Greece
Matala
Cliff caves once Roman tombs, then a hippie commune — Joni Mitchell slept in these rocks.
The sandstone cliff rises from the southern edge of a crescent beach, its face pocked with dark cave mouths that have sheltered the dead, the countercultural, and the curious for two thousand years. The sea below is clear enough to see the bottom from the cliff path, and the village behind the beach still has the loose, unhurried feel of a place that never quite moved on from the 1970s.
The cliff caves at Matala were carved as Roman burial chambers from the 1st to 3rd centuries AD — rectangular niches cut into the soft sandstone are still visible inside each cave. In the 1960s and 1970s a community of hippies occupied the caves; both Joni Mitchell and Bob Dylan are reported to have stayed here, and Mitchell's song 'Carey' references the village directly. The caves are now a fenced archaeological site, but the beach below remains open and the village atmosphere retains a countercultural streak. Ten kilometres north, the ruins at Kommos include Minoan ship sheds dating to around 1600 BC — among the earliest known purpose-built harbour structures in the Mediterranean. Diving and snorkelling operators use the predictable afternoon wind pattern to schedule morning sessions when the bay is flat.
Solo
A backpacker landmark with cave history, cheap beachside tavernas, and a community of travellers who stay longer than planned.
Friends
Beach days, cliff-cave exploring, diving trips, and evening tavernas where the vibe recalls Matala's commune years.
- The sandstone cliff caves were used as Roman tombs from the 1st to 3rd centuries AD — the carved burial niches are still visible inside the rock.
- In the 1960s and 1970s hippie communities occupied the caves — both Bob Dylan and Joni Mitchell are reported to have stayed here; Mitchell's song Carey references Matala.
- The ruins at nearby Kommos include Minoan ship sheds — the earliest known purpose-built harbour structures in the Mediterranean, dating to 1600 BC.
- The beach has a predictable afternoon wind that creates small waves — mornings are flat, which is used by the local diving and snorkelling schools for scheduling.
Fresh fish and raki at the beachfront tavernas where old hippies and backpackers still swap stories.
Cretan dakos loaded with tomato, capers, and soft cheese, eaten with sandy feet.
Marado
South Korea
A treeless speck of volcanic rock serving black bean noodles at the country's edge.
Isla San Lucas
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A prison island that held inmates for 118 years, now reclaimed by jungle and howler monkeys.
Jeffreys Bay
South Africa
Supertubes delivers a right-hand point break so consistent the world's best surfers return every winter.
Kapingamarangi Atoll
Micronesia
A Polynesian community deep within Micronesia, their language and customs intact across centuries of ocean isolation.
Pelion
Greece
The centaurs' mythic homeland — chestnut forests and stone villages sliding from peak to shore.
Mount Athos
Greece
A thousand-year-old monastic republic sealed off from the modern world — only men may enter.
Ioannina
Greece
Ali Pasha's lake fortress — silversmith workshops and Ottoman mosques on an island reached by rowboat.
Prespa Lakes
Greece
Byzantine hermitages painted on cave walls above a lake shared by three countries.