Cyclades Pilgrimage island Villages & dovecotes Car hire

Tinos, Greece: Island Guide, Villages, Beaches & Church

Tinos is a mountainous island in the Cyclades in the Aegean Sea and the pilgrimage centre of modern Greece, home to the miracle-working icon of the Panagia Evangelistria church in Tinos Town. Tinos scatters traditional villages and 650 old dovecotes across its hills, and it keeps quiet, uncrowded beaches around a coast that most Greek visitors pass by on their way to the icon. The island lies between Andros and Mykonos, a 30-minute ferry from Mykonos and a two-and-a-half to five-hour crossing from Rafina near Athens. Hire a car to reach the parts of Tinos the buses miss, covered in our Tinos car hire guide.

Tinos, Cyclades, Greece — Tinos Town and the Panagia Evangelistria, Cyclades, Greece

Group: Cyclades
Sea: Aegean
Church: Panagia Evangelistria
Dovecotes: 650

The island of Tinos

Tinos is a mountainous island in the Cyclades, and it is the spiritual centre of modern Greece, sometimes called the Lourdes of the Aegean. The island draws its pilgrims to the Panagia Evangelistria church in Tinos Town, where a late-Byzantine icon is believed to heal the sick. Tinos keeps a slower, authentic Greece away from the church: 650 mostly old dovecotes stand across the hills as the island's craft signature, and small villages sit inland where raids by pirates once pushed the people off the coast. In ancient times the island was called Ophioussa after its snakes and Ydroussa after its water, and mythology holds that Poseidon chased the snakes away, so the islanders raised him a temple at Kionia. Tinos was conquered by the Venetians in 1207 and stayed prosperous under them until 1715, and the Turks never took it, so the island flourished as the economic capital of the Cyclades until it joined modern Greece in 1830.

Tinos Town and the villages

Tinos keeps its life in the capital and port of Tinos Town (Chora), and it scatters small traditional villages across the inland hills. Tinos Town holds the harbour, the church and the shops, while Pyrgos, Volax, Falatados, Kardiani, Isternia and Panormos keep the older, quieter character up in the hills and around the bays. The whole island is best explored by rental car from Tinos Town, and the villages below are the ones travellers reach most often.

Tinos Town (Chora)

Tinos Town, also called Chora, is the island's capital and only real town, set around the harbour on the south coast. Chora runs on three parallel streets: the harbour front with its terraces, the wide procession road that climbs to the church and sells metre-high candles, and a narrow, lively shopping street full of souvenir shops. The Panagia Evangelistria church dominates the town from the top of the procession road, and the beaches of Agios Fokas, Stavros and Kionia lie within reach on foot or by bus. The town stays relaxed despite the pilgrims, and it makes the natural base for day trips around the island.

Pyrgos

Pyrgos is a traditional village in the north of Tinos, reached from Tinos Town by the island bus. The village keeps a shaded central square beside a children's playground and a bus station, where coffee bars such as Fuego serve the crowd. Pyrgos sits among the marble country of the northern hills and holds a slower pace than the harbour town.

Volax and Falatados

Volax is a picturesque inland village on Tinos, set among the hills a short drive from Tinos Town. Volax and its neighbour Falatados are two of the many small villages where friendliness and hospitality bring you back to a slower-paced way of living. Both are easy to reach by rental car and reward a wander through their lanes.

Kardiani

Kardiani is a village on the west coast of Tinos, set on the hillside above Kardiani Bay below Isternia. The bay holds two beaches side by side, and the beach taverna Anemos sits on the sand as our favourite place to eat on the island. Kardiani keeps a green, quiet setting, and the drive down to its beaches is one of the prettiest on Tinos.

Isternia

Isternia is a village in the south-west of Tinos, above the tranquil Bay of Isternia. The bay is my favourite on the island, with a quiet sandy beach and a few good, cosy restaurants right by the water. Isternia rewards a slow evening, and the restaurant To Falasaki by the sea is close to perfection.

Panormos

Panormos is a village on the north coast of Tinos, beside the sandy beach of the same name. The village keeps a harbour setting and a good beach, and it is one of the nicer spots away from the main town. Panormos suits travellers who want a quiet base near the water.

The beaches of Tinos

Tinos has quiet, uncrowded beaches scattered around the island, and they stay calmer than the beaches of nearby Mykonos and Paros. Most beaches keep trees for shade and a taverna nearby, and many have no sunbeds or parasols, which is what gives them their charm. Agios Fokas and Kionia are the organised, sandy beaches close to Tinos Town, while the bays of Isternia, Kardiani and Kolymbithra hold the prettiest and quietest sands further out. Most beaches are easy to reach by rental car, and they rarely get crowded because most visitors come only for the icon. See the full guide to the beaches of Tinos.

Sights of Tinos

The main sight of Tinos is the Panagia Evangelistria church in Tinos Town, which houses the miracle-working icon that draws pilgrims to the island. The icon is a piece of late-Byzantine art, found in 1822 after a nun's vision and dug up undamaged, and the church was built on the discovery site. Kionia holds the ancient sanctuary of Poseidon, raised, according to myth, after the god chased the snakes off the island, and 650 old dovecotes stand across the hills as the island's craft signature. These sights are gathered in the Tinos sights guide.

Where to stay

Accommodation on Tinos concentrates in Tinos Town and along the beach of Agios Fokas near Chora. Vincenzo Family Hotel sits in the town near the church and the port, the Golden Beach Hotel and the Afrodite Hotel stand at Agios Fokas, and the first-class Tinos Beach Hotel faces Kionia beach a short drive west. Self-catering rooms such as Anna's Rooms sit near Stavros beach just outside the town. Compare the options in the Tinos hotels & villas guide.

Where to eat

Tinos serves its best food in Tinos Town and in the bays around the island. The harbour of Tinos Town lines up restaurants such as Epinion and Poseidonia, the Bay of Isternia holds To Falasaki, and Kardiani Bay keeps the beach taverna Anemos, our favourite on the island. Kionia and Kolymbithra add tavernas by their beaches, and Pyrgos serves the best coffee in the Cyclades at Fuego. Where to eat by area is set out in the Tinos restaurants guide.

Getting to Tinos

Tinos is reached by ferry from Rafina near Athens, where daily boats leave for the Cyclades, and the crossing takes about two and a half to five hours depending on the boat. Buses run from Athens airport straight to Rafina, so you avoid driving through Athens, and a taxi from the airport takes about 30 minutes. Tinos also connects to Mykonos by a 30-minute ferry, so you can fly to Mykonos and cross from there. Tinos has no airport of its own, so every route reaches the island by boat.