Must-see attractions in Northeastern Aegean Islands

  • Photo taken on April 18, 2022 shows a visitor in the Tunnel of Eupalinos, which is situated in Samos, an island in the eastern Aegean, Greece. The Tunnel of Eupalinos is a water pipeline running through Mount Kastro in Samos, built in the 6th century BC to supply water to the ancient city of Samos. (Photo by Marios Lolos/Xinhua via Getty Images)
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    Evpalinos Tunnel

    Samos

    In a word: extraordinary. In 524 BC, when Pythagorio (then called Samos) was the island’s capital and a bustling metropolis of 80,000, securing sources…

  • Aerial view of Livadaki beach on the northwest coast of Samos.

    Livadaki Beach

    Samos

    Follow the north-coast road out of Vathy for 10km and look for a signposted dirt road to the left leading to Livadaki Beach. Here, tropical azure waters…

  • Chios Island, Greece - September 03, 2019 : Koraes central public library view in Chios Island of Greece.; Shutterstock ID 1495179110; your: Erin Lenczycki; gl: 65050; netsuite: Digital; full: POI
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    Korais Library & Philip Argenti Museum

    Chios

    On the upper floor of the remarkable Korais Library, the Philip Argenti Museum contains a 19th-century birthing chair, along with shepherds' tools,…

  • Ruins in Archaeological site of Aliki, Thassos island,  East Macedonia and Thrace, Greece.

    Archaeological Site of Alyki

    Thasos

    Alluring and easily accessible, the island's crown gem includes the considerable and photogenic remains of an ancient temple where the gods were once…

  • Beautiful sunny coast view to an amazing paradise holiday bay with crystal clear blue water sandy beach, Seychelles, Ikaria island, Greece.
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    Seychelles Beach

    Ikaria

    This small, stunning beach is 3km east of Manganitis. Its marble pebbles, emerald water and giant rocks polished by the waves make you feel you've been…

  • Chios Mastic Museum

    Chios

    Brave new architecture arrives in Chios in the form of this airy hilltop structure that casts a curious glance on mastic gardens and ancient stone houses…

  • Teriade Museum

    Lesvos

    Extraordinary. It's worth coming to Lesvos for this alone – the Teriade Museum and its astonishing collection of paintings by artists including Picasso,…

  • Archaeological Museum

    Thasos

    Looking like an alien creature from the sci-fi movie Avatar, a 5m-tall 6th-century-BC kouros (male statue of the Archaic period) carrying a ram greets…

  • Afianes Winery

    Ikaria

    Crowning the hill above Hristos Rahes, this small family-run winery has won several recent awards in Europe. In addition to the offered tastings and small…

  • Sunset at Nas Beach. Ikaria, 2018
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    Nas Beach

    Ikaria

    Westward 3.5km from Armenistis lies the pebbled beach of Nas, lying below the road and the few tavernas. A nudist-friendly beach, it has an impressive…

  • East Moudros Military Cemetery

    Limnos

    As if taken from the middle of England, this grassy patch is dotted with memorials to 800 ANZAC and other British Empire soldiers who died of wounds in a…

  • Castle of Myrina

    Limnos

    Myrina’s lonely hilltop kastro (castle) dates from the 13th century and occupies a headland that divides the town from its popular beach. The ruins of the…

  • Metalia Beach

    Thasos

    Easily accessible on foot from Limenaria, this pretty cove features an elegiac retro-industrial sight in the form of a mining factory built by German…

  • Archaeological Museum of Pythagorio

    Samos

    One of the best museums on the islands. The exhibits in this smart space include beautifully displayed finds from Pythagorio, plus striking pottery pieces…

  • Moni Arhangelou

    Thasos

    West from Alyki, past Thymonia Beach, is the clifftop Moni Arhangelou, an Athonite dependency and working convent, notable for its 400-year-old church …

  • Heraion

    Samos

    It's hard to fully grasp the former magnificence of this ancient sanctuary of the goddess Hera, 4km west of Pythagorio, from these scattered ruins. The …

  • Archaeological Museum

    Samos

    Housed in two adjacent buildings, this handsome complex displays the contents of the Heraion (Sanctuary of Hera) near Pythagorio (from Polycrates' rule in…

  • Nea Moni

    Chios

    At the island’s centre, Nea Moni is a World Heritage–listed 11th-century Byzantine monastery. Once one of Greece’s richest monasteries, it attracted pre…

  • Agio Galas Cave & Church

    Chios

    Only a small section of the island's largest cave is accessible, but the main reason to drive all the way to the northern tip of Chios is the 12th-century…

  • Cave of Sykia Olymbi

    Chios

    This 150-million-year-old cavern was discovered accidentally in 1985. It's 57m deep and filled with multicoloured stalactites and other rock formations…

  • Nautical Museum of Inousses

    Chios

    Created in 1965, this handsome museum showcases the collection of local shipping magnate Antonis Lemos. Many of the models on display (some intentionally…

  • Sanctuary of the Kabeiroi

    Limnos

    A beautifully desolate clifftop site, the Sanctuary of the Kabeiroi lies at the northern tip of remote Tigani Bay. The worship of the Kabeiroi gods here…

  • Church of the Panagia Vrefokratousa

    Lesvos

    A pilgrimage site of national importance, this elegant walled-off church contains a namesake icon depicting the Virgin, which is believed to make miracles…

  • Theophilos Museum

    Lesvos

    On the same site as the Teriade Museum, this humble structure contains 86 paintings by the primitive painter Theophilos, who remains a folk hero among…

  • Chapel of Zoodochos Pigi

    Limnos

    This hilltop late-Byzantine church built next to a holy-water spring wouldn't be such an outstanding attraction if not for its scenic observation point…

  • Moni Taxiarhon

    Lesvos

    Around 36km north of Mytilini Town, near Mantamados village, stands one of Lesvos’ most important pilgrimage sites. An axis of Orthodoxy, myth and…

  • Turkish Bath

    Chios

    With its bubble-like cupolas pierced to let in gentle shafts of light, this classic early-18th-century hammam (Turkish bath) was built as a charitable…

  • Art in the Port

    Samos

    Previously devoid of any special charms, the island's second capital has reinvented itself by inviting a group of internationally acclaimed street artists…

  • Anavatos

    Chios

    At the end of a silent stretch of road that branches off the main road near Avgonyma, this solemn site serves as a reminder of the island's brutal history…

  • Panagia

    Thasos

    This inland village just south of Limenas is nothing if not photogenic. Its characteristic architecture includes stone-and-slate rooftops and the elegant…

  • Moni Ypsilou

    Lesvos

    About 9km west of Andissa, the Byzantine Moni Ypsilou stands atop a solitary peak surrounded by volcanic plains. Founded in the 8th century, this storied…

  • Mausoleum of Inousses

    Chios

    In the leafy courtyard of the Church of Agia Paraskevi stands the Mausoleum of Inousses, where the island’s ship-owning dynasties have endowed the tombs…

  • Poliohni

    Limnos

    On the southeast coast, Poliohni is considered the first prehistoric settlement in the Aegean and – allegedly – the first example of constituted democracy…

  • Folklore Museum of Theologos

    Thasos

    Thasos was an entirely autonomous statelet under nominal Egyptian rule in the 19th century, and its president Metaxas Chatzigeorgi ruled the land from his…

  • Castle of Lykourgos Logothetis

    Samos

    Samians took the lead locally in the 1821 War of Independence, and this castle, built in 1824 by resistance leader Logothetis, is the major relic of that…

  • Vrana Olive-Press Museum

    Lesvos

    Modestly tucked away in the village of Papados, between Mytilini and south-coast Plomari, this little museum showcases 19th-century steam-powered presses…

  • Kampi

    Northeastern Aegean Islands

    A short trek from the main village, this charming little bay with turquoise water has a tiny fishing port and a nice pebbly beach. A beach bar and a…

  • Varvagianni Ouzo Museum

    Lesvos

    Plomari is ouzo central for Greece. This museum, where the family has made ouzo for five generations, gives you the chance to tour its copper distillery…

  • Eftalou Beach

    Lesvos

    Eftalou Beach (also called Agii Anargyri Beach), 2km northeast of Petra, is the place for solitude seekers. Backed by a cliff, the serene, narrow pebbled…