A Skopelos itinerary: four days of pines

This plan is an order rather than a timetable. We give no bus times, boat schedules or prices, because they change every season and a page that prints them ages badly. Everything else the island holds is in the Skopelos guide.

Day 1: Skopelos Town, and the walk up through it

Arrive and give the rest of the day to the town, which is the thing most people underrate before they get here. It is a tiered amphitheatre of houses around the harbour, stacked steeply with slate roofs, whitewashed walls and an improbable number of churches: the usual figure quoted is around 120 in the town alone.

Above it is the ruined kastro; below it a working waterfront. The lanes are stepped and largely car-free, and the walk up through them is the best hour on the island. Do it in the late afternoon when the light is low and the steps are in shade, then eat on the waterfront.

Day 2: the beaches, and what pebble means

Give a day to the coast and adjust your expectations first. This is a pebble island, and the pebbles are white under very dark green. That is a genuinely different swimming day from a sand island: clearer water, less sand in everything, and harder walking at the water’s edge. Bring something for your feet.

The south and west coasts hold most of the accessible bays, and a car or scooter opens them up because the island is bigger and hillier than Skiathos next door. Which bay suits which day is in Skopelos beaches.

Day 3: Agios Ioannis Kastri, early

The chapel of Agios Ioannis sto Kastri stands on top of a rock stack on the north-east coast, reached by a flight of steps cut into the rock. It was the wedding chapel in the Mamma Mia film and it is now the single most visited spot on Skopelos, which concentrates the island’s entire crowd into one small place at one time of day.

Two things worth saying plainly. The climb is a genuine staircase up a rock and there is nothing at the top but a small chapel and a view. And the island was a serious destination before the film and remains one after it, which is why the rest of Skopelos stays calm even when that one rock does not.

Go early, and pair it with a swim on the same coast rather than driving back for lunch.

Day 4: Glossa and the north end

Glossa at the northern end is the second town, higher and quieter than the capital, above the port of Loutraki. It is the version of Skopelos that has not been photographed, and it is a good half day of lanes, views down to the water and a long lunch.

The drive up is through the forest that gives the island its character, so the journey is part of it. Come back over the top rather than the way you went if the road allows.

How to adapt this

Two days. Day one and day three: the town, and the chapel early. That is the essential Skopelos, and it is what a day-tripper from Skiathos never quite gets.

A week. Add Alonissos and the marine park beyond it, give the beaches two days rather than one, and walk some of the old paths through the pine.

Without a car. The town is walkable and the buses reach the main beaches, so a car-free trip works. Glossa is further and the chapel is easier with wheels, so plan those two around the bus timetable rather than assuming.

Arriving from Skiathos. Most people do, and the crossing is short. Skiathos to Skopelos covers it, and day trips from Skopelos covers going back the other way.

Where this leaves you

Four days on Skopelos: the stepped town on the first, the pebble coast on the second, the film chapel early on the third with a swim beside it, and Glossa and the quiet north on the fourth. The forest is the reason to come and the town is the reason to stay, and the one thing to time rather than trust is the chapel, which fills at the predictable hour and empties again after.

Quick answers

How many days do you need on Skopelos?

Four is comfortable: the town, the beaches, the Agios Ioannis Kastri chapel and a day at the quieter northern end around Glossa. Two days is enough for the town and the chapel if you are coming over from Skiathos.

Are the beaches on Skopelos sand or pebble?

White pebble, almost everywhere, under dark green pine that runs right down to the waterline. It makes for clearer water and less mess than sand, but it is harder walking at the water’s edge, so bring something for your feet.

Is the Mamma Mia chapel worth visiting?

It is worth an early morning. The climb is a genuine staircase cut into a rock stack and there is nothing at the top but a small chapel and a view, so the appeal is the setting and the approach rather than the building. Go before the day boats arrive.

Do you need a car on Skopelos?

It helps. The island is bigger and hillier than Skiathos, and Glossa at the north end and the better beaches are spread out. Buses reach the main ones, so a car-free trip works if you plan around the timetable rather than assuming you can move freely.