Skiathos Beaches: Koukounaries, Banana and the South-Coast Bus Route
Skiathos is covered in pine forest and has excellent beaches, most of them strung along the south coast and reached by the numbered bus route from Skiathos Town, where the road passes bay after bay. Known as the "Mini Corfu", the island draws many British and Italian visitors, and its one main road makes the beaches easy to reach by frequent, inexpensive bus or taxi. This guide runs from the beaches beside Skiathos Town out to Koukounaries and the quiet north. For the town, sights and getting there, see the Skiathos island guide. Hire a car to explore Skiathos at your own pace, covered in our Skiathos car hire guide.
- Group
- Sporades
- Most visited
- Koukounaries
- Naturist
- Banana Beach
- Nearest town
- Megali Ammos
Beaches near Skiathos Town
The beaches closest to Skiathos Town lie on either side of the harbour. Megali Ammos (bus stops 5, 6, 7 and 8) is a long, narrow beach of sand and small pebbles reached down a fairly steep hill, the most developed on the island, with many sunbeds, bars, tavernas, shops and hotels, a shallow sea and good shelter from the north wind, so it can grow very crowded. Next to it, Vassilias Beach is a small, quieter pebble beach below a high cliff that blocks the north wind, sandier on its eastern part, with a taverna renting chairs and umbrellas, trees for shade and clifftop hotels with sea views. On the other side of town near the airport, Xanemos Beach is a quiet naturist beach of three sand-and-gravel coves with little wind shelter and few facilities, a summer cantina, the nearest taverna a 20-minute walk away and no bus, so you come by taxi, car or a 45-minute walk from Skiathos Town, and it is a fine spot to watch planes take off and land.
Koukounaries Beach
Koukounaries Beach, 13 km west of Skiathos Town (bus stop 22), is the island's most visited beach and is named after the umbrella-pine that grows here; it is sometimes called Chrissi Ammos, 'Golden Sand'. Behind it lie the Strofylia freshwater lagoon, a small protected area rich in birds, and a dense pine forest. It has umbrellas and sunbeds for rent, tavernas, accommodation from basic to luxury, a campsite, bars, kiosks and watersports; bus stop 26 is the final stop at the end of the beach, and the smaller Maratha Beach next door, with its own taverna, shares bus stop 22.
Banana, Elias and Mandraki Beach
South of Koukounaries lies the official naturist beach of Banana Beach (bus stop 24), a short walk from the road with a couple of tavernas; it is two beaches, the smaller one favoured by naturists. From bus stop 23 a 30-minute walk through pine forest over a sandy path reaches the quieter beaches of Elias and Agistri: Elias is a beautiful sandy beach ringed by dunes, rated by many the most beautiful on Skiathos, with a taverna serving fresh fish (open only later in the season), sunbeds and umbrellas when open and shallow water, mostly used by naturists except by the taverna. Agistri and Xerxes beaches nearby are less sandy and relatively quiet but exposed to the north wind. At the fork on the path from bus stop 23, the left path leads to the large Mandraki Beach (bus stop 24), once naturist and now mainly textile with room for naturism, ringed by red sandstone cliffs, with a taverna on one side and naturists on the other.
Agia Eleni Beach and the north coast
Agia Eleni Beach (bus stop 25) lies north of the two Banana beaches, 14 km from Skiathos Town and 1 km from Koukounaries, a fairly quiet sandy beach ringed by pine trees and named after the nearby church. It has umbrellas, sunbeds and watersports on one part, two small tavernas and shallow water safe for small children, and it is a good place to watch the sunset. The north coast is quiet and barely inhabited, with the beaches of Elia and Asselinos (with camping), while the east coast holds Xanemo (with camping) and Lalaria Gialos, reached by boat from Skiathos Town; Lalaria is a beautiful beach of white, photogenic pebbles.
Achladies Beach
Achladies Beach (bus stop 10) sits in a protected bay ringed by green hills, a long, narrow organized sandy beach with tavernas, shops, supermarkets and accommodation, sunbeds, umbrellas and watersports, looking out over the island of Tsougria and, further off, Skopelos.
Vromolithos and Kolios Beach
Vromolithos and Kolios beaches share bus stop 13, about 50 m down a path off the main road. Vromolithos, after Koukounaries the island's most popular beach, is a large sandy beach with a taverna, a bar, a watersports school, loud music and a young crowd, so not for those wanting quiet. Kolios Beach, in a smaller bay, slopes gently and suits families, with trees for shade, tavernas, supermarkets, several accommodations and small private beaches in the bays on either side.
Agia Paraskevi Beach
Agia Paraskevi Beach (bus stops 15 and 16), 6 km from Skiathos Town, is a beautiful large sandy beach with fine sand and very clear water, in the same bay as Vromolimnos and Kolios, with several tavernas, supermarkets, shops, sunbeds, umbrellas, watersports, small boats to rent and various accommodation. One stop further (16) reaches Kechria Beach, passing the island's oldest monastery, now abandoned, on the way.
Troulos and Aselinos Beach
Troulos Beach (bus stops 18 and 21) is a beautiful large sandy beach that slopes gently into the sea, well suited to families, with dunes behind it, sunbeds, umbrellas, a watersports school, boats to rent, tavernas, supermarkets and shops, and smaller beaches around it; it is named after the dome-shaped island offshore. From bus stop 18 you can walk to Aselinos Beach in about an hour and to Micro Asselinos in about an hour and a half, passing the Kounistra Monastery. Aselinos, in the north, is a large and a small sandy beach reached by road but no bus, so it stays less crowded, with sunbeds, parasols and a taverna, the luxury Aselinos Suites for lodging, excursion boats from Skiathos Town and use by naturists; the north wind can raise high waves.
