Just a short ferry ride from Athens lies Kea, an island worth exploring.
Marco Arguello
One of the best things about living in Athens is the proximity to so manyGreek islands.
The island of Kea is only an hours ferry ride away from the mainland.
Coastline views from the terrace of Atria, a restaurant at One&Only Kéa Island.Credit:Marco Argüello
The boat departs from a scruffy port called Lavrion, about an hour from downtown in a taxi.
Even though Kea is the Cycladic island closest toAthens, few foreigners have heard of it.
The locals have never been interested in tourism.
From left: Oak trees growing on terraces in Pera Meria, where acorns were a mainstay of the local economy for centuries; columns in the ancient citadel of Karthea.Marco Argüello
The island has always been very self-sufficientthey have livestock, farming, and fishing.
Thats one of the reasons my father loved it so much, said Viktoria Fassianos.
Her father was Alekos Fassianos, the most beloved Greek painter of the 20th century.
From left: Dolmades, or stuffed grape leaves, at Kea Retreat’s Lygaria restaurant; guests at Kea Retreat take part in a tea ceremony.Marco Argüello
Our summers were all about the simple life.
We spent hours together in the atelier, making flying toys and shadow puppets.
Alekos would put on puppet shows for the local kids.
From left: Painter Alekos Fassianos’s atelier, today a museum; a sculpture of Hermes at Alekos Fassianos Atelier.Marco Argüello
For Alekos, it was the modest life of smallness that captured his imagination.
Love for the sea also drew Yannis Tzavelakos to Kea some 35 years ago.
The wreck, a sister vessel to theTitanic,was located by Jacques Cousteau in 1975.
From left: Aperitifs at One&Only; a guest room at Kea Retreat.Marco Argüello
Back then, it was only accessible by boat or on foot.
At sand-colored tables under the trees, Bond Beach Club serves Japanese-Aegean fusion to a Balearic-style soundtrack.
Kea is so authentic: an island of exclusivity, simplicity, art, and nature.
The beach at One&Only.Marco Argüello
Some 300 staff maintain the immaculate grounds and extensive facilities with polished deference.
The ambitious scale can almost compete with the wide-open horizon framed in every floor-to-ceiling window.
Kea is so authentic.
The hilltop town of Ioulida, on Kea.Marco Argüello
It should be positioned likeSt.
Barts: an island of exclusivity, simplicity, art, and nature, Colson said.
Its not about the bling-bling.
From left: Sea-bass ceviche at One&Only’s Bond Beach Club; the pool at Kea Retreat.Marco Argüello
In antiquity, Kea consisted of four distinct city-states, each with its own government and currency.
The islands settlements still feel like self-contained universes.
I went looking for adventure at Kaliskia, one of the far-flung beaches on the islands southeastern coast.
Kea Retreat’s seven guest rooms are in converted kathikies, or traditional stone farmhouses.Marco Argüello
I shared the beach with a handful of locals who were having a picnic beside their pickup truck.
The archaeological site is all the more incredible because it is so inaccessible.
Most visitors make the pilgrimage on foot, following one of four relatively challenging trails.
From left: One of Kea Retreat’s communal dining tables; general manager Yoni Eshet in the garden at Kea Retreat.Marco Argüello
At first, they would stay in the spartan monks cells at Kastriani Monastery.
Natural rock formations are strewn with pillows for daydreaming, or made into outdoor showers.
The stone walls of thekathikiesare so thick that there is barely any phone signal, and Wi-Fi is patchy.
From left: Swimmers on the beach at Karthea, on Kea’s southeastern shore; the spa pool at One&Only Kéa Island, a new resort in the Greek Cyclades.Marco Argüello
At Kea Retreat, there are yoga mats and books on meditation, but no hair dryers or TVs.
Wedont like technology, said Uri Eshet, who is the resident chef, with a grin.
Vine leaves were stuffed with grouper cheeks, roasted apricots, and caper leaves.
From left: Sunset at Kea Retreat; a view of the Aegean Sea from Kea Retreat.Marco Argüello
Sea bass carpaccio was garnished with delicate pink garlic blossoms.
Dessert was a thyme-honey cream served in a handmade beeswax bowl.
But thats the beauty of Kea, the place with two names and a split personality.
A clifftop guest villa at One&Only.Marco Argüello
