I decided to write this blog to give people a suggested itinerary and a look at things from a food perspective on a charter yacht. We were two families, each with a 16-year-old boy and an 11-year-old girl, one family from Ireland and one from Miami, Florida, we had met previously through kids sailing. We did not need a skipper as my husband had his ICC (International Cruising Certificate). We were keen to do our own itinerary and not join a flotilla. Scroll to the bottom if you want to see my top tips!
Set up
Day 1 Hydra
We set off from Alimos marina, there was little or no wind, so we mostly travelled under engine. We had bought nice ready-made salads and rolls to have lunch on the first day. Our first destination was Hydra, a beautiful Island, popular with tourists, no cars allowed on the island and luggage is transported on donkeys and mules. We didn’t want to stay in the busy port (also the word is that if you want a berth in ports, you would ideally be there before 5pm) so we anchored in the neighbouring cove of Mandraki Bay. We arrived at around 8pm, sun sets at 8.30 pm in Summer in Greece. It was a beautiful bay with two little tavernas on the shore. It was our first attempt at anchoring stern to the shore with lines, it took us a while, but we got a nice comfortable, secure anchorage for the night, there were approx. 15 other boats in the bay. We had dinner aboard that night, unfortunately the peace was ruined by a neighbouring yacht running the engine all night, we think it was to keep their air conditioning running.
That night we had kofta kebabs with tzatziki, watermelon and I made a couscous salad with lots of herbs, onions & nuts and started soaking the chickpeas for the next day. We couldn’t find the tomatoes we bought, and we never did find the tomatoes and cherries we bought at the supermarket!! The teens took the dinghy to the shore and walked the 20 mins over to the centre to explore, it would appear that socialising starts late around here.
Day 2 Sunday Molos & Dokos
The next morning, some went ashore for a fabulous coffee in the local taverna then we all headed over to the other side of the island to the town of Hydra, this took approx 20 mins, it was a beautiful coastal walk but scorching hot, so bring drinking water! There is a beautiful golden wind vane, jutting out over the sea. My first purchase was a handheld fan! Good value at €3, I felt I needed this as it was hard to fall asleep down below on the boat. The shops were very nice in Hydra, I found a lovely bakery, a shop that sells nuts per weight and lovely wines and traditional sesame seed bars, I prefer the crunchy, not too sweet variety compared to the chewy bars which I find can be a bit sweet. An issue we discovered on the first night was that our boat didn’t have any wine glasses so I popped into a hardware store on the island and purchased 6 ‘crystal style’ hard plastic glasses, (better for safety on the boat,) for only €8! In the supermarket I found an Argitakos Greek melon, which I had never seen before. It is oval shaped with a hard striped, yellow outside, inside it is quite similar to a Galia melon. The only shops that seemed very expensive were the clothing shops. We got a water taxi back to our boat from the lovely Meidonis Stravos, ‘Maria sea taxi’ for only €25, he even gifted us a bag of ice! +306937921838.
For lunch we headed to nearby Molos (still on Hydra), it was a beautiful, quiet cove. Apparently, the long low house you see on the shore is privately owned. It is a lovely quiet anchorage which provides shelter from all winds except southwest, there are no facilities available here. There were about 6 other yachts in the cove with us. For lunch we had Tiropita, it is a pastry filled with cheese that we bought frozen in the supermarket and cooked in the oven on board. We had it with the couscous salad we made last night and the chickpea salad with roasted red peppers (jar), chopped tomatoes and sauté onions (if you have a chilli oil, it is great to use here!), dressed with beautiful Greek olive oil and seasoning.
Leaving Molos, we headed off for our first halyard swing of the holiday, we learnt from YouTube the best, and safest way to do these an all had great fun, check out my reel above, to see each crew member having their go! We continued onto our chosen destination that night which was a small island nearby called Dokos. Basically, our plan on day one was to get as far from Athens as we could and then hop around near there and slowly make our way back to Athens. We made the final decision each day as we left the current anchorage or port. There was plenty of fuel on board to motor all the way but we were keen to sail where possible. It was just fantastic that any time you were hot you simply jumped off the boat to refresh!
