Greece - Korina Miller [536]
Other fine options:
Igloo ( 24270 24076; Papadiamanti; drinks-snacks €1.50-4; 6am-10pm) Cold drinks, breakfast.
No Name Fast Food ( 6974426707; Simionos; mains €2) Not that fast, and his name is Aris. Best gyros (meat slivers cooked on a vertical rotisserie; usually eaten with pitta bread).
Main Street ( 24270 21743; Papadiamanti; breakfasts €2-4) Breakfast, wraps, burgers.
Taverna O Batis ( 24270 22288; mains €6-12) Fresh fish, charming service.
Drinking
Kentavros Bar ( 24270 22980) The long-established and handsome Kentavros, off Plateia Papadiamanti, promises rock, soul, jazz and blues, and gets the thumbs-up from locals and expats alike for its mellow ambience, artwork and good drinks.
Rooftop Bar ( 6949096465) A popular place to chill above the old port, with the best happy hour on the waterfront, plus live music Saturday nights.
Rock & Roll Bar ( 24270 22944) Huge beanbags have replaced many of the pillows outside this trendy bar by the old port, resulting in fewer customers rolling off. Heaven for frozen strawberry-daiquiri lovers.
Bar Destiny ( 24270 24172; Polytechniou) Look for the soft blue light coming from this hip side-street bar with music videos, draught beer and a bit of dancing when the mood hits.
The dancing and drinking scene heats up after midnight along the club strip past the new harbour. Best DJs are at BBC ( 24270 21190), followed by Kahlua Bar ( 24270 23205) and Club Pure ( 6979773854), open till dawn.
Entertainment
Cinema Attikon ( 24270 22352; Papadiamanti; admission €7) Catch current English-language movies at this open-air cinema, sip a beer (beer and snacks €2 to €4) and practise speed-reading your Greek subtitles at the same time. (Greece is one of the few countries in Europe to show films in the original language, not dubbed.)
Shopping
Glittery open-air shops fill Papadiamanti. But branch off one of the ever-disappearing side streets to explore another side of Skiathos.
Loupos & his Dolphins ( 24270 23777; Plateia Papadiamanti; 10am-1.30pm & 6-11.30pm) Look for delicate hand-painted icons, fine Greek ceramics, along with gold and silver jewellery at this high-end gallery shop, next to Papadiamanti Museum.
Galerie Varsakis ( 24270 22255; Plateia Trion Ierarhon; 10am-2pm & 6-11pm) Browse for unusual antiques like 19th-century spinning sticks made by grooms for their intended brides, plus unusual Greek and African textiles. The collection rivals the best folklore museums in Greece.
Archipelagos Gallery ( 24270 22585; Plateia Papadiamanti; 11am-1pm & 8-10pm) Work by contemporary Greek and visiting artists stands out at this intimate shop.
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AROUND SKIATHOS
Sights & Activities
BEACHES
With some 65 beaches to choose from, beach-hopping on Skiathos can become a full-time occupation. Buses ply the south coast, stopping at 26 numbered beach access points. Megali Amos is only 2km from town, but fills up quickly. The first long stretch of sand worth getting off the bus for is the pine-fringed Vromolimnos Beach. Further along, Kolios Beach and Troulos Beach are also good but both, alas, very popular. The bus continues to Koukounaries Beach, backed by pine trees and touted as the best beach in Greece. But nowadays its crowded summer scene is best viewed at a distance, from where the 1200m long sweep of pale gold sand does indeed sparkle.
Big Banana Beach, known for its curving shape and soft white sand, lies at the other side of a narrow headland. Skinny-dippers tend to abscond to laid-back Little Banana Beach (also popular with gay and lesbian sunbathers) around the rocky corner.
West of Koukounaries, Agia Eleni Beach is a favourite with windsurfers. Sandy Mandraki Beach, a 1.5km walk along a pine-shaded path, is just far enough to keep it clear of the masses. The northwest coast’s beaches are less crowded but are subject to the strong summer meltemi (northeasterly winds). From here a right fork continues 2km to Mikros Aselinos Beach and 5km further