Polignano a Mare, with its white centre perched over the Adriatic, has gone viral: in summer the alleyways and coves fill up and the magic is lost among queues and selfies. Here are stone villages and cities overlooking the sea, from Apulia to the Balkans, where you can rediscover the same cliffs and the same blue in the silence of undertourism.
Polignano a Mare in high season: → the alternatives below are far quieter.
A Byzantine fortress on an islet off the Peloponnese: Monemvasia stays invisible until you round the final bend, into a maze of stone alleys.
Very quiet Jun 21, 2026
Camogli and Boccadasse: two fishing harbours near Genoa, with pastel houses and beached boats, to experience authentic Liguria without the crush.
Not very crowded Jun 21, 2026
In Kotor, beyond the cathedral stormed by cruise passengers, the inner lanes remain a silent maze of stone and cats.
Very quiet Jun 21, 2026
On the Gulf of Corinth, Nafpaktos is a fortified Venetian harbour with walls that run down to the sea: quiet Greece with no queues.
Very quiet Jun 21, 2026
Among olive trees and the Adriatic, in Apulia, the ruins of Egnazia: a silent archaeological site where you can walk among Messapians, Romans and Byzantines.
Very quiet Jun 21, 2026
On the Mani peninsula in Greece, Vathia gathers its stone towers on a wind-battered hill, among almost deserted olive groves and sea.
Almost deserted Jun 21, 2026