Navily is a fantastic app to use to decide which locations are suitable for your needs and the current weather. We were keen to avoid the crowds so based on reviews and weather we decided on Dokos North, a cove quieter than the main Dokos cove. There were only 4 other boats in the cove. We took the dinghy into shore and explored the island, it looked abandoned. There was a goat to greet us as we headed ashore, he disappeared very quickly, once you go beyond the abandoned buildings on the shore line you can walk across the red earth, with cactus, Cyprus and old olive trees scattered around. We discovered two white churches, very close to each other. The churches were newly painted and looked to be used regularly with candles still lighting, you can enter the churches, lots of folded chairs and many relics covering the walls, but nobody was to be seen on the island. There were a few houses around, peering through the windows you could see that they were well set up for visitors with chairs, beds, sinks, pots and pans, BBQs and chairs outside, a great quiet place for a hideaway! The views from the top of the island were amazing. The cove had such clear waters, a beautiful sunset and sunrise to be seen from the boat as well as a fantastic view of the stars. The one sad thing about here was the plastic that was washed up in the cove, so to help it would be good to bring a rubbish bag with you when you go to shore and collect what you can to dispose of properly.
That night we defrosted prawns and cooked them in garlic, olive oil and butter and served with bread and salads, I made a green lentil salad with capers, onions, tomatoes, lemon zest & juice, olive oil and seasoning which we enjoyed with the end of the couscous salad and the chickpea salad made at lunchtime. The wine of the trip was Akres, a blend of Moscofilero & Alepou grapes, with a picture of a tree on front, only €7 in the supermarket and delicious. That night we opened a tin of caprice, a local biscuit, it has a crispy wafer outside and a chocolate hazelnut centre, quite light and one is never enough! They can be frozen too for a chilled treat!
The anchorage is well sheltered, 5m of safe sand and hawser (stern lines) on land. However, at 3.30 am my daughter woke me to tell me she couldn’t sleep due to banging & was too hot!! Basically, a swell had developed and the main halyard was banging on the mast, I tightened the ropes and she slept the rest of the night on the deck. The next morning we had a swim to refresh, those who hadn’t explored ashore did so and then we headed off on our next adventure.
Day 3 Mon Spetses
We headed to a beautiful bay, Baie de Zogiormia, a cove further west of the Spetses town. For lunch we had tuna & sweetcorn salad, along with the salads from the previous day. The cove was very quiet, ideal for a snorkel, although the boat had a few masks and a snorkel and a set of fins, we brought two full sets with us, we also rented a SUP board to allow for exploring from the yacht. I spent about 40 mins exploring the cove, visibility is great, lots of sea urchins and small fish to see. At the weekends, apparently it can be full of superyachts and jet skis but it was quiet for us on the Monday lunchtime in August.
We decided to hit the town of Spetses on Mon night. We tried to berth at the West side of the pier, alas that was full (4-5pm) so we had to come stern into the side of the inner harbour where we had heard there was a swell sue to the constant traffic of the water taxis. The harbour master assisted us getting into the berth and you can get water (€4 for nearly a full tank) and electricity there if you wish. We thought that as ourselves and two other yachts were sandwiched between two massive superyachts that the swell mightn’t be so bad. But we were wrong.
We headed off to explore Spetses town, a stark contrast to the vehicle-free island of hydra and the deserted land in Dokos. Walking around there were vespas whizzing by, constant fumes and a sense of a busy life. The supermarket was a short walk away, we were nearly out of water, each person drinking 3l min a day! On reflection I would have purchased more on the first day as the walk back to the pier with the trolley involves a few steps in Spetses!! The ice from the local kiosk was €4.50 a bag.
