Do you wish for a wonderful vacation on the Greek shore? Would you relax under the palm trees on a beautiful beach, or relieve the stress with an unforgettable party? If so, the magical, forest-filled island of Skiathos is the best choice. Milling nightlife, crystal clear water, and lifelong experiences are waiting for you here.
Location
Skiathos is a Greek island in the group of islands called the Sporades on the northwestern part of the Aegean Sea. In front of it, there’s the Magnesia Peninsula. It has an area of 49, 9 km² and 6088 residents. The island is accessible by plane from Athens, but also has daily boat lines to Volos and Agios Konstantinos.
History
Despite being a small island, Skiathos has very rich and eventful history. Its name means big shadow, which refers to its huge pine forests. It also operated as a port of Athens. Christianity appeared on the island in 300, soon they built their first church. Thereafter pirates conquered the island until the Crusaders liberated the island in 1204. You can still view remnants of the fortresses built to keep away the pirates. The island belonged to the Ottoman Empire from the 16th century until the war for independence in 1821. The number of visitors increased thanks to the Hollywood film, Mamma Mia since they shoot some of its scenes here.
Beaches
You’ll find the most spectacular beaches of Greece on the island of Skiathos. The shores covered with pine trees have smooth sand and crystal clear water. The section of shore on the southern side of the island is well-equipped with deck chairs and water sports centres. beaches in the northern side are outlying, thus, naturists love visiting them. You can rent a boat on the island, so exploring the area becomes a real adventure.
Koukounaries beach:
Koukounaries is the most famous at the same time the most crowded beach on the island. It’s known for the especially fine white sand and fragrant pine forests. It’s also considered the most untouched and protected section of the shore of the Mediterranean Sea. The beautiful dark blue water provides true refreshment. Since the shore has good infrastructure, it offers several water sports, chairs, umbrellas, bars and diners. The district is full of restaurants, tavernas and hotel units. The local buses go to the capital every thirty minutes. They developed the area and the beach for ecotourism. The environment and fauna here is strictly protected.
Lalaria beach:
Lalaria is only accessible by boats coming from the port of the capital. It’s on the north-eastern apex of the island and has an unbelievable scenery of huge white rocks emerging from the clear deep-blue water. Left to the white sandy beach there’s a rock, which creates a natural bridge between the sand and the sea. The amazing Blue and Dark caves are right in front of Lalaria. You should visit them with a yacht charter.
Banana beach:
There’s a two-pronged road from Koukounaries to a banana-shaped sandy gulf. It’s an excellent, well-equipped beach providing water sports opportunities. The other branch of the road continues until the small gulf called Little Banana. Here you’ll find a nudist beach separated by the other with a huge rock. This section is quieter than its neighbour with azure blue water and smooth sand.
Kanapitsa beach:
The wonderful Kanapitsa is only 2 km from the city centre. This beach is ideal for a family vacation by the sea. The best thing about it is that it’s never overcrowded and has a pleasant breeze all year. For the sake of the adventurous, there’s a watersports school here, which offers numerous sports opportunities such as surfing, diving, water skiing, and jet skiing. The water is clean and perfect for swimming. The sunset is absolutely amazing enthralling, perfect for a romantic evening.
Main sights
You’ll find the harmony of interesting cultural and natural attractions on the island of Skiathos. Among historical sights, there are churches, monasteries and other monuments. Most of them are either remnant of the Byzantine era or the Venetian times. There’s a lot to see in the city centre, as well as nearby in the outskirts. If you wish to take a romantic evening walk on the island, visit the narrow, pebbly streets of the old town. Here you’ll find traditional chateaus with typical local characteristics. Don’t forget to visit the castle of Bourtz, the old medieval town, and the Papadiamantis house in the city of Skiathos. However, you shouldn’t forget about natural sights either. Famous sea caves are waiting for you to discover them, such as Skotini (dark) cave and Galazia (blue) cave.
Weather
The Greek coast has a Mediterranean climate. The air of the country is very clean and dry from spring to early autumn. There’s a lot of sunshine, while the amount of rain usually decreases from the west to the east. In summer, we almost never see any clouds in the sky. Rain is practically an unknown guest in the summer months. The sea can heat up to 23-25 °C from June to August. Even in October, it’s still 23 °C. The area of Greece is constantly windy, these winds, however, are always changing. The wind that dominates summer months is called Meltemi. From June, it blows from the northwest and the northeast. It reaches its full strength, 5 to 8 on the Beaufort scale, in July and August. The sea-wind comes in late September or early October, which blows from the southeast and the southwest. It’s a specifically southern wind, that dominates mostly in spring and fall with a strength of 2 to 4. Due to Greece’s typical winds, it’s most rewarding to plan a sailing route from the south to the north in spring and autumn, and from the north to the south in summer. The waving is preferable compared to the Croatian archipelago since there’s a greater distance between the Greek islands. The current flows counterclockwise in the Eastern Mediterranean Basin, and northward along the Turkish coast. The water flows southward on the Eastern Greek coasts, but from the west side of the Peloponnese Peninsula northern current dominates..
Rent a boat Skiathos
The port of Skiathos is in the capital city, which tourists tend to visit quite often. Many people choose to access the magical island by boat instead of an airplane. Thus, it has a daily connection to neighbouring cities such as Athens or Volos. Scheduled boat lines run on different routes to surrounding islands. The port is also popular among sailors since it provides a variety of services including boat rental, a petrol station, and free internet connection. The picturesque port town is full of red roof houses and narrow lanes and has several outdoor shops, galleries, and cafés. Would you leave the exhaustion of workdays behind for the time of a relaxing holiday? Would you take pleasure in viewing the untouched sea nature, pine forests, beaches known from movies, or amazing historical ruins? Don’t hesitate! Choose this small island of the Aegean Sea, Skiathos. Find yacht routes in Greece or choose another bareboat charter in Greece.
The climate diagrams are based on 30 years of hourly weather model simulations. They give good indications of typical climate patterns and expected conditions (temperature, precipitation, sunshine, and wind). The “mean daily maximum” (solid red line) shows the maximum temperature of an average day for every month for Skiathos. Likewise, the “mean daily minimum” (solid blue line) shows the average minimum temperature.
The wind rose for Skiathos shows how many hours per year the wind blows from the indicated direction. The diagram for Skiathos shows the days per month, during which the wind reaches a certain speed.
