One&Only Kéa Island

GLAMOROUS GREEK ISLAND ESCAPE

The history of Kea is not one of a typical Greek island. The first thing you might notice is that you had to google where it was. The second is how startlingly close to Athens it is. Even the local Athenians have trouble locating it on a map, not helped by the fact that it's also known as Tzia. This is largely due to the third point of difference; unusually for a Greek island, it doesn’t have a harbour town, so has never been a part of the ferry-route tourism track. In ancient times, approximately 400 BC, Kea was a thriving point of trade, being one of the largest of the Cyclades and the closest inhabited island to Athens. There were two temples (one to Apollo and a second to Athena) as well as an amphitheatre above the Paralia Mikres Poles Bay (coincidentally, one of the most beautiful untouched beaches, only accessible by boat or ancient hiking trail), and Kea had its own currency, denoting a strong economy. However, in the 7th century this all vanished, the temples were abandoned and later looted, and Kea never again revived its trade or harbor settlements. Instead, the island became self-sufficient, with the majority of residents managing their own farmland, with the isle still bearing its patchwork quilt of stone walls and boundary lines.

The island is so undeveloped that One&Only had to fully excavate their land in collaboration with the Ministry of Culture before work could commence; archaeologist Petroula Tatsopoulou oversaw the first-ever excavation of the Vroskopos beach valley, discovering ancient settlements in the area, as well as other villages with Copper Age settlements and clay figures that predate Greece’s Olympian mythology. As part of the hotel’s commitment to preserving and celebrating the island's heritage, it will offer excursions to local excavation sites, as well as the two temples and Amphitheatre. Being mindful of its construction – the resort is five years in the making – each and every stone guests see is the stone found on the peninsula, excavated and repurposed to keep the area's natural materials intact.