Skiathos (also known in Italian toponymy as Sciato) also includes the islets of Tsougria, Tsougriaki, Maragos, Arkos, Troulonisi, and Aspronisi.
Although Skiathos is mainly known as a beach tourism destination (with beaches of all kinds and now nearly all very well equipped), it is possible to undertake around twenty hiking trails to discover its scenic, historical and architectural beauties.
Inhabited mostly in the southern and southeastern parts, the island of the Aegean Sea has as its only town the city of Skiathos located precisely on the southeastern tip, a favorable position as it is protected from the wind.
The city’s port certainly does not go unnoticed as it is divided into two by the Bourtzi peninsula, once a fortress founded by the Gizi brothers. With battlement walls and arrow slits for defense, Bourtzi was also called ‘Kastelli tou Agiou Georgiou’ (that is, ‘Castle of Saint George’) because inside the fortress there was a small church erected in the name of the Venetian’s patron saint. Thanks to the multitude of pine trees, the breathtaking panorama, and the ever-fresh air, today Bourtzi is a place where body and soul find the right well-being.
Among the few ruins of the Church of Saint George and those of the ancient fortress, a municipal café and a picturesque cultural center come to life, with conference rooms and an open-air theater hosting theatrical and musical performances.
