Where to stay in Thassos

Thassos is a loop, and that makes the where-to-stay question unusually concrete. Almost everything sits on a single ring road of roughly a hundred kilometres, so wherever you sleep you can reach the rest of the island, but you will drive one arc of it far more than the others. Pick the arc that matches the week you want.

Limenas, the north, if you want the ancient town on your doorstep. The main town is built directly on the ancient city, with an agora, a hillside theatre and the archaeological museum in walking distance, and the acropolis walk starting from the same streets. It is the base for anyone whose trip has a history spine, and the northern arc of the ring is the shortest drive from it.

The east coast, if the long sandy beaches are the point. Golden Beach and Paradise are along here, and basing on this side puts you on the big sweeps without a drive. It is the most developed stretch and the busiest in August, which is exactly what some people want from a beach week and exactly what others are trying to avoid.

Limenaria and the south, for the second town and a different character. The island’s other town has the old Speidel mining company building above it, and the southern arc gives you Aliki, the double bay with the ancient quarry running into the sea, within easy reach. Choose it if you want a base that is neither the main town nor the beach strip.

Inland, if the heat is your real problem. The mountain villages of Panagia, Potamia and Theologos sit above the coast with slate roofs and plane trees, and they are noticeably cooler. Very few people base up here and it is a genuinely different holiday: you drive down to swim and come back up to sleep, and August is survivable in a way it is not at sea level.

The thing that makes all of this work: your own car. Thassos is reached by a short car ferry rather than a flight or an overnight boat, which makes it one of the easiest Greek islands to arrive at in your own vehicle, and it is why the island fills with cars from the mainland and the Balkans in summer. If you are driving to Greece at all, this island rewards it more than most. If you are not, hire something, because the point of Thassos is the ring road. Which islands need a car covers the question and driving in Greece covers the road.

How long to give it. Four or five nights if you want the coast and the interior. It also works as a full week for people who want a beach holiday with somewhere to drive, which is a combination surprisingly few islands offer.

We name no hotel on this page. Properties change hands and close between seasons, and the site’s venue standard needs two independent platforms and a review floor this island’s stock does not reliably clear. What lasts is the geography, which is the four arcs above. Our Thassos guide has the island in full, things to do covers the ancient town and the marble, and the beaches run along the same ring.