Vathi Syros Ferry

Vathi Guide

The town of Vathi is located on the Greek island of Samos, which lies in the north Aegean Sea, and is the island's largest town and capital. The town was built around a large bay and is full of Aegean colour and atmosphere which is just as well as tourism is the town's main source of income. The town is also home to one of three ports on the island and is located in the centre of the eastern part of the bay which is also called Vathi. Limin Vatheos or Kato Vathi, as the locals call it, is the most lively place on the island, especially during the summer tourist season. There have been many archaeological finds on the island that bear testament to the island's past. Popular with tourists is the historic church of Agios Spyridon, the building that housed the Parliament, the Town Hall and the Archaeological and the Byzantine Museum which are all evidence of the historic past of the island.

From the town's port, ferry services operate to the Greek mainland and to many other Greek islands with conventional and high speed ferries. Destinations include Piraeus, Icaria, Chios, Mytiline, the Cyclades, the islands of the North Aegean and the Dodecanese Islands.

Syros Guide

The Greek island of Syros is one of the Cyclades group of islands and is unusual in that the island's architecture is more medieval rather than the more typical Cycladic. The island's capital is Ermoupolis and has some fine examples of Venetian mansions to see. In the Vaporia quarter of the capital visitors will find some lovely large churches and impressive neoclassical buildings, such as the Town Hall and Apollo Theatre in the central square. Also popular with visitors are the island's beaches which are well equipped for tourists and have a good range of facilities.

The island can trace its history back to the 3rd millennium BC where signs of inhabitation have been found in the Halandriani and Kastri parts of the island. Artefacts found indicate that there was some kind of metal workshop on the island which possibly had a trading relationship with Asia Minor. The Samians occupied the island in the 6th century BC and is when many of the island's inhabitants moved to the island. At that time, the important physician and philosopher Pherecydis was born in Syros and some years later he went to Samos and became the teacher of Pythagoras.