Tourist information - Skiathos
The island of Skiathos lies 41 nautical miles from Volos and 44 from Agios Konstantinos. It has an area of 48 sq. km., a coastline of 44 km and a population of 4,200. You go to Skiathos by plane from Athens. You can also use ferry boat or the fast hydrofoils from Agios Konstantinos, Volos, Alonissos and Skopelos. In summer, you can also go from Kymi, Euboea, Skyros and other islands. Skiathos took part in wars up against the Persians and in 478 BC, was an area of the Athenian Alliance. Later, it was occupied by Alexander the Great and then by the Romans. Throughout the Byzantine period, it sank into oblivion. In 1204 was conquered by the Venetians and then in 1583 by the Turks. It turned out then that the inhabitants of the old town, built on the site of present-day Skiathos, abandoned it and constructed on the north side of the island the well-known Kastro, perched on a nearly invisible rock.
During the Greek War of Independence of 1821, many warriors from Thessaly opposite, took refuge upon the island. Skiathos was liberated in 1823. In 1830, the neighborhood people, left the historic Kastro and rebuilt Chora.
Skiathos was one of the unknown paradises to be discovered. Living in Skiathos has evolved a whole lot since those days. Luxury hotels slowly started to be built along its lovely sand beaches, tourist activity continuously grew and Skiathos became probably the most cosmopolitan islands in Greece. But its celebrated beaches remain insuperable and the narrow lanes of Chora still exist as picturesque as always.
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