Ermoupoli

Ermoupoli, named after the god Hermes, the god of Commerce, is the capital of Syros. It is also the largest city in the Cyclades and has a population of some 13,000. In the 19thcentury, it was Greece's leading port and was for a time the capital itself of Greece.

Ermoupoli anbeautiful 18th century neo-classical town. It is easy to walk around and very hard to get lost in. Ermoupoli is a great shopping town with good quality produce that is not at all expensive.The town is dominated by the harbour on one side of the town, the beautiful town square in the center and the old town - Ano Syro- on the hill above the town.

The town square - Plateia Miaouli - is a beautiful square paved with marble and line with palm trees. It is shady and cool even on the hottest days. Cafes and restaurants line the square. There is a bandstand where music is played in the evening. The square is the towns hub and a great place to spend some time in the evening just watching the world go by or even taking a little stroll or "volta" yourself.

The harbour is particularly beautiful and many fine restaurents, bars and nightclubs line the harbour.

The Archaeological Museum, up the steps to the left of the town hall, houses bronze and marble finds from the 3000BC Cycladic settlement of Chalandriani. There are also some Cycladic figurines and Roman material on display.

 

Ano Syro

Take a short taxi ride from the town square to the old fortified maedieval quarter of Ano Syro. It is a very charming place to visit in the evening just before darkness falls as you can round of the evening in one of the many restaurants in Ano Syro that overlook the harbour and the modern town of Ermoupoli.
Ano Syro is a maze of white washed passages, arches and steps forming a huddle of interlinking houses. It was built this way to confuse any raiders and pirates that might attack it. The architecture is unique, making most of the minimal space that is available.

In Ano Syro you can visit the Vamvakaris Museum, dedicated to the life of Markos Vamvakaris (1905-1972) who is considered to have been the leadinng exponent of Greek blues music -rempetika .

At the top of Ano Syro you can visit the Cathedral of St George which contains many fine icons.

Around the Island.

Kini

Kini is about 9NW of Ermoupli. It is a small fishing village situated around a horseshoe shaped bay with two good sandy beaches. Kini is a good place to stop and watch the sun set over a glass of ouzo in one of the many fine fish restaurants in the village. There are daily boat services during the summer from Kini to some of the island remote north coast beach. You should try and visit Grammata Bay - a deep sheltered inlet with golden sands. Times of the boat vary so check at the harbour in Kini

North of the village is an award winning beach Delfini - the largest on Syros and popular with naturalists.

 

Galissas

Galissas is the liveliest and most touristy place in Syros. It has a number of beautiful, sheltered beaches fringed by tamarisk trees. Some beaches are popular with nudists. Galissas is the place to go if you are camping around the island as it has Syros only official campsites. Galissas has a lively night life, good restaurants, loud music bars and plenty of places to dance. Galissas is the place to go if you are young ,free and single!

Vari

About 8km from Ermoupolic Vari is a quite village. It is an ideal place to go if you want to get away from the crowds. It has a good sheltered beach.

Finikas

On the opposite side of the island from Ermoupoil, Finikas is a traditional fishing village lying around a huge 3km bay. Finikas is a very friendly place with a life of its own. It is very popular with the local peopleof Syros as a place to swim and eat. You will find more Greeks here than tourists. Finikas is a great place to do some fishing or watersports .It has a safe beach which is very popular with Greek families. Along the beachfront are a number of good restaurants, cafes, and pizzerias. There are a number of good local craft shops in finikas selling local arts and crafts.There is a good bus service between Finikas and the rest of the island.

This page is best view using IE 5.0 or equivalent browser.
For further information contact Paul Duffy at pvduffy@eircom.net