Which greek islands are for culture and beaches.
 

Hi!
My wife and I (62:and 67vyears old) are programming to visit Greece for the fiveth time after visiting: Mykonos, Delos, Paros, Naxos, Sifnos, Folegandros, Santorini, Rhodes, Symi, Kadrellorizo, Patmos, Samos, Chios, Tinos (only for 1 day) Corfu, Paxosb and Mani peninsula in Peloponnese.

​​​​​​Our program is to visit the West part of peloponnesos :(Pylos, Methoni, Koroni, Ancient Messina,, Dimitsana and Smetnisa) first and Syros Amorgos and Astypalea during the next step.

​​​​​​We are not funny of beaches as a uniq aim for travel and we are the type of people who would like to combine culture with a beach holiday

​​​ After reading some books and blogs with photos we felt that Amorgos did not had much to offer in terms of culture and we can't be satisfied with just a beach holiday.
Certainly the views in Amorgos seem to be dramatic, but to be fair wev have seen more stunning and dramatic views in Santorini.

​​One of the travellers wrote that :" Amorgos didn't have much to keep him stimulated and upon arriving in the island hen realized that the island is not for him and he took the ferry and went to Rhodes where he had a fantastic time and he did not regret leaving Amorgos".
So, I would like to ask you please :
1)- What are the islands that you can advise me to visit in order to keep any traveller stimulated during 12 days?

2)- Do you find that West part of peloponnese is worth visiting and is the combination between peloponnese and some islands is a good plan?
Thank you in advance.

I think the best opportunity you have of combining beaches with culture is in the Peloponnese. There are many fine beaches around Pylos, Koroni and Methoni, as well as Ancient Messene, Nestor’s Palace at Pylos, and the Venetian castle at Methoni. The most obvious island for a combination of beaches and culture would be Crete.

I visited more than 60 Greek Islands and confirm that those you already visited are the best one's fo a mix of culture and beaches. There is one big exception however: Crete, with it's Minoan palaces at Knossos, Malia, Phaistos and Kato Zakros, as well as the medieval fortresses of Chania, Rehtymnon, Frangokastello.....
It's easy to combine Southern Peloponnese with Crete as there are daily ferries from Neapolis (close to the stunning dunes beaches of Simos and not far away from the medieval castle of Monemvasia) to Kythira and several weekly ferries from Kythira to Kissamos in Western Crete.
Amorgos is fine for long hikes in unspoiled landscapes and many (not too attractive) isolated beaches. if you go by ferry from Crete to Astypalea, there is no need to stop over at Amorgos as it is easier to change at Naxos or Paros. Syros, the first capital of Greece after the Turkish occupation, is a bit out of our itineray. Piraeus - Syros and Syros - Paros/Naxos - Astypalea is feasible, however.

Can you define culture please, do you mean grand opera, local music, local fishing technology, localised food specialities, wine terroir, culture and cultivation, conversations in local dialect or modern Greek, religious observations, marriage culture, old stones, old stories, old wood, old caves. I'm sorry I'm sure this word means something special to you but I'm not confident that any of us understand what that is.

How would I recognise it if I were to see it?
What would it smell or sound like?
Would it be police with pompons on their shoes and feathers in their hair or small children being taken to school by grandparents holding their hands.

It depends on what do you want to do, I was on Lefkada in 2019. Great for renting a scooter or car and just exploring.