Mykonos to Ios links two of the liveliest islands in the Cyclades, and it is a favourite leg for travellers who want beaches by day and bars by night. Ios lies about 45 nautical miles (roughly 83 km) to the south, on the way to Santorini, so it slots neatly into a north-to-south island-hopping trip.
The route is run by high-speed boats. Seajets is the main operator, with sailings on most days in the summer months according to Ferryhopper, and Golden Star Ferries adds a slightly slower boat on several days a week. On a direct run you can be in Ios in under an hour and a half, which leaves a full afternoon for the beach or a walk up to Chora.
Watch the itinerary when you book. Not every sailing is direct: on our sample day, 12 August 2026, one Seajets boat took 1 hr 25 min while another, on a longer routing, took 3 hr 20 min for the same price. The difference is easy to miss if you only look at the departure time.
Fares are those of a fast-boat route, from €48 per adult on Ferryhopper when we checked, and there is no cheap conventional ship on this leg. The season is also limited: sailings thin out sharply outside summer, so if you travel in spring or late autumn, check your date before building the rest of the trip around it.
