the set, and take a long line to the north shore in summer, for the swim and the photograph. Merichas is the marina, not an anchorage. Syros and Sifnos are 25 miles on, Kea 15 back, all morning passages. Depths and holding here follow published cruising sources; the captain confirms the anchor drop against current charts on arrival.
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