Every year, the fashion crowd gravitates towards a certain travel destination.
In 2022, Sicily was the place to be, prompted by The White Lotus which was set in the affluent, picturesque coastal town of Taormina. The Greek island of Hydra had a resurgence of editors, writers and influencers in 2023, while 2024, unarguably, belonged to the gritty French city of Marseille, where Chanel hosted a cruise show. This summer, the great and good of the fashion world will make a beeline for the serene Greek island of Patmos, where only the most fabulous will be invited to house parties in Chora, the hilltop citadel huddled around the Monastery of Saint John the Theologian.
The Monastery of Saint John in Patmos by Robert Koorenny
These places are different to tried-and-tested, forever fashion favourites, such as Paris, the Amalfi Coast and Ibiza. The annual buzzy travel-fashion hotspot du jour is always lesser-known, and untapped. Each are seemingly different, but look closely, and there are uniting threads. All have a strong cultural currency with an arts mythology that feels romantic and intoxicating to fashion creatives. Before Alexa Chung and her friends descended on Hydra, Leonard Cohen chose the sleepy island as a place to write music and fall in love. It’s where he met his Marianne, who inspired many of his songs, and it’s the birthplace of one of his most famous hits, Bird On A Wire. Marseille is home to Le Corbusier’s modernist design masterpiece, Cité Radieuse, and Taormina attracted artistic titans such as D.H. Lawrence, Pablo Picasso and Ernest Hemingway long before Tanya McQuoid and her dramatic kaftans arrived. The fashion world have always favoured the recommendations and untrodden paths of the unconventional and free-thinking.
“The most stylish holiday hotspots are often those rich cultural destinations that are steeped in history,” says Alice Casely-Hayford, content director at Net-A-Porter. “Whether it’s a regular setting or source of inspiration in the literary canon, they tend to be places that artists have gravitated to through the ages or somewhere adored by bohemians and creatives.”
A vibrant, storied and artistic past is often a sign that a destination is home to the same things editors, muses and designers love today – authenticity, beauty and originality. “Look at Deia in Mallorca, which is adored for being an artists’ hub, but also home of Robert Graves, the renowned poet,” says Casely-Hayford. “You can almost feel the creativity and magic coursing through the cobbled streets.”
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Fashion is known for excess, glamour and frippery so it’s no surprise that the most sought-after travel spots always have a fuss-free quality. Marseille might be a frenetic city, but it has grit and soul. It is an unmanicured antidote to the flashy luxury of the industry. Patmos has drawn stylish crowds since the 1960s because of its serene atmosphere and hallowed spiritual history. “Travel is expensive and what we want now is to be divorced from reality,” says writer and influencer Camille Charrière, who is predisposed to low-key destinations such as Hydra and Jamaica. “I want to visit places where you’re in a different rhythm to at home. Hydra is a good example; there are no cars, so you have to walk. It’s slower. The places I love are magical because they have a strong sense of identity. They’re authentic and full of tradition and life.”
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Mr and Mrs Smith CEO Natasha Shafi agrees. “When your professional world revolves around image-making and creative direction, the real luxury becomes simplicity, places where you can switch off, slow down, and feel like no one’s watching,” she says. “There’s something deeply restorative about staying somewhere with good bones and minimal fuss. You can breathe. And that pared-back quality often reveals more depth: of history, of culture, of connection.”
Cosme, a luxury hotel in Paros
The Greek islands have a particular pull for the style set, offering sunshine, beauty, good food, tranquility and, as Greek tastemaker and Athenian resident Andria Mitsakos, says “the right level of inaccessibility”. The islands most favoured by editors and influencers don’t have airports, which is of course part of their appeal. Patmos is an eight-hour ferry ride from Athens, Paros is three hours from the capital and Sifnos is between two-and-a-half to five hours, depending on the company and vessel. The wealthier members of the fashion pack are now flying in-between more remote islands using hoper, a commercial helicopter airline. “Paros might not be a secret anymore, but it still draws a thoughtful creative set,” says Mitsakos, founder of luxury PR agency AMPR and her own store Anthologist, a curated collection of homeware and fashion which preserves Greek heritage. “It’s why I chose to open my latest Anthologist boutique at Cosme and Parilio hotels. The clientele coming to Paros is looking for something less obvious.”
