Close to three hundred steps climb the cliff to the monastery of Panagia Hozoviotissa, and at the top someone decides whether a visitor is dressed to come in. That single fact organises what to wear in Amorgos more than the weather does. The monastery, which tradition dates to the eleventh century, is a white wall set into a rust-coloured rock face high above the sea on the island's south coast. It is the reason many people make the long crossing, and it is still a working religious house, with the expectations of one.

Those expectations are simple and firmly kept. Men are expected in long trousers, with shoulders covered. Women have traditionally been asked for a skirt or dress that falls below the knee and for covered shoulders, and the rule on women's trousers has been reported differently from one season to the next. Wraps have at times been lent at the door, but it is better not to depend on that. Opening hours are usually split between the morning and the late afternoon, and both the hours and the dress rule are worth checking in the port on the day. Arriving correctly dressed is a courtesy, and it saves the climb from being made twice.

In practice this means one considered outfit. For a man: PP Casual Linen Trousers in Oatmeal or Vanille and the Laos Long Sleeve Linen Shirt in Dark Blue, sleeves rolled for the ascent and let down at the door. For a woman: the PP linen blouse in Orchid, which is Belgian linen, with a long skirt of her own. The Amelia linen dress shirt is a dress in itself and ends above the knee, so it stays behind for the evening. The steps are stone, uneven and unshaded for most of the way; closed shoes with a proper sole are the right choice, and the morning opening is cooler than the afternoon one.

Directly below the monastery is Agia Anna, a small cove of rock and pebble with water of the colour that gave Luc Besson's film The Big Blue its setting in the 1980s. There is very little beach, and people swim from the rocks. PP natural swim shorts, which are 100% Belgian linen, suit that kind of swimming, and because the cove sits at the foot of the monastery road, it is worth keeping the two visits distinct: swimwear belongs at the water and not on the steps above it. The men's swim shorts are in the natural swim shorts collection, in six colourways including Sapphire Blue and Oyster.

The Chora sits inland and high, hidden from the sea as island capitals once had to be. A Venetian castle stands on a single rock in the middle of the village, a line of old windmills runs along the ridge behind, and the lanes between are narrow, whitewashed and largely free of traffic. The evening is the time to be there, at a table outside one of the small cafés, with a glass of psimeni raki, the local spirit warmed with honey and spices. The altitude takes the edge off the heat after dark, even in August. A long sleeve is welcome, and the Bliss Linen Shirt in Vanille or the Vibes Linen Shirt in Dubarry sits well against white walls.

Amorgos has two ports, and most visitors choose one as a base. Katapola, in the centre, lies on a deep sheltered bay beneath the remains of ancient Minoa. Aegiali, in the north, has the island's long sandy beach and three villages on the slopes above it, Tholaria, Langada and Potamos, joined by old stone footpaths. Those paths are one of the island's pleasures in the early morning. A loose linen shirt is a cool companion on them, and footwear should be chosen for stone, not sand. Aegiali in the evening is relaxed in the manner of a small harbour: the ladies linen set in Coral Orange, or the Amelia linen dress shirt in Blue, is as dressed as it needs to be. Both are in the women's linen collection.

Then there is the journey. Amorgos lies at the eastern edge of the Cyclades, and the ferry from Piraeus is among the longer crossings in the group; many travellers break it at Naxos or arrive from the Small Cyclades on the local boat that works these waters. Either way it is a day spent partly on deck and partly in an air-conditioned lounge, which is the case for certified Belgian linen in a long sleeve and for the habits described in linen for island hopping. Sailings change by season and by weather, and the summer wind can alter them at short notice.

What the island returns for that effort is a kind of quiet that has become rare in the Aegean. There is little to dress up for and one place to dress properly for, and a small bag of linen covers both. The traveller who packs the monastery outfit first will find the rest of the week has already been decided.

What to Wear in Naxos  ·  What to Wear in Folegandros  ·  What to Wear in Patmos