Getting from Dokos to Ikaria

If you are heading to Ikaria from Dokos you are making your way from an uninhabited rocky island in the Saronic Gulf to one of the world's Blue Zones, a mountainous island in the eastern Aegean where people live measurably longer than almost anywhere else on earth and the local explanation tends to involve sleeping late, eating well and ignoring schedules.

Take the ferry

There are no scheduled ferries from Dokos. Dokos has no ferry service and is accessible only by water taxi from Hydra, Spetses or Ermioni, with the crossing from Hydra taking around 30 minutes. Getting to Ikaria means arranging a water taxi from Dokos to Hydra, taking the Saronic ferry from Hydra to Piraeus, which takes around 1 hour 5 minutes to 2 hours, and then boarding the Piraeus to Ikaria ferry, which runs around 3 times a week and takes around 7 to 11 hours. Ikaria has two ports, Agios Kirikos in the south and Evdilos in the north, so check which port your ferry arrives at before booking accommodation as the mountain road between them takes well over an hour.

Getting there by air

Ikaria has its own small airport with connections from Athens running around 3 times a week. Dokos has no airport. Taking the water taxi from Dokos to Hydra, the Saronic ferry to Piraeus and flying from Athens to Ikaria takes around 50 minutes on the second leg. Total journey time is around 5 to 6 hours. Check the schedule carefully as flights are limited. In Greece, airlines do not operate direct inter island flights.

Your best option

Arrange a water taxi from Dokos to Hydra before leaving the island, take the Saronic ferry to Piraeus and fly from Athens to Ikaria. Check the schedule carefully as flights are limited and do not run daily. Pre-arrange your water taxi departure as you cannot hail a boat once you are on Dokos. Build flexibility into your plans once you arrive. Ikaria runs on its own schedule and that is entirely the point.