Spetses
3.7/5The horse-drawn Saronic island — Bouboulina, mansions and pine-fringed beaches
Dapia harbour, Bouboulina's house, the coastal path around the island and the best pine-fringed beaches.
Why 3.7: serious nightlife and straightforward access — but it is pricey in season and the beaches are ordinary.
Spetses keeps cars out of the old town and runs horse-drawn carriages instead. Around the Dapia harbour stands a cluster of 19th-century mansions built by sea captains made wealthy in the Greek War of Independence; Laskarina Bouboulina, the female admiral who led the Greek fleet against the Ottomans, was born here, and her house is now one of the most interesting small museums in Greece. Above town is the Anargyrios School, the neoclassical boarding school where John Fowles taught in the 1950s and which became the setting for The Magus. The island is almost entirely covered in Aleppo pines running down to the coast, and the best beach, Zogeria, is a pine-fringed pebble bay reached by bus, bicycle or water taxi. Two days is the right length. Skip it if you want somewhere remote and undiscovered — Spetses is polished and popular — or if the trip has to be cheap, because the island leans upmarket. Avoid August, when the yachts peak and it turns chaotic; come the weekend nearest 8 September instead, for the Armata, when a wooden replica of the Ottoman flagship is burned in the harbour.
Good for
- Travellers who like a car-free old town with horse-drawn carriages and grand sea-captain mansions
- Couples and families after pine-fringed beaches a quick catamaran from Athens
- Anyone combining island time with a Peloponnese road trip — the Kosta shuttle is 10 minutes
Maybe skip if
- If you want a remote, undiscovered island — Spetses is polished and popular
- If a quiet budget trip is the goal; the island leans upmarket
Getting there
No airport. Fast catamaran from Piraeus, ~2h. Also reachable from Kosta on the Peloponnese (~10 min shuttle) — useful if combining with road trips.
Tip: Cars restricted on the island — leave the rental in Kosta and take the shuttle.
Best time to visit Spetses
Spetses is the dressy Saronic — old yachting families, the Anargyrios School, horse-drawn carriages instead of cars in the chora. Open year-round but the action is May-October. The Armata reenactment on the second weekend of September (the 1822 sea battle) is the island's biggest event. Easter is local but lovely.
Top beaches of Spetses
Zogeria Beach
The finest beach on Spetses — a pine-fringed pebble bay on the west coast with extraordinary water clarity. The setting is unusually natural and unspoiled for the Saronic. Accessible by the island bus, water taxi or bicycle along the coastal road.
- Type
- Pebble
- Length
- 200 m
- Depth
- Medium — crystal clear Aegean water
- Wind
- Avoid visiting when the wind blows from the southwest to northwest at over 5 Bft. West-facing — sheltered from the meltemi (the summer N/NE wind); calm most summer days, sometimes choppy on rare westerly winds
- Facilities
- Basic: one small taverna. Pine trees provide natural shade.
Xylokeriza Beach
A long pine-backed beach on the south coast — one of the best for spending a full day. Pine trees run to the water's edge and the small taverna has outstanding grilled fish.
- Type
- Pebble and fine sand
- Length
- 400 m
- Depth
- Shallow — calm water
- Wind
- Avoid visiting when the wind blows from the southeast to southwest at over 5 Bft. South-facing — sheltered from the meltemi (the summer N/NE wind); calm in summer, exposed only to rare southern winds
- Facilities
- Good: sunbeds, taverna, easy bicycle access from the town.
Agia Marina Beach
The town beach — closest to Spetses Town and most convenient. 20 minutes walk or 5 by horse-drawn carriage. Clear water and good facilities.
- Type
- Fine pebble
- Length
- 150 m
- Depth
- Shallow — good swimming
- Wind
- Avoid visiting when the wind blows from the northeast to southeast at over 5 Bft. East-facing — mostly sheltered from the meltemi (the summer N/NE wind); can be choppy on the strongest NE days
- Facilities
- Good: sunbeds, beach bar, easy access from town.
2-day itinerary for Spetses
Read the day-by-day plan on its own page →
Day 1: Dapia Harbour & Mansions
- 09:00 · Dapia Harbour
The main harbour — cannons pointing out to sea and horse-drawn carriages at the quayside. No cars in the old town. Have coffee at one of the harbour cafés.
- 10:00 · Bouboulina's Museum
The mansion of Laskarina Bouboulina, the female admiral who commanded a Greek fleet in the War of Independence. Guided tours include her remarkable personal story. One of the most interesting small museums in Greece.
- 11:30 · Spetses Mexis Museum
The Archaeological Museum in the mansion of Hadjigiannis Mexis, the first governor of Spetses. Local archaeology, shipping history and the preserved head of Bouboulina. - 14:00 · Agia Marina Beach
The closest beach to the town — a short pebble beach with good facilities and very clear water. 20 minutes walk or 5 minutes by horse-drawn carriage. - 🍴 Stop for dinner · Old Harbour — see Eat & Drink below
Day 2: The Coastal Loop
- 09:30 · Anargyrios School
The grand neoclassical boarding school where John Fowles taught in the 1950s — the setting for his novel The Magus. The building is visible from the coast road, a beautiful sight.
- 11:00 · Zogeria Beach
The finest beach on Spetses — a pine-fringed pebble bay on the west coast with extraordinary water clarity. Accessible by the coastal road bus, water taxi or bicycle. One of the best pine-forest beaches in the Saronic. - 13:30 · Xylokeriza Beach
Long pine-backed pebble beach on the south coast — calm, clear water and a good taverna. Less developed than Agia Marina. - 16:30 · Spetses Town — Departure
Ferry to Piraeus, Hydra or the Argolid coast (Kosta, 10 minutes across the strait).