The making of the Greek island Directory.
What it was like to sit down over the course of two months and build the most comprehensive and only true directory of Greek islands.
21 April 2026
by Mi’kael Neropoulos
Before Greek Island Directory.com
The Greek Island Directory did not start with 110 islands or WordPress, in fact, it didn’t even really exist as an idea until two months before this article was written. Since the early 2000’s I have dabbled in computers and technology. Using spare parts left on the street and from around my childhood home, I put together my first computer in about 2002, hiding it from my mother under my bed- I simply adored them and the idea of them, and for as long as I could remember, that was synomous with video games.
In 2006 at 11 years old I begun developing with what was Game Maker 7 Lite (and eventually Pro) in GML. I made a few video games releasing them between 2011 and 2013 under “Cyber_Demon” (https://yygarchive.org/). My goal was to be a semi-professional game developer by 2016. Unfortunately I was starting and stopping every idea I ever had, some of which revolved around survival and a few large-scale RPG’s. I slowly realised that even if I poured my soul into an idea I liked, the odds were statistically against me.
On top of my game design woes were my job woes, which made the idea of a successful development seem further; I started in hard labour out of high school (2013) and by 2016 I was in an aluminium factory. After quitting I entered the delivery industry with a plumbing supplier and then a hydraulic servicing company. By early 2018 my luck had begun to change, I landed a pathology courier role (2018-2020) and through this I was introduced to healthcare, and then emergency healthcare. Two diplomas later (Justice and Paramedicine) and I was working in transport ambulance, eventually an Ambulance Officer by the end of 2022.
Following a three-year paramedic degree I became a registered professional in 2026, but my long term prospects were far from sealed, I needed something on the side, something that could work for me.
Directories
My friend Kosta called me one day and explained the idea of a directory. Initially I dismissed it, but after watching a few videos it became obvious that not only was there something there, but that my own ideas could actually be applied.
Why Greek islands?
Put simply: Crete. The elongated minoan giant of the norh african – southern european waters, a historical gem. I had heard about Crete when allied troops (ANZACs) rose to its defense during the second World War. But I was reunited with Crete as a potential place to live- to get away from the world, when I saw it advertised on gym equipment in 2022.
The click
My first idea was too niche, and second idea had little to no traffic potential, but Greek islands… Well they are a popular, evergreen destination, something that is dreamt of in workplaces and households the world-over. Not only was the traffic there, but after numerous other tech failures, this was the one I felt finally ready for, I knew how to use Excel, hoq to validate ans curate data, I knew Crete… hell I LOVED Crete, and I had a rough idea about websites; I needed to atleast try.
Facing the Scale
A Greek island directory that only focused on populated islands was a huge task when you consider the variety and endless categories that stem from them; I certainly wasn’t going to do every uninhabited Greek island either. So what to do? Simple: List every populated Greek island that you can legally reach as a citizen, tourist or traveller, then include the most popular uninhabited and abandoned islands.
The Hardest non-technical aspects
The mental drain of duplication, editing and scanning with two tired eyes whilst checking what you’ve written against data you’ve collected is mind numbing. I have at times, pushed through immense monotonous boredom just to reach launch, only to find formatting errors for over 100 pages that needed to be individually rectified… but if not the best I could do, what would be the point at all?
Furthermore, I was workig through sometimes over 100 pages a day correctimg errors and found myself needing to get up and go do something else completely different like play the Bzouki or make food. With so much to do and little spare time to do it, I was trapped in my own mind for 8 weeks before launch.
Building it when it wasn’t fun
The only part that wasn’t fun was the early stages of data aggregation. With ELSTAT and Census as my pillars of trust, I often found there were genuinely inhabited islands like Agios Minas that was often listed as empty. This meant that I had to do over 10 passes of the data set just to clarify which Greek islands were populated and which ones were desolate.
What I learned about myself
Sitting here now in the post-launch euphoria
From local files to a real website
In practical terms, what you “do” in winter Crete shifts from consumption to routine: language learning, building relationships, cooking, maintaining property, and integrating into slower civic rhythms become the primary activities, and whether that feels grounding or monotonous depends almost entirely on whether you treat the island as a place to live rather than a place to be entertained.
Letting go of perfection to Launch
In practical terms, what you “do” in winter Crete shifts from consumption to routine: language learning, building relationships, cooking, maintaining property, and integrating into slower civic rhythms become the primary activities, and whether that feels grounding or monotonous depends almost entirely on whether you treat the island as a place to live rather than a place to be entertained.
What Greek islands direct means to me
In practical terms, what you “do” in winter Crete shifts from consumption to routine: language learning, building relationships, cooking, maintaining property, and integrating into slower civic rhythms become the primary activities, and whether that feels grounding or monotonous depends almost entirely on whether you treat the island as a place to live rather than a place to be entertained.
The Greek Island Directory is a project of passion where a love of Crete, Data Integrity and Directories converge to create something truly special for users: Learn More.
Last Updated on April 30, 2026 by admin