Everyone loves the beaches in Mykonos, but you're looking for some light activity, too. An easy day of bicycling to a beach, via a unspoilt village, is the best solution.

We start our bike ride in Hora, the capital of Mykonos and head inland to Ano Mera. Because this village has no beaches, it has remained very, very traditional and relatively unscathed by the glamour elsewhere. For this reason alone, we set our bikes aside momentarily to explore it. Ano Mera is a quintessential Cyclades village with whitewashed homes and tenderly placed potted plants. Perhaps its most charming feature is the red dome on the 16th century monastery known as Panagia Tourliani. The monastery was founded by two monks from Paros and its grandiose tower sculpted by marble craftsmen from Tinos. The town itself was founded by voyagers from Crete.

Ano Mera makes a pleasant rest stop. We cycle onward to another monastery, Moni Palaiokastrou, sitting on a hill which was formerly the site of a Venetian castle. After surmounting the hill, it is then downhill all the way to Fokos Beach and Mersini Beach, one kilometer apart. These two idyllic beaches are relatively secluded, a rare find in Mykonos, most likely because the dirt road is not inviting. But for our mountain bikes, dirt roads are familiar terrain. We spend the afternoon in this tranquil area, devoid of structures except a lonely whitewashed chapel, Agia Ana.

Our backup vehicle has carried our lunch, a spread of delicious local cuisine. We spend the rest of the day lounging lazily on the beach.

After several hours in "beach potato" mode, we're ready to start pumping our legs again in a fit of activity. The bicycle ride back to Hora is easy and fun and energizing. You begin to think that maybe biking is the best way to discover the many other deserted beaches in Mykonos' beaches.