Spetses

Spetses is an island that feels like a small, elegant town by the sea. The ferry from the mainland lands at the harbour of Dapia, where the grand mansions of the island's shipping families line the seafront and the pine forests rise behind the town. The island has no cars — or almost none — and its streets belong to bicycles, horses, and the elegant horse-drawn carriages that are the island's trademark. The old town of Kastro, on its peninsula above the sea, is worth walking through, where the houses of the sea captains stand in rows, while the beaches of the south and west, where the pines come down to the water, are best reached on a hired bike. The house-museum of the great admiral of the revolution, Bouboulina, stands open, and the clear, deep water of the Argolic Gulf is good for swimming. An evening walk along the seafront of Dapia, past the cafés and the yachts, goes some way towards explaining why Spetses has been the chosen retreat of the wealthy and the stylish for more than a century.

Spetses has been inhabited since antiquity, when the island was known as Pityoussa, 'the pine island'. In the 18th and early 19th centuries the island rose to prosperity as a maritime power: its sailors and merchants built a great fleet, and the island, along with Hydra and Psara, became one of the three great naval powers of the Greek War of Independence. The island's most famous heroine is Laskarina Bouboulina, the only woman in history to be an admiral of a navy, who financed and commanded her own warship in the revolution. After independence, Spetses became a fashionable retreat, and in the late 19th and early 20th centuries the great families of the island built the grand neoclassical mansions that line its seafront. In the 20th century the island was the setting for John Fowles' novel 'The Magus', and it has remained a favourite of the wealthy and the famous. Its car-free streets, its pine forests, and its elegant seafront make it one of the most charming islands of Greece.

Spetses has some of the most beautiful beaches of the Saronic. The bays of Agioi Anargyroi, on the south coast, are a string of lovely coves with clear, deep water and pine trees to the water's edge. The beach of Zogeria and the coves of the west are quiet and beautiful, reached by paths through the woods. The town's own seafront has small swimming spots, and the beach of Agia Marina, near Dapia, is convenient and pretty. The water is clean and deep, and the pine-shaded coves are a delight. Bring a mask and a towel, and you will find a beautiful place to swim at every turn.

Spetses food is the cooking of a wealthy, maritime island, and its tavernas reflect its elegance and its history. The island serves the finest of the Saronic table: fresh fish and seafood, the island's own vegetables and greens, and a range of meze that shows the influence of the island's cosmopolitan past. The famous 'meltemakia' — little almond pastries — are a Spetses specialty, and the island's coffee culture is legendary along its seafront. For a proper Spetses meal, find a taverna by the water in Dapia, order the fish of the day and a plate of the island's meze, and finish with the island's almond sweets as the yachts sway in the harbour.

May, June, and September are the ideal months on Spetses: warm, green, and elegant, with the sea perfect and the island at its most relaxed. July and August are the main season, when the island is at its liveliest and its beaches and seafront are full. Spring is lovely, when the pines are fragrant and the island is at its greenest. Whenever you come, Spetses is a place for slow walks, good food, and the pleasure of a beautiful island by the sea.

Spetses has no airport and is reached by ferry and hydrofoil from Piraeus, from the other Saronic islands, and from the mainland port of Costa. The island is largely car-free, so cars are left at the port and the rest is covered on foot.

The island is largely car-free — walk, hire a bicycle, or take a horse-drawn carriage, and leave the car at the port. Do not miss the old town of Kastro and the house-museum of Bouboulina, the monastery of Agioi Anargyroi, and the beaches of the south. Swim at Agioi Anargyroi and Zogeria, walk the seafront of Dapia in the evening, and give the island at least a couple of nights to reveal its elegant charm.