I suggest booking a restaurant any night you want to eat out, we booked Patralis Fish Tavern. It is a popular restaurant; they have a terrace on either side of the road and a beautiful view over the bay, very efficient and friendly staff and lots of fresh fish. We ordered appetisers to share, the fried courgette (zucchini) was a first for me and was delicious; thin, half rounds of courgette dipped in a light batter and fried until crisp in a fresh oil, grilled and fried squid as well as whitebait were also popular. This was also the first time I had the marinated octopus dish on a bed or Greek Fava (yellow split peas creamed with olive oil and garlic), we got this again in every restaurant we visited! We also tried Saganaki, a Greek appetizer made with fried kasseri cheese, their scampi was delicious.
The four adults shared a grouper, you choose the whole fish, sitting on ice in a display cabinet and it is priced per kg, it was presented having been cooked on the BBQ whole and then the waiter filleted it. To accompany that we had a green bean salad, boiled and then dressed with olive oil, garlic and roast peppers, delicious! As well as a Greek salad. To finish we had their dessert plate with a small piece each of baklava, ice cream and fruit. All the staff had perfect English and they were so friendly and helpful. We had a stroll around the town after dinner, we even bumped into another family from our yacht club in Dublin while in Spetses, it’s a small world in sailing! The girls love horses so we took a horse and cart for a mini tour around the town, the breeze it created as me moved along was very refreshing!
Getting back onto the boat on the gangplank was a challenge that night with the swell from the water taxis, you needed to time it well! We actually had a bad night sleep and sore necks the next day due to the constant banging. It was a great place for teens, their favourite by far, they all got henna tattoos and found others to socialise with into the small hours and it felt like a safe place to let them do that. The next morning, I went to a local café and got the most refreshing mixed fresh fruit juice I have ever had and the others had a coffee overlooking the port. We then headed to the bakery for fresh supplies and pulled out of Spetses. So, would I go back? Yes, but I would anchor out and use the dinghy to get ashore, I wouldn’t recommend staying on the pier.
Day 4 Tuesday Bekiris Cave & Sedoni Bay
We headed off to the other side of the island and visited Bekiris Cave. There was a nice beach nearby too. We snorkelled from the yacht over to the cave and swam inside, if you waited a few moments your eyes could adjust to the light within the cave, it is quite large and there is a small sandy beach at the back of the cave. A torch would also be useful. There is a rental business on the beach, so the boys went wake boarding, there are lots of different activities accommodated here. We then headed along the coast towards the island of Poros and pulled into Sedoni Bay, which is actually on the mainland. This is a quiet cove we had to ourselves for the night. There were a few locals on the beach and groups of houses that appeared to be surrounded by a wall. There was a building site behind our boat on the east side where we anchored, stern to the shore.
For aperitif that evening, watching the beautiful sunset (8.30pm in Aug) we had our favourite local wine, Akres, using Moscofilero & Alepou grapes, with a picture of a tree on front (€6/7 in supermarkets). We ate chilled watermelon, taramaslata and hummus with amazing breadsticks, (Makeaonika – Gitou, blue packet) found in all supermarkets there, made with toasted sesame seeds. For dinner we ate some kofta kebabs (we had bought from a nice butcher in Spetses) with tzatziki and salads already made in addition to the new quinoa salad with nuts, herbs, tomatoes and onions. That night I had a beautiful night’s sleep on the deck, fell asleep with shooting stars out the corner of my eye and no need to use a fan to cool myself, I had an eye mask to hand so that once I watched the sun rise I popped it on and got another hours sleep. The workmen started on the site around 7am but thankfully it was more chatting in the distance than jack hammering!
Day 5 Wednesday Soupia and Poros
For breakfast most days we had muesli (which I made on the first day) with Greek yoghurt and fruit. With homemade muesli you can be sure of the quality of the ingredients and add in anything you usually have, e.g. ground flaxseeds, nuts and seeds and perhaps omit dried fruit if you don’t like that. I add cinnamon to sweeten it. We left our mooring and headed to the lunch spot of Soupia, on the mainland, which was a busy spot and a bit exposed, be careful not to go in too far as it gets very shallow. There was a very small family run taverna there, if you want to go ashore. Straight after lunch of tinned sardines with chickpea, quinoa and lentil salad, together with a fresh Greek salad we headed for the town of Poros, on the island with the same name. It was a bit of a parade into Poros (as well as ferries coming in and out and a narrow channel in parts) and apparently to ensure a berth at the pier you need to be there by 5pm, we aimed to find a berth at the earlier part, where the fishermen were rather than further down in the busier area. I think we found one of the last spots at 4pm, they are tight so it can be a bit tricky, we put a lot of chain out and tied the stern off to a fixed chain on the harbour wall. It was a lovely town, a lot more character than Spetses and no swell. Everyone was so friendly and helpful.
