According to Greek myth, Poseidon, god of the sea, used the granite of Mykonos to crack open the skulls of wayward giants. He could have chosen several of the other Cyclades islands, renowned for their rocky contours and oases of green. Scattered roughly in a circle in the Aegean Sea, southeast of Athens, the Cyclades is the largest of the Greek island groups – there are more than 200 of them, of which 24 are inhabited, others archeological sites and some no more than outcrops.

Until recently, British househunters were more likely to head for Crete or Ionian islands such as Corfu and Cepha-lonia. In the past five years, however, buyers have begun to seek out areas less tarnished by tourism. The larger islands in the Cyclades – from Mykonos and Santorini to Kea, Amorgos, Tinos, Naxos, Andros, Syros, Paros and Antiparos – are the latest frontier in the search for the unspoilt Greek idyll: cubist tumbles of villages and land like treasure-island maps, with cutaway bays filled with fishing caïques.

Mykonos and Santorini, the more established destinations, are the most practical options for housebuyers, as you can fly to both direct from Britain. For those in search of a perfect slice of Greece and the chance of a bargain, however, it is worth taking the longer ferry ride to Naxos or Amorgos. All the islands can be reached by ferries that run daily from the mainland ports of Piraeus or Rafina; journey times vary between two and seven hours, depending on the distance and the company you use.

If you harbour dreams of renovating a traditional ruin, you may well be disappointed. Many who set out with that idea change their minds once confronted with reality. “When you buy an old house, you are really only buying what’s left of the walls,” says Vassilis Sandikos, an estate agent on Amorgos. “People didn’t have a toilet – they used the fields – and they only had a water tank for about 7 litres. Now you need 30-40 litres.” Many Greek sellers also have an inflated idea of what foreigners will pay, and renovations can prove much more expensive than you might expect.

As a result, most British buyers opt for new houses in neo-Cycladic style – whitewashed cubes with shutters in shades of green, blue or red – designed by local architects. They are often in clusters of 5-10 properties on a communally owned stretch of beach.

Whether it’s a new-build or a ruin, don’t expect your idyll to come cheap. Space is at a premium on the islands, with some local authorities concerned that new-build complexes are spreading over precious agricultural land. “On Naxos, we will stop development in 10 years,” says Yannis Pomonis, an architect and the island’s deputy mayor. It is also worth remembering that, on remote islands, the transportation of building materials is costly and it may be harder to find professional services.

MYKONOS

Renowned for its gay party scene, the Greek St Tropez is, along with Santorini, the most popular of the Cyclades for British buyers. The island is only 85 sq km, and there are restrictions on new developments. If you can afford to pay from £2,800 per square metre for a small flat or £4,800 per square metre for a villa, it may still be a good investment, as prices have risen by about 12% per year over the past five years, compared with 5%-8% on most other islands. Avoid the north coast, which is battered relentlessly by the meltemi wind, and stick to the sheltered beaches of the south and east coasts at Psarou, Paradise Beach, Agrari or Agios Stefanos, north of Mykonos town.

SANTORINI

In 3000BC, the volcanic island of Santorini developed as a cultural outpost of the wealthy Minoan civilisation. Today, it is just as exclusive. Adored for its networks of sugar-cube villages perched on the edge of the caldera – the hillside created by the volcano’s eruption – Santorini is the most expensive island in the group. Prices per square metre in the clifftop village of Oia are said to be on a par with Manhattan, and in some areas they have risen by 30% per annum in the past five years. Prices inland can be significantly lower. Andrew Pidduck, 45, a firefighter from Kent, and his wife, Linda, 46, an office manager, bought a 6,000-square-metre plot of land in the village of Pyrgos through Nick Dinos, of Santorini Real Estate, for £65,000 in 2005. The house, with two ensuite bedrooms, a lounge, a dining room, a kitchen and a terrace, will have cost them £192,000 when it is finished.

NAXOS

Dionysus, the Greek god of wine and good life, blessed this island with fertility, and what Naxos, the largest of the Cyclades, lacks in quaint villages, it makes up for in abundant olive groves, rich agricultural land and fabulous beaches. It is also one of the best-value islands, due to its size and the small number of tourists, with prices averaging £1,600 per square metre. Julie Hyde, 46, a travel agent from Exeter, combed many islands with her boyfriend, Richard, 60, an electrician, before they settled on Naxos. “We came here because it is a working island with a life beyond tourism,” she says. They bought their two-bedroom neo-Cycladic house, designed by Pomonis (www.naxos-web.com/windows/maravas.php ), for £85,000 in 2006. Similar properties nearby are on the market for about £115,000.

