Post by yorkshiremouth on Oct 16, 2022 16:31:19 GMT
Having returned from Tenerife, I feel I have a bit more of a feel on the attraction of Skiathos. Lots of little bits of information I've always had, but am only just stitching together.
Los Gigantes is quite spectacular. A series of extraordinarily tall cliffs, they're an impressive and imposing sight.
On the first morning we walked down to the southern edge of the area for a better view. Above us were a range of hotels cut into the cliffs. Above than a number of tower cranes and clearly artificial 'steps' cut into the rock. My family (who've all been coming since the '80s), explained that every year or two they add an extra 'floor' to the hotels.
Turning back and facing south, it was hotel, after hotel, after hotel, right up to as far as you could see. The next day we walked south, and having reached the edge of what I'd seen the previous morning, it was the same again. Hotels. Each one at least twice the size of all the large hotels in Skiathos added together. And in this resort, at first I thought every building was a hotel, a bar, a restaurant, a tourist apartment block, or a shop. I though there were no houses or flats for locals, but I did eventually find a few, but they were just post-70s (post-80s?) blocks. I didn't see a single 'traditional' building.
So I hated it, right? Wrong! It was great. The hotel was clean, well-furnished and well-planned, the free food and drink were more than reasonable, the staff were friendly, you couldn't fault it. I had a fantastic week, and it was a fine holiday.
Just leave Tenerife aside for a moment, we've been looking at other holidays for next year, and it turns out we're going to Bali. You couldn't count the places we've looked at, and the number of YouTube videos/video reviews we've watched. And almost all fell into two camps. Either 'like Tenerife', or 'the middle of nowhere'. You know, 'yoofs' backpacking on their year out, eating deep fried cockroaches, from open food markets built over open sewers, the starting point for the world's next pandemic. I'm sure this type of 'holiday' suits some, and that's great, but it certainly isn't for me. I desire a certain amount of civilisation.
This is where Skiathos comes in. Is it an island of coast-to-coast hotels? No it isn't. Despite all the protestations on social media, it's a million miles from the environment I've just experienced. The land still not built on along the south coast isn't particularly suitable, and I don't think any of the possible hotels could be large enough to warrant the large-scale blasting and digging involved. But it still offers accommodation right from the 'fairly basic', right through to 'quite posh'. There's very little 'slumming it' to be had.
But Skiathos Town, for the most part, still holds much of its original feel. And the rest of the island, despite largely been built for tourists, maintains the vibe. Go up to Olive Thea, and it's not a sole building, stuck on its own. It's surrounded by large houses, and whilst many will be quite new, you feel there'll have been quite a few around the island before the tourists arrived, and the new ones generally fit in quite well.
Having thought about it, it's that balance which works for me. I have previously stayed at the Espirides at Achladies. We were half board, so only went out to eat once, and didn't take the trip into town. That holiday wasn't particularly the experience I've had since on the island. Even staying at Koukounaries, you get the impression that the tavernas are largely traditional, or not a million miles off, both in their style & decor, and the menu.
I'm sure Skiathos is different to how it was pre-tourism in the early '60s, but for the town that appears to mean just a few key streets have changed, with Plakes having changed relatively little. I've been to Crete, and visited villages right up in the centre, miles from nowhere, and still very, very traditional, and Skiathos Town still carries a huge dollop of that feel.
Anyway, that's my feeling. I may be wrong. Others may disagree. But I feel like a get a 'holiday' with the creature comforts, but coupled with a great deal of the traditional feel of Greece.
That must be a very difficult balance to strike.
Los Gigantes is quite spectacular. A series of extraordinarily tall cliffs, they're an impressive and imposing sight.
On the first morning we walked down to the southern edge of the area for a better view. Above us were a range of hotels cut into the cliffs. Above than a number of tower cranes and clearly artificial 'steps' cut into the rock. My family (who've all been coming since the '80s), explained that every year or two they add an extra 'floor' to the hotels.
Turning back and facing south, it was hotel, after hotel, after hotel, right up to as far as you could see. The next day we walked south, and having reached the edge of what I'd seen the previous morning, it was the same again. Hotels. Each one at least twice the size of all the large hotels in Skiathos added together. And in this resort, at first I thought every building was a hotel, a bar, a restaurant, a tourist apartment block, or a shop. I though there were no houses or flats for locals, but I did eventually find a few, but they were just post-70s (post-80s?) blocks. I didn't see a single 'traditional' building.
So I hated it, right? Wrong! It was great. The hotel was clean, well-furnished and well-planned, the free food and drink were more than reasonable, the staff were friendly, you couldn't fault it. I had a fantastic week, and it was a fine holiday.
Just leave Tenerife aside for a moment, we've been looking at other holidays for next year, and it turns out we're going to Bali. You couldn't count the places we've looked at, and the number of YouTube videos/video reviews we've watched. And almost all fell into two camps. Either 'like Tenerife', or 'the middle of nowhere'. You know, 'yoofs' backpacking on their year out, eating deep fried cockroaches, from open food markets built over open sewers, the starting point for the world's next pandemic. I'm sure this type of 'holiday' suits some, and that's great, but it certainly isn't for me. I desire a certain amount of civilisation.
This is where Skiathos comes in. Is it an island of coast-to-coast hotels? No it isn't. Despite all the protestations on social media, it's a million miles from the environment I've just experienced. The land still not built on along the south coast isn't particularly suitable, and I don't think any of the possible hotels could be large enough to warrant the large-scale blasting and digging involved. But it still offers accommodation right from the 'fairly basic', right through to 'quite posh'. There's very little 'slumming it' to be had.
But Skiathos Town, for the most part, still holds much of its original feel. And the rest of the island, despite largely been built for tourists, maintains the vibe. Go up to Olive Thea, and it's not a sole building, stuck on its own. It's surrounded by large houses, and whilst many will be quite new, you feel there'll have been quite a few around the island before the tourists arrived, and the new ones generally fit in quite well.
Having thought about it, it's that balance which works for me. I have previously stayed at the Espirides at Achladies. We were half board, so only went out to eat once, and didn't take the trip into town. That holiday wasn't particularly the experience I've had since on the island. Even staying at Koukounaries, you get the impression that the tavernas are largely traditional, or not a million miles off, both in their style & decor, and the menu.
I'm sure Skiathos is different to how it was pre-tourism in the early '60s, but for the town that appears to mean just a few key streets have changed, with Plakes having changed relatively little. I've been to Crete, and visited villages right up in the centre, miles from nowhere, and still very, very traditional, and Skiathos Town still carries a huge dollop of that feel.
Anyway, that's my feeling. I may be wrong. Others may disagree. But I feel like a get a 'holiday' with the creature comforts, but coupled with a great deal of the traditional feel of Greece.
That must be a very difficult balance to strike.