That night I had booked a table at Poseidon which was a beautiful spot to watch the sunset, with a cocktail, just across a small road from the pier where lots of yachts had berthed, as usual there were lots of super yachts as well as smaller yachts. In Poseidon, they had a novel light, the size of a 500ml container that you turn upside down and it lights up red to call the waiter. We shared appetisers again, marinated octopus in a dressing was delicious. The fried courgette (zucchini) was cut more like a chip and was nice but not as nice as the thin half-moon pieces I had previously, the fried squid was delicious and the grilled talagani with homemade tomato jam was delicious as were the salt cod balls. For main course I had sea bass with a beetroot puree on a bed of samphire style sea vegetables, others had lamb chops, fisherman’s linguini and burger(no bun) and chips from the kids menu, all delicious. We had lovely Greek wines. At the end of the meal the adults were presented with a glass of a cross between limoncello and gelato, it was very tasty and refreshing. The bill was approx. €300 for 8 people including drinks, we weren’t rushed from the table at all, but I certainly was glad I booked as it is a busy spot.
After dinner, the girls headed off souvenir shopping for evil eye bracelets and necklaces. The evil eye is essentially a symbol to deter the wicked energy that a person can transmit to another. Around Greece there are a lot of cats and in this restaurant two cats decided to fight under my seat and scratched my legs! I got a fright but the restaurant staff were super and gave me all the first aid items I could need! There were two birthdays that night and the staff brought out large candles and everyone sang happy birthday! It was nice to stroll back to the boat along the pier, the shops are all still open until midnight so it was very pleasant to browse and buy a few souvenirs. We had a nice quiet night on the boat and slept well and the teenagers enjoyed the night, hanging out with some locals.
The next morning, we headed to the second plaza on the strip and had delicious coffees and I enjoyed another fresh juice. There is a large selection of cafes to choose from and we got some pain au chocolat for the girls too! It is well worth walking over the hill, there are classic Greek streets, lots of steps, the ground painted white with blue windows on the buildings and lovely colourful draping flowers, as well as lots of churches! There always seems to be a mass or singing on in the churches. We then headed out the channel from Poros, it is a busy port but there is space for everyone as you can anchor a little out and take the dinghy to shore. There are also some quieter coves beyond the town that you can visit, and one has a small inflatable water park with slides etc.
Day 6 Thursday Egina
It was windier in the latter part of the week, and we had 20 knots and sailed a close reach towards the island of Egina, we were doing about 6/7 knots with full sails. Our next stop was Ormos Mouriotti, a beautiful bay, which was quiet to begin with but as it was the last night of charter for most people before they had to return to the Athens Marina it became busy. Having said that it was a lot less busy than the neighbouring cove of Cape Pirgos. While getting our mooring right, again we dropped a lot of chain and had to keep an eye that nobody came in over our line, we needed longer lines ashore, one crew member prepared a tuna and sweetcorn salad together with the salads from the previous night, all ready once we were settled. We finished off with delicious baklava and katafai which we had bought ashore. After lunch I had a much-needed snooze and then we decided to stay on here for our last night. I admired the surrounding boats that had hammocks and doing it again, I think I would recommend a hammock that can be hung from the boom to create a lovely private spot to chill!
