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In this post, we will take you on a journey to the cave Iero or also referred to as the cave of Dionysus, the god of wine in Greek mythology. According to local Ikarian traditions, Dionysus was born at the nearby mount of Drakano and was later nurtured at this cave. There is also Iero beach right by the cave, which is a great place for a quick swim. The beach is rocky though.
How to Get to The Cave of Dionysus
The cave is located by Iero beach not too far from the Ikaria airport. We visited the cave of Dionysus while staying in the nearby village of Faros. You can either drive or walk to Iero beach and visit the cave. There is no admission fee and hiking to the cave was quite safe. It takes about 5 minutes to hike from Iero beach to Dionysus cave.
Getting to Dionysus Cave from Iero Beach on Ikaria
When you arrive to Iero beach, there is a small hiking trail that starts on your right hand. First, there will be almost no signs, maybe some painted markings on rocks.
On the way, you will be rewarded with stunning views on the Icarian sea with beautiful turquoise water.
After some minor rock scrambling, you will reach the cave of Dionysus. The cave is relatively small and is about 56 feet. Unfortunately, its roof collapsed in the past. It would have been probably even more impressive in its original state.
There were many artifacts found scattered around and inside the cave. These include pottery shards and even coins from antique times.
Overall, a very pleasant and beautiful hike. Depending on the time of the day and year, you may have this entire beach and cave all to yourself. When we were there in early May, and there were barely any people at all.
Returning to Faros, Ikaria Greece
On the way back to Faros, we spotted a few runaway sheep wondering on the hills of Ikaria.
After talking to many Ikarians, we learned that a typical household keeps domestic animals, mainly sheep and goat. Some of them may have escaped and now roam freely on Ikarian pastures. Because of very little pollution, domestic animals graze mostly on wild herbs and other vegetation. This makes the quality of meat and dairy on the island much better compared to conventional supermarket products.
If you would like to try raw Ikarian honey, take a look at Klio online store. Steve Raftopoulos, the founder of Klio, brings single origin Ikarian honey and other Greek wild herbal teas to US customers.
- From famous Blue Zone island
- Designated single origin honey
- 100% pure raw and unheated
- Heather (Anama), Thyme, Pine and wildflower varieties
- Produced in limited quantities
We tried many of Ikarian honeys when we visited the island and they were all delicious.
We hope you will have a chance to visit this beautiful longevity blue zone island. In the meantime, if you’d like to read more about Ikaria, take a look at our other blog posts on Ikaria when we stayed there for two months.