Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Lithí and Paralía Lithioú
Friendly
LITHÍ
village perches on a forested ledge overlooking the sea towards the
southern end of the central west coast. You can eat here but most visitors head 2km
downhill to
Paralía Lithioú
, a popular weekend target of Hiot townies thanks to its
large but hard-packed, windswept beach.
9
Véssa
Some 5km south of Lithí, valley-bottom
VÉSSA
is an unsung gem: more open and less
casbah-like than Mestá or Pyrgí, but still homogeneous, its tawny buildings are arrayed
in a vast grid punctuated by numerous belfries and arcaded passages.
ACCOMMODATION AND EATING
THE WEST COAST
Almyriki Apartments
Paralía Lithioú
T
22710 73124,
W
almiriki.gr.
Smart new complex behind the middle of
the beach, with modern well-appointed rooms sporting
modern furnitu
re, L
CD TVs and fridges. Chic café-bar on site
too. April-Oct.
€65
To Akroyiali
Paralía Lithioú
T
22710 73286.
The best
of the handful of tavernas here, behind the beach's north
end, providing fresh fish, a variety of seafood, simple
grilled meat and some tasty mezédhes.
May-Sept daily
11am-1am.
Northern Híos
Northern Híos
never really recovered from the 1822 massacre, and between Pityós and
Volissós the forest's recovery from 1980s
ires
has been partly reversed by a bad 2007 blaze.
Most villages usually lie deserted, with about a third of the former population living in Híos
Town, returning occasionally for major festivals or to tend smallholdings; others, based in
Athens or North America, visit their ancestral homes for just a few midsummer weeks.
Langádha and around
Some 16km north of Híos Town,
LANGÁDHA
is probably the first point on the eastern
coast road you'd be tempted to stop, though there is no proper beach nearby. Set at the
mouth of a deep valley, this attractive little harbour settlement looks across its bay to a
pine grove, and beyond to Turkey.
Just beyond Langádha a side road leads 5km up and inland to
Pityós
, an oasis in a
mountain pass presided over by a small, round castle; continuing 4km further brings
you to a junction that allows quick access to the west of the island.
Mármaro and around
Káto Kardhámyla
, 37km out of Híos Town, is the island's second town. Better known
as
MÁRMARO
, it's positioned at the edge of a fertile plain rimmed by mountains, which
comes as welcome relief from the craggy coastline. However, there is little to attract
casual visitors other than some Neoclassical architecture; the mercilessly exposed port is
strictly businesslike and offers only a limited range of tourist facilities and mediocre
beach. Swimming is much more enjoyable at the pebble bay of
Nagós
, 5km west, or at
Yióssonas
, a much longer and rockier beach, 1km further on.
Volissós and around
VOLISSÓS
, 42km from Híos Town, was once the market town for a dozen remote hill
villages beyond. The buildings around the main square are mostly modern but a host of
old stone houses still curl appealingly beneath a crumbling hilltop Byzantine-Genoese
fort
. hese upper quarters, known as
Pýrgos
, are in the grip of a restoration mania,
most in good taste, with ruins changing hands for stratospheric prices and usually
being turned into quality accommodation.
Beaches around Volissós
LIMNIÁ
(or Limiá), the port of Volissós, lies 2km south of town, bracketed by the local
beaches. A 1.5km drive or walk southeast over the headland brings you to
Mánagros
, a
