Antikythera: The under-the-radar Greek Island that will pay you to move there

A secluded Greek island has become the latest Mediterranean idyl to offer to pay people to move there, teaming up with the Greek Orthodox church to offer new residents a monthly allowance totalling €18,000 (NZ$33,000).

Best known for being the place of discovery of one of the oldest analogic computers ever found, Antikythera sits between Kythera and the island of Crete at a point where three seas – the Aegan, the Ionian and the Cretan – converge.

Largely undeveloped, the 20sq km island boasts isolated sandy and pebble beaches, ancient walking tracks, a whitewashed village and cute country chapels.

With an ageing population of about 20 residents, the island has joined forces with the church to launch a campaign enticing people to move there, the Greek City Times reported.

Families who set up residence there will receive a monthly allowance of €500 for three years – a total of €18,000, the publication said.

The catch: The island has only one shop – a kafeneion (coffee shop) which also serves a grocery store and meeting place for islanders. There are no banks or ATMs, and the boat which supplies the island with food and gas cannot dock in especially stormy seas – a fairly common occurrence in winter, according to the Greek Reporter.

Still, locals consider it an earthly paradise, the publication said, quoting retired Greek Air Force general Gianni Tzinakos as saying “There is no other place in the world where you can find such absolute peace and quiet”.

Once a lair for pirates, the island was the site of two important archaeological discoveries in the 20th century: The Antikythera Mechanism, built around 150 and 100 BC to calculate and display information about astrological phenomena, and a 340 to 330 BC bronze statue of a young man known as the “Antikythera Youth”. Both are now housed in the National Archaeological Museum in Athens.

Antikythera is about a two-hour ferry ride from Crete, and around four hours from Laconia on the mainland.

Numerous small settlements in Italy have attempted to revive dwindling populations by offering to pay people to move there, or selling homes for a song.

There was the hilltop Italian town selling homes for less than $2, the picturesque village offering people $15k to move, and an abandoned home up for grabs for just $1.70.

Not to be outdone, the Sicilian town of Cammarata offered new arrivals a house for “free”.

There is often a catch though, so be sure to do your homework if you’re considering taking up one of the offers.