Sporades

Skiathos - Sporades (Greece)

Skiathos is for many people one of the most popular Greek islands in the Aegean Sea. It belongs to the Sporades island group, it lies to the east of Pelion (Thessaly) and north of Evia. Skiathos had great publicity a few years ago because of the movie "Mamma Mia" that was partly filmed here.

We visited Skiathos a couple of times and were positively surprised. Skiathos is a very green island with beautiful sandy beaches and a picturesque capital (Skiathos town). On the island are forests, castles, monasteries, many hiking trails and a lagoon.

Skiathos town has two ports, a small harbour where the fishing boats and the small excursion boats moor and to the north of it, the larger port where the big ferries dock. It is a very cosy town, you can enjoy the colourful terraces at the harbour where many good bars and tavernas are. Just behind the ports is a long shopping street where all kinds of tourist shops, snackbars, bars, gold shops and boutiques are. Sometimes it is very busy here, especially when huge ferry boats arrive, though it remains a charming and pleasant town.

On Skiathos, especially on the south coast, there are many beautiful sandy beaches. These are almost all southwest of the city. The best known and most visited beach is  Koukounaries (15 minutes by bus), which is also a protected area for birds. Koukounari means ‘stone pine’, at Koukounaries is a lagoon and a wooded peninsula with a stone pine forest. On the sandy beach there are all kinds of water sports and the water is very clean and clear. On Skiathos there are plenty of very good hotels but also cheaper rooms and apartments are available.

Sights Skiathos

• The Venetian castle on the green Pounta
• The home of the Greek writer Alexandros Papadiamantis which is now a museum.
• The ancient monasteries and churches like that of Agios Charalambos and Moni Evangelistria. Moni Evangelistria to the Greek insurgents have fled after the revolution of 1821.
• The old port with its tavernas and cafes.
• The beautiful beaches of Skiathos like the amazing Koukounaries
• The "blue cave"
• The castle (Kastro) where, during the 16th century, the inhabitants of Skiathosmoved to escape from the Barbarians. Here you will find churches where Christians hid.

Skopelos - Sporades (Greece)

Skopelos is a Greek island in the northwest of the Aegean Sea. It lies between the islands of Skiathos and Alonissos, not far from the coast of Pelion which is situated on mainland Greece. The capital of the island is Skopelos town. Skopelos island is about a 100 sq.km.the length of the coastline is 70 kilometres. The most striking aspect of this island are the approximately eight million pine trees that are present here. The tree which grows in abundance here, is a type of pine tree that easily multiplies itself, the seeds are dispersed by the wind and dense forests are created.

On the island are dozens of mountains 300 to 600 meters high. The highest mountain is Mount Delfi, which is 620 meters high. Skopelos has many beaches especially smaller ones, sandy and pebble. Some beaches are accessible by car, other beaches not, this has to do with the hilly, sometimes steep relief of the coastline.  If you sail with a boat around Skopelos, you will see many small beaches,often only reachable with a hired boat or on foot. The island is also known for its many hiking trails, many tourists who regularly come back to Skopelos, come just for walking and enjoying the beautiful nature.

 Another phenomenon on Skopelos are the many churches and monasteries. It is estimated, there are three hundred eighty churches on the island.

Sights and tips on Skopelos

• The capital of Skopelos town, also called Chora.It is a beautiful traditional town with lovely houses, narrow streets and more than a hundred small churches.
• Agios Ioannis Kastri, the church made ​​famous by the filming of the movie "Mamma Mia".
• Palio Klima (Old Klima), a village almost completely abandoned, after a major earthquake in 1965 but is again restored in the original style and in the summer comes to life.
• Glossa, the second, main town of Skopelos (with harbour).
• Panormos with its distinctive fjord.
• The many monasteries scattered around the island. These may be visited by tourists, but beware, at noon they are usually closed.
• The beautiful wooded countryside of Skopelos.

