travel zone

Alonissos


It's been nine years since I visited alonissos. Actually, that year, after I'd come back from Aegina, I decided I wanted to visit all of the Sporades. Visiting all of them sounds like a difficult thing to do, but in fact it isn't. See, the Sporades are only four islands, Skiathos, Skopelos, Alonissos and Skyros and they're all quite small...

We didn't spend more than a week in alonissos, mostly because we wanted to visit as many islands as we could. It was me, Chris, Evelena and my wife, Leela (we'd been married for one year back then). We arrived in alonissos around August 1st and left six days later.

Alonissos is a cute little island, the queen of her own little archipelago of nine islets. Did you know that it has endured a rather violent earthquake? Yep! The earthquake of 1965 damaged the town of alonissos rather seriously and the inhabitants were forced to leave their homes. Today, the houses of Palaia alonissos have been bought and restored by German and British families.

Alonissos is really quite the fighter, now that I think about it. See, along with the other Sporades islands, it has a history of attacks by the pirate Barbarossa.

alonissos - alonissos map



Alonissos Hotels

If you search for accommodation in Alonissos I recommend you to visit Alonissos Hotel Online Bookings. There, you can make your reservations directly to the hotels and find rooms in low prices and useful guest reviews.

Grecia  turismo

What does Alonissos look like?

alonissos - patitiri village


alonissos is relatively unspoilt by tourism, which means it's an island that can still surprise you. Most of the development is centered in the main towns of Patitiri and Palaia alonissos. The rest is a surfeit of beaches and coves, picturesque backstreets that display typical Greek pride in the home, whitewashed courtyards and pots of flowers, fertile lands of pine, olive and arbutus trees. Just think that nine-tenths out of alonissos is accessible only on foot!





Are there any archaeological or historical sites I should visit in Alonissos?


Unfortunately, no. The only place that comes to mind is Ancient Ikos, a settlement that was thought to be the ancient city of Ikos. What you can find now are remains of walls from an acropolis built in the Classical Period, located near the beach of Kokkinokastro.


Which places should I not miss in Alonissos?


alonissos - alonissos monk seal

Well one of the things that make alonissos utterly unique is the Sporades Marine Park. Founded in 1992, the National Marine Park of alonissos (that's its full name) is an area of great environmental importance. It was created to protect an important breeding colony of the endangered Mediterranean monk seal and a fragile marine ecosystem of rather rare wildlife and it's the only such park in the Aegean. Sadly, fewer than 500 of these seals exist worldwide making it one of the world's most endangered species. Day trips by boat are possible but access is limited, so you might want to... well, insist, if you want to witness this beautiful scenery.

For more information regarding the so-called Monachus - Monachus seals visit my page Mediterranean Monk Seal.(national marine park of alonissos)


alonissos greece - cape kokinokastro



What about Alonissos beaches?

Thankfully, alonissos has its fair share of good beaches, most of them on the east coast, which also means they avoid the strong summer meltemia (winds). To learn more about the magical coasts of the island, like Kokkinokastro and Chrysi Milia, visit my page alonissos Beaches.




Where should I eat in Alonissos?

alonissos greece - greek souvlaki

alonissos, thankfully, has a wide choice of eating places. If you avoid the re staurants in the harbor of Patitiri, you'll be fine.

On the top of the rocky Kavos headland, you will find Garden Restaurant, a very pleasant restaurant with a terrace facing the sea and delicious Greek dishes. Argo Restaurant, not far from Garden, is quite similar in style.

Babis on the road to alonissos is another quite good restaurant with a lovely terrace overlooking the village. Try the boureki (cheese pie) and the xinotiri (sour cheese), they're delicious!

Now, there are a couple of restaurants that specialize in one kind of food. O Astakos, for example, as its name suggests, serves excellent lobster. The ouzeri To Kamaki serves the best fish in town. Finally, there's a specialist cheese pie shop where you can watch your own pie being made through a hole-in-the-wall.


What about Alonissos nightlife?

alonissos greece - alonissos life

Well, if you want the honest version, alonissos is not the kind of island you will visit for its wild nightlife. It's a place of natural beauty mostly. But that doesn't mean there's no places you can visit to have fun at night. For example, there's Aerides, a very pleasant little bar with a good choice of Western music. There's also Ostrio Café, a delightful café onto the beach.

alonissos only has one dancing nightclub, the Enigma club on Patitiri. It's only open on Friday and Saturday night and it's only a sample of what Greek nightlife practically is, but it's still quite satisfying.



How do I get to Alonissos?


There are daily itineraries from Agios Konstantinos. For more information on the ferries call (+30) 22530-31920 and on the flying dolphins (+30) 22350-31614. A coach of the ferry owner company which will take you to Agios Konstantinos departs daily from Athens, Plateia Kanigos.

From Volos, alonissos is 6 hours away - for information call (+30) 24210-23400, 31059 and for the flying dolphins call (+30) 24210-33585. alonissos is also connected to Thessaloniki, for more information on the itineraries contact the travel agency tel. (+30) 2310-547407 for the flying dolphins and (+30) 2310-513005 for the ships.



Book online your ferry tickets to the greek islands and have them delivered at home easily.
alonissos - monachus - monachus


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