After a trip to Antiparos left Athenian Athanasia Comninos smitten by the under-the-radar island's rugged, unspoilt beauty, she decided to commit herself to the holiday romance and build a hotel there. Settling on the tranquil beach of Livadia, Comninos' slow-living-inspired The Rooster is an ode to the wild Antiparian hills: 16 private villas blend softly into the natural landscape, each with an accompanying pool. A short walk from the properties sits a traditional "bostani" - a bountiful garden whose produce is used in the resort's farm-to-table restaurant. The real draw, though, is the spa: picture a first-class wellness destination replete with Ayurveda-led treatments, talented practitioners, natural products and a heaven-sent relaxation area.

Tucked into the pastel-hued harbour of Syros' main town, Hermoupolis, Hotel Aristide showcases the creativity and craftsmanship of this lesser-known Greek island. Nine individually designed suites offer a harmonious blend of modern amenities and restored furniture, while natural stone and wood flooring, rich colours and nine different types of marble are used throughout the property. Housed in a neoclassical mansion that was once the island's tax office, Aristide's combination of old-world elegance and well-considered design makes for a contemporary, yet opulent, feel. Its eco-credentials are top notch, too - leftovers are churned into compost, trees are planted to help guests offset their carbon emissions and single-use plastics have been swapped for refillable containers.

Read Oana Aristide's insider guide to Syros, Greece

The winds of change are sweeping through Mykonos and the island's dawn-till-dusk reputation is making way for a post-party future. Located far from the crowds of the island's south-west coast, Kalesma's 25 sugar-cube suites and two villas offer a new breed of Mykonos stay. Scattered across the rugged slopes of the bay of Ornos, these pared-back pads are equipped with picture windows that guarantee both sunrise and sunset views throughout the spaces - a rarity usually reserved for the superyachts found bobbing in the Aegean. Every room has its own private pool, an al fresco shower, a terrace for entertaining and Sonos surround sound system to keep the island's hedonistic vibes flowing. The restaurant serves grilled seafood, and rejuvenating, spirulina-spiked cocktails.

Calling all barefoot bohemians: at the 10-suite Naxian on the Beach, days are spent sea-gazing, and little else. Screened from the golden caster sugar sands by breeze-tousled grasses, this adults-only boutique hotel feels like a natural continuation of the bay it sits on, and ample use of wicker, basket, bamboo and natural wood in its architecture and interiors amplifies the feeling. All suites have balconies overlooking the waves, and some are equipped with hammocks and outdoor spa bathtubs, too. The restaurant - Tortuga - serves up modern Greek fare in an open-air dining space. There's no pool, but you're encouraged to dip your toes into the sea and all guests are allocated a sun lounger for all-day R&R.

Perched above a rocky, rugged shoreline, Soho House's first iteration in Greece inhabits a prime spot on Mykonos, offering epic views of the Aegean. Sure, it's not technically boutique - but this building's history and importance on the Mykonos scene make it worth an entry. Once San Giorgio, a pop-up hotel by Claus Sendlinger, CEO of Design Hotels, the cluster of Cycladic buildings was taken over in 2019 by the mighty members' club, alongside the island's much-loved Scorpios bar, and reopened in 2020 following a light-touch makeover. The property's 45 rooms are made up in typically snappable Soho style, though there are distinctive nods to the hotel's former boho-luxe interiors: spot the rattan chairs, jute rugs, kilim cushions, weathered wooden furnishings and hammocks dotted around. Elsewhere, there's a gym, treatment rooms, pool bar, open-plan restaurant serving fresh, colourful Greek favourites and - a stone's throw away - the hedonistic Scorpios.

Barbican lovers, step this way. Tucked into lush verdure, with views of the Ionian Sea, Olea is modern and minimalist - a dove-grey, stripped-back, concrete beauty whose strong lines are offset by extravagant water features and the soft, silvered greenery of ancient olives trees. With 93 terraced suites, four restaurants, three stylish bars and a spa, you'd be forgiven for being overwhelmed by the choice on offer. One of the easier decisions to make is where to sunbathe and swim - the best beaches in Zakynthos are just minutes away.

In the 60s, socialites would flock to this hotel, with past guests including Jackie Onassis and Brigitte Bardot. Now, Mykonos Theoxenia has been renovated from Mick Jagger's old party pad into a peaceful hideaway, swapping its former summer-of-love colours for stripped-back neutrals - think bouclé chairs in warm seashell hues - and an aura of calm. The hotel's history isn't completely forgotten, though. Vintage details such as a typewriter and rotary phone are hidden like Easter eggs throughout the property, connecting the minimalist interior with its eccentric past, and the hedonistic nightlife of Mykonos Town is still just a cab ride away.

Coco-Mat Eco Residences was doing sustainability before it was cool, and its Serifos stay - a bioclimatic complex of 13 renovated 19th-century miners' houses - was a game-changing Greek stay when it opened in 2019. Eco-friendly apartments equipped with kitchenettes, ranging in size from one bedroom to family residences, have been transformed using natural materials: everything from the sofas and chairs to the kitchens are made with cotton, natural rubber, wood, silk and coconut fibres. Come for the Cycladic design and sophisticated eco-friendly construction; stay for the soothing sound of the waves.

Drawing on Paros' cultural heritage, this recently opened hotel has been designed to feel like the local villages that surround it. Meander through the indigenous Parian architecture of its rooms and suites and you'll feel like you're wandering the labyrinthine streets of a particularly perfect Greek hamlet. Cosme's 40 guest rooms, each with a celestial-inspired name, have calming caramel-coloured walls hung with a distinctive collection of multimedia art, sourced from local artists. Open terraces with sunbeds allow the sounds of the hotel's "streets" - and those from Naoussa, a little further away - to float through. Spend afternoons racing the waves on the property's privately owned catamaran or take a few hours on Agioi Anargyroi beach, then enjoy a lavish seafood banquet at Parostià Restaurant, named in tribute to Parian stone ovens.

Famed for its infinity pool spilling over a volcanic caldera, this five-bedroom retreat quite literally hides away in the rocky cliffs that surround it. Doing away with the whitewashed, blue-shuttered template of a Greek island retreat, Perivolas is a former pumice mine that was built from the local reddish rock, so it's barely distinguishable against the scree-cloaked landscape. Inside, interiors are more typical, with minimalist design making the views outside the window the focus, and there's a seawater pool, a wellness suite and a private beach. Reachable by boat or helicopter (if that's your vibe), it's a splash-out option. In the unlikely event that you want a change of scenery, Santorini is only a short boat ride away - but we're pretty you won't want to leave the idyllic Cycladic islet.

Forget what you thought you knew about cave stays in Santorini - the softly lit, cocoon-like suites at Divine Cave Experience are a cut above the rest. A luxury hotel sculpted from the volcanic rock of the island's caldera, its 10 unique rooms feature low-curving ceilings and arching walls that wouldn't look out of place in Kim K's LA home. Serenely concealed from the village behind it, each room has a secluded terrace, with Jacuzzi, that offers private views of the Aegean's azure waves. Rooms are minimalist (and not huge), but if you're looking for an all-natural, earthly retreat, this is it.