Beaches on Skopelos

Skopelos has many beautiful sandy and pebble beaches. The best known beaches are those of Stafylos, Kastani, Milia, Hovolo at Klima Elios and Agnontas. Many beaches are not accessible by car, but on foot or by boat.

How to get on Skopelos

Skopelos has no airport and is only accessible by boat. Most tourists arrive from the island of Skiathos, in Skiathos is an international airport. A boat trip from Skiathos town to Skopelos town takes about one hour. Others fly to the city of Volos, from the port of Volos there is a ferry twice a day to Skopelos and the other Sporades. Skopelos is connected by ferry with the ports of Agios Konstantinos (Greek mainland), Volos, Skiathos, Alonissos and Skyros.

Alonissos - Sporades (Greece)

Island Alonissos is one of the Northern Sporades islands and is probably less known than the islands of Skiathos and Skopelos, which are also part of the same archipelago. Yet Alonissos is just as beautiful as Skiathos and Skopelos, many find even Alonissos is much nicer than the other islands of the archipelago. It is an elongated island with a coastline length of about eighty kilometres that covers an area of approximately 60 square kilometres. The island is very green and covered with numerous large pine forests. It is a hilly island, the highest mountain Geladias is 456 meters high.

In the middle ages Alonissos and the other smaller islands around,were an area where pirates hid, from here they could perform all sorts of attacks. Alonissos was given its current name during the period when Greece was liberated from the Turks. The strange thing about the story is the fact that the island was called in antiquity Ikos. Alonissos, meaning"another island" was actually, the island now called Kyra Panagia, north of Alonissos.

The first inhabitants of Alonissos would have been the Minoans from Crete, their leader here was the mythological hero Stafylos who founded colonies in Alonissos and Skopelos. The Cretans brought prosperity to the island and managed vineyards and olive groves.

The life today on Alonissos is quiet, even in high season, you won’t find the big tourist crowds here. The secluded beaches, the pretty fishing villages, quiet people, the island exudes a certain charm. Everywhere it is quiet actually. The inhabitants live mainly from tourism or fishing or farming. Patitiri is the capital and port of the island, however the nicest village is Chora or Liadromia, as the locals call their village. Tourists call it Alonissos town.

Alonissos information and other things

On the island are many hiking trails,many tourists come to Alonissos just to walk. Besides hiking trails there are many dirt roads that lead you through the beautiful countryside. In the northern part of the island, roads are usually not as good.

Around Alonissos are many islands and there is also the National Marine Park, the largest marine protected area in Europe. This area is regarded as the home of seals and dolphins. These islands can be visited simply by tourists, but only with a license.

In addition to the National Marine Park of Alonissos, the island is also known for the International Academy of Classical Homeopathy which was founded here in 1995 by Professor Georgios Vithoulkas. Every year, seminars are held here and teachers from different countries come here to share their knowledge with scientists from around the world. Georgios Vithoulkas was a recipient of the Right Livelihood Award in 1996.

Accessibility Alonissos

Alonissos is reachable several times a day by boat The island has no airport. Tourists who want to fly to Alonissos fly to Skiathos or Volos(Thessaly). The boat trip from Skiathos to Alonissos takes about one hour. Alonissos is also connected by ferry with Agios Konstantinos (Greek Mainland), Skopelos and Skyros.

Η Περιφερειακή Ενότητα Σποράδων είναι υποδιαίρεση της Περιφέρειας Θεσσαλίας η οποία προέκυψε από την κατάτμηση του πρώην Νομού Μαγνησίας. Αποτελείται από τους δήμους Αλοννήσου, Σκιάθου και Σκοπέλου.

Ο συνολικός πληθυσμός της Περιφερειακής Ενότητας ανέρχεται σε 13.798 κατοίκους, με τους 4.883 από αυτούς να κατοικούν στην έδρα της, την κωμόπόλη της Σκιάθου.