GreeceVisits

The Sporades

Where Pine Forests Meet the Aegean

Four green islands in the northern Aegean, where the ferry pulls into a quiet harbour, the scent of pine drifts off the hills, and the loudest sound all afternoon is the water against the hull.

Discover the Islands

Why the Sporades

The Authentic Greece, Still Undiscovered

You notice it before the ferry has even docked: the air turns to pine, the sea deepens from turquoise to blue, and everything slows down. This is the northwest corner of Greece that most travellers never reach. Where the Cyclades are white, bare and famous, the Sporades are green, with forests running down to the shoreline and harbours that stay small and unhurried.

Four islands make up the group: Skiathos, Skopelos, Alonissos and Skyros. One brings lively harbours and sixty beaches, another the greenest hills in Greece, a third Europe's largest marine park, the last a way of life shaped by craft and quiet. Together they offer something rare: an authentic Greece still waiting to be found.

Cute blue sea bay in front of Assos village, Sporades

But the Sporades Reward Those Who Know Them

Greek island travel, operated locally by the team behind Italy Vacation Specialists: our trusted drivers, guides and local captains on the ground.

GreeceVisits is the Greek arm of Italy Vacation Specialists, built on more than 25 years of creating outstanding experiences across the Mediterranean.

From private day tours to boat excursions and secluded beaches, we arrange everything in real time with our own drivers, guides and local captains. This is their home water, and it shows in every detail: the right cove at the right hour, the timing that keeps your day effortless.

Discover how our local expertise can shape a more thoughtful, unhurried island experience: the Sporades as only the people who live here can show them.

What Makes It Special

Why Visit the Sporades?

Crystal-Clear Water

Water so clear the seabed shimmers beneath you, from shallow swimming bays to coves reached only by boat.

Authentic Villages

Whitewashed lanes, hillside chapels and tavernas where the recipes and the pace have not changed in generations.

Pine Forests to the Sea

The greenest islands in Greece, where forest runs unbroken all the way down to the shoreline.

Family-Friendly

Calm beaches, short distances and a gentle rhythm that suits every generation.

Sailing & Private Boats

A coastline made for the water, its hidden bays and islets best found under sail.

Local Cuisine

Plum orchards, island cheese and the day's catch, shared slowly and family style.

Island Hopping

Four islands within easy reach of one another, each a different world, all part of one journey.

Marine Park & Wildlife

Home to Europe's largest marine reserve and the rare Mediterranean monk seal, dolphins and seabirds among the islets.

Four Distinct Characters

Find Your Corner of the Sporades

Lively harbours or hidden marine reserves, sixty beaches or one quiet craft village. Each island pulls you in a different direction. Start with the one that speaks to you.

Explore the IslandsBuild My Sporades Trip

The Islands

Meet the Sporades

Each island has its own rhythm and character. Discover them one by one, or let our local team weave all four into a single journey.

Skiathos

The Gateway

Skiathos

If the Sporades have a front door, this is it. Skiathos is the liveliest of the four and the only one with its own airport, so you step almost straight from the plane to the water. What keeps people here is the coastline: more than sixty beaches, from the pine-backed sweep of Koukounaries to coves you can only reach by boat. By evening the old harbour town fills with waterfront tavernas and easy chatter. Choose Skiathos if you want the islands at their most sociable, with the shortest journey to get there.

Sixty beaches, an easy arrival and the liveliest harbour in the Sporades.

Discover Skiathos
Skopelos

The Green Heart

Skopelos

The greenest island in Greece, where pine forest runs unbroken down to the shoreline and whitewashed villages cling to the hills above. You might recognise its cliffs and chapels from the screen, but the Skopelos we love lives in the quiet: hidden coves, plum orchards and lunches that stretch long into the afternoon. Choose Skopelos if you want to slow right down, one shaded path and empty beach at a time.

The greenest island in Greece, made for slowing down.

Discover Skopelos
Alonissos

The Wild One

Alonissos

The wild, quiet edge of the Sporades, wrapped around one of Europe's largest protected marine reserves. Its waters shelter the rare Mediterranean monk seal, dolphins and seabirds, best met on a slow private boat drifting between uninhabited islets. On land, trails thread through pine and olive to empty beaches where the only sound is the sea. Choose Alonissos if nature comes first, and you want the islands at their most untouched.

Europe's largest marine park, and the Sporades at their wildest.

Discover Alonissos
Skyros

The Untouched

Skyros

The southernmost and most distinctive of the four, set far enough apart to keep its own way of life intact. Its hilltop town is a maze of white cube houses, its workshops still carve the furniture and ceramics the island is known for, and its small wild horses still roam the south. Choose Skyros if you want traditional Greece at its most authentic, and beaches that mass tourism has simply never found.

Living craft, wild horses and beaches few travellers reach.

Discover Skyros

Not Sure Where to Start

Just Arrive. We'll Handle the Rest.

Can't decide between the islands, or want to experience all four? That is exactly what we do best. Accommodation, private boats, ferries, dining and every day in between: our local team plans it all, so nothing is left for you to worry about. You bring yourself, we bring the Sporades to you.