She’s not at all surprised to see the rise of Patmos. “I’ve been going there since 2010,” she says. “It’s spiritual, cinematic and remote in the best way. Sifnos is another one to watch with a strong culinary identity. Verina Astra is the best place to stay; their new beach club Paralia is fabulous – think 80s surf culture meets Greek beaches, casual and unfussy.”
Andria Mitsakos in Paros, Greece
Shafi says what unites the lesser-known Greek islands is that they feel lived in rather than staged. They might be beautiful, but they’re also rich with local tradition and life. “These islands offer that in abundance, with just the right amount of polish for those who appreciate thoughtful design and a good glass of wine at golden hour, but without the crowds,” she explains. “Folegandros is rugged, cinematic, and blissfully underdeveloped, all whitewashed houses and cliffside churches, with an authenticity that’s increasingly hard to come by. Syros offers a different rhythm altogether: neoclassical architecture, a strong local arts scene, and the kind of cultural weight that gives a stay real substance.”
Both Charrière and Mitsakos think that the fashion pack tend to take their lead from the arts scene when choosing their holiday destinations. “There’s a certain Greek island that I’m going to this year that will go unnamed for now,” says Mitsakos. “The secret is trickling out though – the art crowd are already there.” Charrière adds, “The art world has great taste, and fashion follows. The fashion industry is more trend-led.”
There is of course a drawback to destinations becoming synonymous with writers, designers, buyers and models. As their holiday photos are shared across social media, the masses will follow. While the influx of visitors can cause a boost to the local economy and more jobs, it also has its perils. In Sicily, the surge of The White Lotus crowds to Taormina has meant that tourism has dipped in other places across the island. Visitors travel to Taormina, but forget there is an entire island to explore outside of it. In a number of popular tourist favourites including Costa Rica and Thailand overcrowding is becoming a problem, and in Barcelona the rise of Airbnb rentals and tourist second homes is driving up the cost of living to the extent that locals can no longer afford to live there. “I don’t want to gate-keep destinations at all, but we have to be really mindful about this,” says Charrière. “Tourists fall in love and want to buy somewhere in that destination and they end up pushing out the locals which is what made it special in the first place.”
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Social media has changed how we discover places; algorithms are influencing how we experience travel. “There used to be a word-of-mouth way of sharing holiday tips and it’s nice to sing the praise of the place you love,” says Charrière. “But we need to be clear about why we’re choosing to go on holiday and not just blindly following others. There is a laziness to not doing your own research. I don’t want travel to be easy. I don’t want Deliveroo, I want to go out and find a restaurant that I love myself. Travel is about discovery.”
TOP TRAVEL DESTINATIONS FOR THE FASHION CROWDS IN 2025:
Patmos, Greece
Small fishing village of Groikos on Patmos island, Greece.
This small Greek oasis is historically known as the country’s ‘holy island’, thanks to its famous monastery, where Saint John is believed to have written the Book of Revelation. Remote and wildly beautiful, Patmos’ spiritual mythology has long attracted artists and musicians, including David Bowie. Come for its zen qualities and simple way of living. You won’t find great nightlife here, but you’ll return home nourished.
Nice, France
Nice, France
The capital city of the French Riviera, Nice has often been viewed as a necessary means of travelling to its glitzier cousins of Cannes, Antibes and St. Tropez. The arrival of the anti-bling Hotel du Couvent, a former convent in the Old Town, is enticing a new set of visitors that are focused on a more low-key way of experiencing this beautiful stretch of coastline.
Siwa, Egypt
Salt Plains and Lakes in Siwa Oasis, Egypt
Home to turquoise salt water lakes, Siwa is slowly becoming a place to be seen. This north western corner of Egypt is almost overburdened with history and natural wonder from freshwater springs, ancient fortresses and dusty mountains. Luxury eco-lodge Adrère Amellal is the place to stay and Fatnas Island is unbeatable for dreamlike sunsets.
Menorca
Son Vell in Menorca
This small Spanish island is fast becoming the most popular destination in the Balearics among the bohemian arty crowd. Everyone stays at the stylish renovated agricultural estate Son Vell, a twenty-minute drive from Ciutadella; and the draw is Menorca’s unspoilt beaches and rising number of galleries, including Galería Cayón housed in a former cinema in the capital Mahon, and Hauser & Wirth, which is located on an island just off the coast.
Stanley Whitney – “Works on paper 2021-2025” at Galería Cayón. Image credit: Galería Cayón
Lead image: Andria Mitsakos in Paros, Greece. Image credit: Peter Wesley Brown
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