"Poros, Greece" Poros Island by SWFC_Fan

Where?

The Greek island of Poros is located in the Argosaronic Gulf, a short distance south of Athens and is separated from Galatas, on the Peleponnese peninsular, by just a narrow body of sea.

The island of Aegina lies closeby to the north and the island of Hydra a similar distance to the south.

How to get there?

Poros does not have an airport, so can be reached only by sea.

From Piraeus, there are regular ferries and hydrofoils during the day which travel to Poros via Aegina and, sometimes, other ports on the Peleponnese peninsular. The journey time from Piraeus is a little over one hour by hydrofoil and double this by ferry.

There are also regular connections with the other islands in the region (Aegina, Hydra and Spetses) all of which are reachable within two hours by ferry, or less by hydrofoil.

I arrived by ferry from Aegina (via Methana in the Peleponnese), a journey of a little over one hour. When I left Poros, I took a hydrofoil to Piraeus. During my 4 days on the island, I visited the neighbouring islands of Hydra and Spetses which were easily combined as a daytrip thanks to the fast catamarans and hydrofoils linking the islands.

If arriving from other parts of mainland Greece, an alternative is to drive to Galatas in the Peleponnese and then make the short crossing by ferry (the crossing takes only a few minutes). As well as the car ferries that make the crossing, regular speedboats and water taxis cross the narrow strait. At October 2005, the cost of a crossing by watertaxi was just 0.70 Euros.

Pine forests and nice bays, Poros

Poros is a relatively small island with most of its population and facilities concentrated in its main town, Poros Town.

Poros Town is very scenic and has a laid-back, cosmopolitan atmosphere. The town is built ampitheatrically upon the hills that back the harbour and the waterfront houses a great many bars, restaurants and souvenir shops. This is also a popular destination for the yachting crowds and some impressive (and expensive!) boats can be seen moored along the seafront.

It is worth climbing up to the town’s clock tower for some breathtaking views, particularly across to the Peleponnese town of Galatas. Regular boats make the short crossing to Galatas, but the best reason for visiting Galatas, in my opinion, is for the view of Poros that it offers.

I stayed at the beach resort of Askeli, a 15 minute walk from Poros Town. The resort had a nice, sandy beach, plenty of accommodation and a handful of bars and tavernas. In October, the resort was very much in wind-down mode with tavernas offering only part of their usual menus and most places either empty or frequented by only a handful of people. Although I walked into Poros Town from Askeli, there were numerous places offering bicycles, mopeds and quads for hire and these proved popular with most tourists.

On the route into Poros Town from Askeli there is a righthand turn which leads to a pleasant walk along the coast to several secluded bays and beaches. Among these is the popular “Lover’s Bay” which is a sheltered sandy beach with a café and sunbeds for hire, as well as love songs being played from a loud speaker. Beyond Lover’s bay, the beaches become more remote and the terrain becomes mountainous. Mountain goats roam the roads and the views out to sea are spectacular. There is a small islet off the coast with a little monastery on it – this islet features on some of the Greek Tourist Organisation’s material and seems to offer such a variety of terrain in just a few square metres (rocks, trees, sandy coasts and a monastery).

Clock tower above traditional tavernas, Poros

A few observations from my 4 days on Poros:

View from the mainland

As stated above, the town of Poros is built very scenically upon a series of hills. Viewed from the air, this ampitheatre effect is very impressive and many of the shots on postcards are taken from this vantage point. However, from Poros itself there are few if any angles from which you can truly appreciate the town’s layout. In fact, the best views of Poros are to be had from across the water in Galatas on the Peleponnese peninsular.

A good base for exploring the Argosaronic Gulf and beyond

Poros is a great place to base yourself for further exploration of the Argosaronic Gulf islands. Its central location within the group of islands means that Aegina, Spetses and Hydra can all be reached conveniently as daytrips. As a base, I much preferred Poros to Aegina as it felt more laid-back but also seemed to offer superior tourist amenities. I enjoyed both Spetses and Hydra but a day was enough to see both of these islands and I don’t feel I’d have benefited from an extended stay on either island.

As well as the other islands, travel agencies also offer daytrips to Athens (only an hour away by hydrofoil) and tours of the Peleponnese peninsular to places such as Olympia, Epidavros and Monemvasia.

• Pros:A green island, nice walks, lots of potential daytrips
• In a nutshell:A relaxing, green island with good beaches and great walks