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* Aígina (Aegina)
* Ákra Soúnio (Cape Sounion)
* Dáfní (Daphni)
* Delfoí (Delphi)
* Elefsína (Eleusis)
* Epídavros (Epidavros)
* Kaisarianí
* Kifisiá (Kifissia)
* Kórinthos (Corinth)
* Marathónas (Marathon)
* Mykínes (Mycenae)
* Náfplio
* Peiraías (Piraeus)
* Póros
* Rafína
* Rámnoús
* Salamína (Salamis)
* Spétses
* Vravróna (Brauron)
* ýdra (Hydra)
Walk/Drive
Food&Drink
In The Know
Did You Know?
( Highly Recommended )
If you only have time to visit one Greek island while staying in Athens, there are reasons both for and against choosing Hydra. It takes only a little over 90 minutes to reach on the Flying Dolphin, and when you arrive the harbour looks so extraordinarily beautiful that you will see at once why people fall in love with the Greek islands. On the other hand, a great many people have already fallen in love with Hydra so it can be extremely crowded. It is also not a typically Greek island - but then every island is different, which is part of their charm.
Hydra was colonised by a crowd of Bohemian artists in the 1960s, and became a very fashionable place to live and to visit, with more than a touch of St Tropez about it. Many of the old mansions which line the harbour were sensitively renovated, returning them to the glory of the days when Hydra had a large merchant shipping fleet that created its 18th-century wealth. Today, very strict building controls and a ban on cars ensure that Hydra retains its beauty, though there are, of course, constant commercial pressures to ease the restrictions.
You can escape the crowds and fashionable boutiques by walking to one of the island's fishing villages, or heading up above the town for an hour or so to the convent of Ágia Efpraxia and neighbouring monastery of Profitis Ilias, all a welcome return to a more traditional Greek island life.
Address: Tourist Police: Votsi, Hydra Town
Phone: Tourist Police: 0298-52205
Open: Daily 9am-10pm, May-Oct
Restaurant: Many cafés and restaurants (Inexpensive-Expensive)
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