Top Ten
Biggest Greek Islands 

What are the ten biggest Greek islands? If you're planning a visit to Greece then it can help to know how big or small an island is, when figuring out how long to stay. We once spent six weeks on the largest island, Crete, while researching a guidebook and we could have spent six months. On the other hand, sometimes you want to visit a small island and just get away from it all.

The Lasithi Plateau on CreteThe Lasithi Plateau on Crete

How Many Greek Islands Are There?

According to Wikipedia, estimates of the number of Greek islands range from about 1,200 up to 6,000 or more – depending on how big a lump of rock in the sea has to be before you can call it an island.

Of these you can more safely say that about 200 are inhabited. This number also varies as some are only inhabited in the summer. There are also a number of privately-owned islands which may just be home to one family, who may be there for only a few months of the year.

Sunset on EviaEvia

How Big are the Largest Greek Islands?

To provide some sense of scale, Crete is the biggest island at 3,219 square miles (see the table below for size in square kilometres). This would make it only the 49th largest US state, bigger than Delaware but much smaller than Connecticut. The next biggest is Evia, which is slightly smaller than the smallest US state, Rhode Island.

For UK readers, all ten of the biggest islands in Greece would comfortably fit into Wales. The four biggest islands together are slightly larger than Northern Ireland.

The Ten Biggest Greek Islands

This, then, is the list of the ten largest islands in Greece.

ISLAND

SQ MILES

SQ KMS

GROUP

Crete

3219

8336

Evia

1417

3670

Lesbos

630

1633

NE Aegean

Rhodes

541

1401

Dodecanese

Chios

325

842

NE Aegean

Kefalonia

302

781

Ionian

Corfu

229

593

Ionian

Lemnos

184

478

NE Aegean

Samos

184

477

NE Aegean

Naxos

166

430

Cyclades

More of our pages of general Greek information...

  • Life as a Waiter on Zakynthos

    Life as a waiter on Zakynthos tells what it was like for travel writer Mike Gerrard to work in a Greek restaurant, the Mantalena in Alykanas.

  • Tipping in Greece

    The Greece Travel Secrets guide to tipping in Greece from two Greece travel experts, including when to tip, what to tip and when not to tip.

  • Travelling Around Greece

    Practical information on travelling around Greece by plane, by ferry, by bus, by train and by driving, including car rental, parking and other driving advice.

  • Ten Biggest Cities in Greece

    The ten biggest cities in Greece start with Athens and Thessaloniki, followed by Patras and several suburbs of Athens which are Greek cities in their own right.

  • Six of the Best Beaches in Greece

    Greece Travel Secrets chooses six of the best beaches in Greece including beaches on Corfu, Santorini, Crete, Lefkas, Kefalonia and on the Peloponnese.

  • Top Ten Things to Do in Greece

    Top Ten Things to Do in Greece include seeing the Acropolis and Parthenon, visiting the National Archaeological Museum and ancient sites like Knossos on Crete.

  • Which Greek Island?

    How to choose which Greek island from six of the most popular, Crete, Corfu, Rhodes, Kos, Kefalonia and Zakynthos.

  • Weddings in Greece

    Weddings in Greece and the Greek islands can be luxury or cheap, are easy to arrange from the UK or USA in Santorini, Mykonos, and Rhodes.

  • The Nomads of Greece

    The nomads of Greece are the Vlachs, nomadic shepherds whose capital is Metsovo in the Pindus Mountains, and the Sarakatsani, shepherds in Macedonia and Thrace.

  • The Greek Gods

    The home of the Greek Gods was the top of Mount Olympus, and among the better-known Gods and Goddesses in the Greek pantheon were Zeus, Poseidon and Aphrodite.

  • Sailing in the Greek Islands

    Greece Travel Secrets lists four of the best destinations if you want to go sailing in the Greek islands.

  • Quick Guide to Greece: How to Choose the Best Destination for You

    This quick guide to Greece gives advice on choosing the best Greek destination for your holiday, whether in the Greek islands or the mainland.

  • Luxury Weddings in Greece

    Luxury Weddings in Greece, including venues such as a boutique hotel with deluxe spa on Santorini, can be booked through Ionian Weddings.

  • Greek Music

    Greek music is the sound of the bouzouki and tunes like Zorba the Greek and Never on Sunday are heard everywhere, while rembetika is called the blues of Greece.

  • Greek Ferry Guide

    Greece Travel Secrets Greek Ferry Guide page uses an extract from the Aferry Greece website with advice on island-hopping, buying tickets online and timetables.

  • Greek Architecture

    This beginner's guide to Greek architecture explains how to tell your Ionic from your Doric columns, and what to look for in temples and Byzantine churches.

  • Greece for Beginners

    Greece for beginners is an introduction to Greece and the Greek islands by way of a memoir by travel writer Mike Gerrard about discovering Greek kindness.

  • Greece At A Glance: Currency, Weather and Other Useful Information

    Greece at a glance is a potted guide to the Greek currency, language, weather, health requirements and other information to help you plan a trip to Greece.

Enjoy this page? Please pay it forward. Here's how...

Would you prefer to share this page with others by linking to it?

  1. Click on the HTML link code below.
  2. Copy and paste it, adding a note of your own, into your blog, a Web page, forums, a blog comment, your Facebook account, or anywhere that someone would find this page valuable.

Latest Posts

RSS

  1. A Holiday on Symi

    Mike Gerrard wasn’t sure what to expect from a holiday on Symi, in the Greek islands, but what he found was lots of local feasting, dancing, and music.

    Read More

  2. Our Feast Day on Astipalia

    Greece Travel Secrets helps celebrate a feast day on Astipalia in the Dodecanese Islands of Greece, for the Assumption of the Virgin Mary into Heaven.

    Read More

  3. Easter on Rhodes

    During Easter on Rhodes Greece Travel Secrets publisher Mike Gerrard travels from Lindos to Kattavia to visit a monastery and spend Easter with a Greek family.

    Read More

  4. Walking on Paxos

    Walking on Paxos is the best way to discover this tiny island south of Corfu in the Ionian Islands, with its wooded hills and terraces of olive trees.

    Read More

  5. Easter on Symi

    Easter on Symi is a wonderful Greek celebration and one of the best times to visit the little gem of an island a short ferry-ride from Rhodes in the Dodecanese.

    Read More

  6. Best Time to Visit Mykonos

    The best time to visit Mykonos depends on if you want crowds or quiet, heat or cooler temperatures, all of which affect when is the best time to visit Mykonos.

    Read More

  7. Flying to Greece? Here’s What You Need to Know

    The rules that all international passengers must follow to travel to Greece have been extended until October 8, the Hellenic Civil Aviation Authority (HCAA) said on Friday. The rules are part of the H…

    Read More

  8. Delta: Direct Flights from Boston to Athens in Summer 2022

    Delta Air Lines on Sunday announced that it will launch a new service from Boston in the United States to Athens, Greece, in the summer of 2022. Launching on May 27 next year, the new nonstop service…

    Read More

  9. UNESCO Calls on UK to ‘Reconsider’ Returning Parthenon Marbles to Greece

    UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) is urging the British Museum to reconsider repatriating the Parthenon Marbles to Greece and to enter talks on the issue, Greek…

    Read More

  10. Mt Olympus Designated a National Park

    The epicenter of an entire religion and of the ancient Greek world, and a spectacular place of natural beauty, Mount Olympus is finally, officially, a National Park.

    Read More