It was a lovely place for a snorkel or perhaps a trip on the SUP. There were lots of small fish. The beach ashore, like many others was full of stones but the first 80m or so of water had a sandy bottom which was nice underfoot. There were some very nice properties ashore, a helicopter dropped someone off while we were there. There were also some guard dogs barking occasionally, otherwise peaceful. The cliff edge has eroded somewhat, and you could see the deep roots of one of the olive trees which I found quite interesting. Dinner was Spanakopita, a thin pastry with spinach and feta which we had purchased frozen two days ago but wasn’t still frozen in our freezer!! It takes 35 mins to cook, and we could only cook one at a time so I made another lentil salad to accompany a Greek salad and Quinoa salad from the previous day. That night I slept on the deck (I used a bit more mossie repellent this time as I was bitten the first night I slept out and I react badly).
I mentioned previously that the water was very salty, one of the boys decided to do an experiment and see if they evaporated the water how much salt would be left. Well from about 100ml of Meditteranaean sea water we got 1.5 tbsp salt, you can see it here on the knife in the photo above! You can see some in the picture below, we also used the sea water to cook our pasta and our lentils!
Day 7 Egina & Alimos Marina, Athens
Leaving Ormos Mouriotti we headed further up north to Nisida Nisida, still on Egina. The water was crystal blue. We anchored under the shelter of the small island, it is very shallow on the east side so I suggest entering from the west where you can anchor in 3-4 m of good sand. This gave us a place to explore and shelter from the north wind. We headed to the small island in the dinghy, it was very hot ashore, only then did I appreciate how much cooler it was on the boat with a breeze. It appeared that there was a white church on the island but on closer inspection the building was divided in two, with a lovely, shaded terrace to one side. One door led to a church with candles lighting, lots of relics along the wall and an alter on the top, with a lovely small window at one end letting in light. The other door led to room with a pizza oven, & bbq, some fold up chairs, a nice spot for a gathering or a small party I’m sure for locals at weekends! It is nice to see a place like this that is open to the public and not damaged.
We motored out of here and put-up sails for our last sail over to Alimos marina, with just a few tacks we joined the procession into the marina with a few skippers zooming past charter boats! At the end of the week, coming into the mooring stern first seems so much easier, we had an efficient team process by now! It turns out that getting water on the marina to the boat to have a shower wasn’t quite so efficient!
Changeover day means Alimos marina is busy, boats need to be back on the marina for 6pm on Friday and vacated by 9am Sat, all rubbish cleared but cleaning is included in the charter fee. We sat for a while on the boat, finishing off the last of our wine and watching the other boats coming back in. locals came to promote their restaurants nearby. There is a taverna at the marina which I think was open all night! We decided to head around the corner to Edem, a seafood restaurant, literally on the beach! The host was very helpful and fitted the 8 of us in quite quickly. On reflection I would avoid here on a Fri night as it was just too busy for the staff to handle efficiently, not enough knives for everyone, staff under a lot of pressure etc.
Overall, I found the Greek people to be very pleasant and accommodating, always wanting to please. I don't speak Greek but even the smallest effort to say thank you efcharistó in Greek went a long way! We were sad to say goodbye to our boat, and the other family “the best holiday ever” and “when can we do it again” was all we could say.
I hope this has inspired you in the kitchen for your holidays and the itinerary helps you decided where to explore if you charter a boat from Athens.
My top tips
1. Download the Navily app, it is so helpful when looking for places to anchor, it takes into account the wind, swell etc.
2. There is no tide in the Med, so it makes calculating anchor length & shore lines etc easy.
3. Buy enough drinking water at the beginning, there is usually lots of storage in the bilges or the spinnaker locker – it is easier than getting it later, allow 3l per person per day!
4. Book restaurants in advance, (often a few hours’ notice is fine) fyi people eat late here, some sit at 11pm!
5. A great white wine to have is Skouras Akres, with a picture of a tree on front, it is made from moschofilero & alepou grapes and costs €6/7 in supermarkets.
6. You wont need sailing gear, in August we generally wore swimwear all day and sailed barefoot, then wore light clothes for dinner ashore.
7. Bring a 12v usb charger, we found the regular plugs didn’t work on our boat to charge our phones so the 12v plug (like cigarette lighter in a car) was very useful
A weekend in Athens with teen, blog to follow!