ANDROS

Just a two-hour ferry ride from Rafina, Andros is the most northerly of the Cyclades, with a rich culture and art galleries that attract many mainland Greeks. It is the largest island after Naxos – but with 10,000 residents, has only half the population – and it boasts 200 beaches. The capital, Chora, set on a peninsula between two bays, is the most expensive area in which to buy. Beach-lovers buy coastal properties between the port of Gavrio and the resort of Batsi; Andros Real Estate has a 92-square-metre villa with sea views, on 1,250 square metres of land, for £397,000. Many Britons prefer cheaper property in villages such as Katakilos, Ateni and Aprovatou, where a 100-square-metre house in need of renovation is on the market with the same agency for £139,000.

SYROS

The administrative centre of the Cyclades, Syros has the largest population, with about 20,000 residents, and is on the central route for ferries to and from the mainland. Famed for its classical architecture, the elegant port town of Ermoupolis has a small-scale replica of La Scala opera house. The barren interior has few villages; most development is on the coast. A three-storey, four-bedroom neoclassical house overlooking Ermoupolis is on the market with PanCo estate agency for £460,000. If you search away from the bustle of the town, a 100-square-metre new-build house can be bought for about £280,000.

PAROS AND ANTIPAROS

The large English-speaking population on Paros makes it attractive to British buyers. The island has been scarred by the quarrying of its famous marble, but you can still find all the essentials of Greek island life. “There is limited space left on Paros to buy property for good investment,” says George Pantelias of PanCo. Nevertheless, it is still possible to buy a two-bedroom new-build house for about £200,000. The most popular areas for buying are near the port and capital, Parikia, the former fishing village of Naousa or the windsurfers’ paradise of Santa Maria. Paros’s smaller and more exclusive satellite island, Antiparos, is a favoured holiday destination for celebrities such as Jennifer Aniston and Tom Hanks.

KEA

As Kea is only an hour’s ferry ride from Lavrio, a port 30 miles from Athens, it is a popular weekend destination for Athenians – which pushes prices up to about £2,800 per square metre in small new-build complexes. Despite its attractive hillsides, dotted with evergreen oaks and long-leafed almonds, Kea has a low tourist profile and a population of just 3,000. The favoured place to buy is around the inland capital, Ioulida; the yachting crowd heads for the port of Vourkari. At the northern tip, new properties offer views of Otzias bay. For a more sheltered location, consider Koundouros, in the southwest.

TINOS

Tinos, still relatively unspoilt by mass tourism, lies across the water from glitzy Mykonos, but is considerably cheaper. A four-bedroom, 250-square-metre villa with pool in a 5,000-square-metre garden, overlooking Agios Romanos beach, on the island’s southern coast, is for sale with the Athens-based agency Demeures de Grèce at £950,000.

AMORGOS

British buyers come to Amorgos for Greece as it used to be – life on remote farmsteads hasn’t changed in hundreds of years. The island is still “at the beginning” of property development, says Vassilis Sandikos, its main estate agent (00 30 22850 73273), who in 12 years of business has sold 20 houses, almost all around the port of Aegiali. You can buy a 200-square-metre Cycladic-style house on an 850-square-metre plot for £377,000. The downside is getting there: the ferry from Piraeus takes seven hours and may be cancelled due to high seas. Just blame Poseidon.

The white houses

Andros: About a mile from Batsi town, this six-year-old, furnished four-bedroom house has stunning sea views and garage space.

For sale for £700,000 through Andros Real Estate; 00 30 22820 41197, www.andros-realestate.com

Naxos:This detached two-bedroom house in the Eggares valley has a fully equipped kitchen, two bathrooms and a shared swimming pool.

For sale for £150,000 with PanCo; 00 30 22850 23882, en.panco.gr

Paros: On the northeast coast, near trendy Naousa, this two-bedroom villa has sea views and a one-bedroom guest apartment.

For sale for £630,000 with Demeures de Grèce; 00 30 69799 47264, www.demeuresdegrece.com

Santorini: In exclusive Oia, this one-bedroom, 40-square-metre “cave home” is dug out of the caldera cliff. It has a courtyard kitchen and volcano views.

For sale for £175,000 with Santorini Real Estate; 00 30 22860 25900, www.santorinirealestate.com

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