Alonissos
On March 9, 1965, an earthquake shook Alonissos and within hours left the Chora uninhabitable — the village that for centuries had...
Updated 10 July 2026
Alonissos
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The story
The story of Alonissos
From ancient origins to Ikos
In ancient times Alonissos was known as Ikos and boasted a thriving economy tied to the production and export of wine, as evidenced by numerous wrecks of merchant ships found on its seabed, some dating back to the 5th century BC. Like the neighbouring islands, it passed over time under Byzantine, Venetian and Ottoman rule, remaining nonetheless more isolated and less exposed than Skiathos and Skopelos thanks to the archipelago's peripheral position — a factor that slowed its development but also preserved its natural landscape for longer.
The 1965 earthquake and the birth of Patitiri
The 1965 earthquake seriously damaged the houses of the old Chora, built on high ground according to the Sporades' traditional anti-pirate strategy. The government of the time declared the settlement uninhabitable and moved its residents to Patitiri, a small natural harbour on the southeastern coast that until then had been little more than a landing spot for fishing boats. Reconstruction was quick but bare-bones, and for years the old Chora remained half-abandoned while Patitiri grew haphazardly into the island's new centre.
Patitiri, the modern harbour
Today Patitiri is the practical heart of Alonissos: this is where the ferries dock and where most of the accommodation, taverns and agencies organising excursions into the Marine Park are found. It is a harbour with no great architectural pretensions, one that grew quickly after the earthquake, but lively and functional, surrounded by green hills that drop steeply to the water. Every morning in season, caiques set off from the quay bound for the marine park's uninhabited islands.
The restored old Chora
Starting in the 1970s, artists and foreign travellers who fell in love with the island began buying and restoring the abandoned houses of the old Chora, perched some two hundred metres above the sea with views over the park's uninhabited islands. Today Palia Alonissos, as it is called, is a village of paved lanes, white-and-blue houses, small art galleries and taverns with panoramic terraces, reachable by car, local bus, or on foot along an ancient path that climbs up from the sea.
The National Marine Park: the effective headquarters
Although the National Marine Park of the Northern Sporades covers the entire northeastern archipelago, it is on Alonissos that its main infrastructure is based, with the information centre and the boats licensed for excursions departing from the port of Patitiri. The protected area, established in 1992, safeguards one of the most intact marine ecosystems in the Mediterranean, with particular attention to the monk seal, dolphins and several species of seabirds that nest on the uninhabited islets.
The monk seal and the dolphins
Alonissos is home to the most important Mediterranean population of monk seal (Monachus monachus), one of the rarest marine mammals in the world, which finds isolated coastal caves here to breed away from human disturbance. The non-profit organisation MOm has monitored the species for decades and runs an information centre in Patitiri. The park's waters are also home to bottlenose dolphins and striped dolphins, which can be spotted fairly regularly during boat excursions to the uninhabited islands, along with passing sea turtles.
The Peristera wreck and the underwater museum
Off the islet of Peristera lies a 5th-century BC merchant wreck laden with hundreds of wine amphorae, considered one of the best-preserved classical wrecks in the Mediterranean. In 2020 it was opened to the public as Greece's first underwater museum, visitable through guided dives run by licensed diving centres, while a dry-land exhibit also lets non-divers learn its story through panels and finds displayed in Patitiri.
Diving in the marine park's waters
The quality of the waters and the variety of caves, walls and wrecks have made Alonissos one of the reference destinations for diving in the northern Aegean. Several diving centres in Patitiri and Palia Alonissos organise trips into the marine park's waters, from rocky walls covered in sponges and gorgonians all the way to the Peristera wreck-museum, making the island a destination chosen also by those seeking not just a beach holiday but a more active, nature-focused kind of tourism.
Trails and trekking
Alonissos is crossed by a dense network of waymarked trails, ancient mule tracks that once linked the interior's farming villages, now restored and numbered for hikers. The routes wind through olive groves, Mediterranean scrub and pine woods, with viewpoints over the sea and the park's uninhabited islands, and remain walkable even in the hottest months thanks to the natural shade of the vegetation along much of the route.
The park's uninhabited islands
Excursions depart from Alonissos to the uninhabited islets that make up the rest of the archipelago: Kyra Panagia, with its historic monastery linked to Mount Athos; Peristera, with the wreck-museum; Skantzoura, a birdwatching destination; and Piperi, a strict reserve for the monk seal where landing is forbidden except with scientific permits. These are the Sporades' last wild frontier, visitable only as day trips with the licensed caiques that leave from Patitiri.
Traditions and authenticity
Less exposed to mass tourism than Skiathos, Alonissos retains an economy still tied to fishing and olive growing, with family-run taverns where the day's catch arrives straight from the Patitiri quay. Honey, olive oil and wild aromatic herbs complete a simple, genuine table; the small villages' religious festivals remain moments of community gathering rather than tourist attractions, with local people still the main protagonists over visitors.
When to go
The season runs from May to October; July and August remain the hottest and busiest months, especially for those coming for diving and marine park excursions. June and September offer the best conditions for trekking, with milder temperatures, while spring is the period recommended by birdwatching enthusiasts for the nesting activity of seabirds on the uninhabited islands.
- A caique excursion among the marine park's uninhabited islands
- A guided dive at the Peristera wreck-museum
- The climb up to the restored old Chora, among art galleries and panoramic taverns
- A walk along the ancient trails through olive groves and Mediterranean scrub
- Dolphin spotting during a boat trip from Patitiri
FAQ
Come si arriva ad Alonissos?
Si possono vedere davvero le foche monache?
Cosa vedere in un solo giorno ad Alonissos?
Serve un'attrezzatura particolare per visitare il relitto di Peristera?
Alonissos è adatta a chi cerca vita notturna?
Getting there
- Aeroporto di Skiathos (JSI), il più vicino, seguito da traghetto o aliscafo di circa un'ora verso Patitiri
- Alonissos non è collegata da ponti al continente; si raggiunge solo via mare da Volos, Agios Konstantinos o dall'aeroporto di Skiathos.
- Le escursioni verso le isole disabitate del parco marino vanno prenotate con un giorno di anticipo in alta stagione presso le agenzie del porto di Patitiri.
Perfect for
Il Parco Marino Nazionale ha qui la sua base operativa, con foca monaca, delfini e uccelli marini protagonisti.
Pareti, grotte e il relitto-museo di Peristera rendono l'isola una delle mete subacquee più interessanti dell'Egeo.
Una rete di antichi sentieri collega villaggi, uliveti e punti panoramici lontano dalle spiagge.
Meno turistica delle isole vicine, mantiene un'economia di pesca e agricoltura ancora visibile nella vita quotidiana.
To see
