In 2004 Thomas Heyne and Mario Hertel moved from their native Germany to the Greek island of Mykonos, where they now run both the popular Paradise Club and the newly opened San Giorgio, a Design Hotels™ project. Both the open-air club and the seaside hotel are utterly enmeshed with their environments, and the men have come to see Mykonos as more than a temporary stomping ground.

“I've been here nine years. I feel completely at home,” says Hertel. “You have party places, family places, luxury restaurants, tavernas. The beaches are incredible. Really everything you could want is here. And the island is only 12km from one side to the other: it's like a village, it's very small, so you get in the spirit very fast.”

Here are Thomas and Mario's favorite places on the island for getting in the spirit: