Fancy treating your self to an excursion to other enchanting islands while on holiday in Skiathos?A trip to nearby islands can provide you with a mini-adventure that you are unlikely to forget.Visits to the islands are scheduled as one-day excursions by small boats from Skiathos harbour. 

ALONISSOS

Home to less than 1200 year-round residents and lacking the hustle and bustle of its neighbours, Alonissos is tranquil, quaint, and a pleasure to visit.Undulating hills rise sharply from the sea on this small northern Sporades island. Its rugged coast and distance from the mainland has allowed it to escape the tourist trade until fairly recently. As a result, Alonissos is one of the most unspoiled and idyllic islands in the Aegean Sea. Many boats leave daily from Skiathos touring Alonissos and the small islets around it. This is a pleasant way to see the island if you don't have much time. If you do have time, a stay of several days on Alonissos is recommended as a way to unwind in complete tranquility.

In 1992, following concern that the Mediterranean monk seal was becoming an endangered species, a Marine Park was established at Alonissos covering the area of the Northern Sporades. This was the first park of its kind in Greece and as well as monitoring the marine enviroment the park's personnel have a programme for rescuing and caring for injured seals from all around Greece. For this purpose a centre of refuge and reintegration of rescued seals is based in Alonissos where the injuries can be treated and the seals returned to their natural enviroment when they are judged to be fully recovered. It is estimated that around 50 seals live in the marine park.

Because Alonissos has escaped the type of development that typifies the more popular tourist destinations,  its beaches are best accessed by boat, either a hire boat or one of the local caiques.

Close to Alonissos is the small island of Peristera where there are some excellent beaches well worth a visit and, a little further away, Kira Panagia or Pelagos which boasts a famous monastery and some beautiful beaches. Also within reach by excursion boat are the islands of Skantzoura, Gioura, which contains the "Cyclops Cave" with multicoloured stalactite and stalagmite formations, and Psathoura where the submerged remains of an ancient city can sometimes be seen.