Skopelos and Alonissos Boat Trip from Skiathos with Stops

Skiathos Old Port and the start of the day

Skiathos is the westernmost and liveliest of the North Sporades, a green island of pine forest and sandy coves in the north-west Aegean, just off the Pelion peninsula of mainland Greece. Its harbour is split in two by the Bourtzi, a small pine-covered peninsula where a Venetian fort once stood, and the Old Port on its western side is where the island-hopping boats moor in a row along the waterfront of Skiathos Town.

With the default option our driver collects you from a point on the main hotel road that runs along the south coast, from the Achladies side towards Platanias, Troulos and Koukounaries, and brings you to the boat for the 09:00 departure. Bring a hat and sunscreen, because the open deck is the best place to watch the green coast of Skiathos slip by. The crossing to Skopelos takes about an hour and twenty minutes.

Skopelos Town (Chora), the island of churches

Skopelos Town, known locally as Chora, rises like an amphitheatre from its bay, a cascade of white houses with grey-blue slate roofs, wooden balconies and flowered courtyards. Skopelos is famous for its many churches and monasteries, and you see them everywhere: small chapels in the lanes, the harbour-front church of Panagitsa tou Pyrgou on its rock, and the remains of the Venetian castle at the top of the town with a wide view over the sea.

On this Skopelos day trip from Skiathos you have about 1.5 hours to wander the stepped alleys, visit a church or two and browse shops selling local ceramics, plum preserves and honey. The island's cheese pie, a crisp coiled pastry, makes an ideal snack. Is Skopelos worth visiting? For anyone who loves traditional island architecture without large crowds, it is one of the most charming towns in the Aegean.

The Blue Caves and the National Marine Park of Alonissos

Between Skopelos and Alonissos the boat crosses part of the National Marine Park of Alonissos and the Northern Sporades, founded in 1992 as the first marine park in Greece and still its largest protected sea area. The park protects the Mediterranean monk seal, one of the rarest seals on Earth, as well as dolphins, seabirds and wide meadows of Posidonia seagrass that keep the water exceptionally clear.

The boat slows near the Blue Caves of Alonissos, sea caves cut into the pale cliffs where sunlight reflects off the white seabed and turns the water an electric blue. This is a photo stop from the deck rather than a swim, so keep your camera ready on the side facing the cliffs. Because fishing and building are strictly limited inside the park, this stretch of coast is one of the wildest you will see in the Aegean.

Patitiri and the Old Town of Alonissos

Patitiri is the small port of Alonissos and the place where the boat ties up for about 1.5 hours. It grew mainly after the earthquake of 1965 damaged the old hilltop village and many families moved down to the shore. Today its harbour is lined with fish tavernas and cafés, and this is the best time of the day to have lunch, which is not included, so you can choose freely.

Above the port, the Old Town of Alonissos (Palia Alonissos or Chora) sits on a ridge with sweeping views of the Aegean on both sides. Many of its stone houses have been lovingly restored, and its quiet lanes, bougainvillea and sunset-facing terraces make it the highlight of any Alonissos boat tour. Taxis and a local bus climb the road in a few minutes, so with good timing you can enjoy lunch and the view.

Agios Ioannis Kastri and the west coast of Skopelos

On the way back the boat follows the steep, pine-covered west coast of Skopelos. The most photographed sight here is the chapel of Agios Ioannis Kastri, a tiny whitewashed church perched on top of a sea rock about 100 metres high and reached by a stairway of more than a hundred stone steps carved into the cliff. From the water you see it from its most dramatic angle, standing alone above the waves.

Nearby, the Amarantos rocks rise from the sea in jagged pinnacles, and the boat pauses so everyone can take photos. Keep watching the water: dolphins are often seen along this coast. The last stop is a swim at one of the long pebble beaches of the west coast, such as Milia or Kastani, where pine trees reach almost to the turquoise sea, for about an hour before the cruise back to Skiathos Port in the early evening.