Diagram by Greece Trips. Free to reuse with credit - CC BY 4.0.
It is the image the island is known by, and it looks improbable because it is.
The dates do not agree, and this page says so
This is a genuinely contested set of numbers and we carry the disagreement rather than picking a winner:
- The Municipality of Amorgos gives 1017 for the building and 1088 for the renovation under Alexios I Komnenos.
- The icon is traditionally dated to 812.
- Other reference sources will say only “early in the second millennium”.
So if you read a confident founding year for Hozoviotissa, understand what it is: one of several, stated without its rivals. We give you all three positions instead.
Visiting an active house
It is a working monastery, not a monument. That means modest dress and the ordinary courtesies of an active Orthodox site, and it means the opening arrangements are the monastery’s rather than a ticket office’s.
We print no hours. They are the perishable part.
The walk, if you want it
Amorgos has seven numbered waymarked paths published by the Municipality of Amorgos, graded easy to hard.
The Old Strata (path 1) runs Chora to Langada above Aegiali by way of the monastery, graded hard at four to five hours.
That is the honest framing: the monastery sits on a serious walking route, and “graded hard” is the municipality’s own grade rather than ours. We do not certify any route as within your ability - see our editorial policy - and hiking in Greece covers the country picture.
Most visitors drive to it instead. There is still a climb from the road.
The other thing Amorgos is known for
The Big Blue - Luc Besson’s Le Grand Bleu, 1988, shot partly on Amorgos, most famously at Agia Anna bay. Agia Anna is the beach below.
Practical notes
Getting there: Amorgos has two ports about 21 km apart - Katapola and Aegiali. From Piraeus, the fastest boat reaches Katapola in about six hours and a stopping conventional ferry takes up to about 9h 20m; Aegiali from about 6h 20m. Three to seven days a week.
Hops: Naxos about 1h 10m, Paros about 1h 45m, Santorini about 1h 10m, Koufonisia about 25m.
When: late May to June onwards.
Common questions
When was it founded? There is no agreed answer. The municipality gives 1017, the icon is traditionally dated 812, and other sources decline to be specific.
Can I walk there? It sits on path 1, the Old Strata, graded hard at four to five hours end to end. Most people drive and climb the last part.
Is it still in use? Yes. Dress and behave accordingly.
Next
Our Amorgos guide has the practicalities, things to do in Amorgos covers the island, and the beaches cover the coast.