Aug 11, 2022
5 min read
A Fitness Instructor's Guide to Mykonos
Rachel Donohue
a health and fitness enthusiast who has been a resident of New York City for the past 13 years. By day, Rachel excels in her corporate medical sales career. By night, she teaches her signature shape elongating fitness classes, where she shares the exercises and techniques she learned through seven years of modeling to shape a long, lean body.
Rachel loves calling NYC home, but she also loves to take the opportunity to let go and escape from time to time. She encourages everyone to do the same – find a change of scenery, turn off from work mode, and fully enjoy and immerse yourself in your surroundings.
Rachel lives by the motto work hard, play hard. She makes frequent trips down to Miami during snowbird season, and loves to jet off for a European summer.
One of Rachel’s most recent trips was to the Greek isle of Mykonos. Read on for some of her best tips and recommendations.
Where to Stay
What are your top three hotels in Mykonos?
Aeonic Suites & Spa
has WhatsApp booking for on-demand car services, spa appointments, and dinner reservations. It’s completely quiet and a terrific hideaway if you need a break from the party world. The design is clean and modern, and the whole place has a spa-like calm with beautiful views. All the rooms are huge and come with either a pool or hot tub. It’s also only 10 minutes away from town, and quite close to the airport.
Elia Mykonos Resort
is right on the beach and comes with all the usual beach amenities. The rooms have the most beautiful views of the sea, which is only a few meters away. There’s also a sexy pool area. And the fabulous
Scorpiosbeach club and restaurant is only minutes away.
NOMAD Mykonos
has a unique design, very quiet rooms, and is a short walk from Kalo Livadi—a big, lively, local beach offering sea sports, sunbathing, beach bars, and restaurants.
Where to Eat & Drink
Where are your go-to spots to eat & drink in Mykonos?
Zuma
has the best sunset views on the island and a lively bar. I recommend the Chilean sea bass or tuna tartare.
Principote
is a beautiful, super-posh beach club. The beach beds are great, and the atmosphere is relaxed and social. Order the salt-baked whole fish for the table.
Remezzo
is a super classy, hilltop restaurant that looks over the whole town. It’s a 10-minute walk from shopping and the town center. Try the tuna tartare or lobster pasta.
Spilia
has a beach-party vibe with a live DJ and access via the beach for boaters. Don’t miss the crab tartare and octopus.
Where would you go for a great solo dinner?
Zuma
is super lively and has a fun bar to sit at, and Principote always has super social people. Both are great options for a solo meal.
Where to Shop in Mykonos
What’s your favorite type of shopping?
I love shopping for unique fashion pieces I can’t find in NYC: handbags, dresses, jewelry, etc.
Where do you go for the best of this?
The boutiques in Mykonos town provide the coolest places to shop—however, you may have to dig. Go down the streets that are not the main tourist spots, the side streets have all the small boutiques with local owners. Check out
Pink Petros, I got the most unique handmade handbag.
Where to Workout
What’s your workout of choice?
I love power walking in Mykonos—it’s super hilly. An hour power walk will give you fresh air, a beautiful breeze, and a killer workout.
Pilates flows with a view are great, too. I love setting up my foldable yoga mat on my balcony. I often workout right there—it’s faster and leaves time for so many other activities.
Get motivated with an Instagram workout, or put on a motivational playlist.
Where to Party
What’s your idea of a great night out in Mykonos?
For some, Mykonos means late nights and sleeping until 1 p.m. For me, though, it’s about the days and sunsets. I love staying true to my seize-the-day NYC personality. I love to start my day with a morning pilates flows with an ocean view. After that you can find me at a beach club, rosé in hand.
After spending the afternoon at a sexy beach club like
SantAnna or
Principote, I start the evening off with sunset drinks at one of the following:
The Garden,
180° Sunset Bar,
Cavo Tagoo, or
Zuma. Then I will typically head to a lively, fun dinner in town, or go to
Scorpios to listen to the best DJs in Mykonos.
What’s the dress code? Who’s invited? What time are we staying out until? Who’s DJ-ing? Who are we likely to make new friends with while there?
For the dress code, think Greek goddess – whites, golds, and long, flowy beachwear, all day, every day.
I have several fun friends who are staying out until 3 a.m., but I’m usually sleeping by midnight to seize the next day. I will stay out late when it’s worth it, however, such as when I catch
Rüfüs Du Sol at Scorpios.
Mykonos is very cosmopolitan, so expect to meet plenty of people from New York, Miami, and LA.
Where to Get Some R&R in Mykonos
If we’re going for a full spa experience, where’s the place?
What’s your idea of the most relaxing and restorative thing to do in Mykonos?
After the beach club, I love getting a massage. Or I sneak in an hour nap to keep me energized throughout the night.
Postcards from Mykonos
Which locations are going on your Instagram highlight reel?
The sleepy local streets in town, the beaches, the sunsets, and the beautiful, huge, white churches.
Where’s the best backdrop for your new profile pic?
The Mykonos sunsets are the best in the world. Strike a pose on
Zuma’s rooftop or
180° Sunset Bar for that iconic shot.
Tips & Extras
What have we missed?
The Greeks are so nice! Their kindness is truly infectious. There are also so many other great islands near Mykonos—Santorini, Milos, and Crete are just a ferry ride or short flight away.
I also HIGHLY recommend renting a boat/yacht for the day with a group of friends. It’s easy to organize through any of the above hotels or through AirBNB Experiences.
What’s the one piece of essential info you need to know when planning a trip to Mykonos?
Figure out if your hotel helps with booking drivers/taxis. Getting around is impossible without the help of a driver.
What’s the tip you tell everyone?
Don’t get burnt out! Mykonos has so many wonderful things to do. If you’re going out to see a late-night DJ, take the next day off to relax.
Also, take your picture or video, then put your phone away and enjoy 🙂
