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Contents
1. Introduction
1.1. Our Itinerary for the Cyclades
We wanted to visit 4 of the Cyclades islands during our 3 month European road trip but I discovered that it was expensive to take a car on the ferry.
I investigated leaving our car in Athens and renting cars on each island. That worked out to be even more expensive so I reverted back to using our own car.
There aren't car ferries between all the islands so using our own car limited our choice of islands. I used the Ferryhopper website to determine which islands were serviced by car ferries.
We wanted to avoid very touristy islands like Mykonos and Santorini. I eventually devised a circular route to 4 Cyclades islands with Naxos being the only touristy one. Our itinerary was Athens (Piraeus) - Syros - Naxos - Tinos - Andros - Athens (Rafina). We stayed 4 or 5 nights on each island.
1.2. Why we chose to visit Tinos
The Rough Guide says that "Tinos still feels like one of the most Greek of the larger islands in the Cyclades".
The Tripadvisor forum mentioned that the hiking trails were excellent.
We wanted to visit Andros (see my blog Andros, Greece: Travel Guide) and Naxos (see my blog Naxos, Greece: Travel Guide). There are car ferries between Naxos to Andros that stop at Tinos.
1.3. Is Tinos worth visiting?
Tinos is an authentic Greek island unspoiled by tourism. The main visitors are Greeks visiting the island for religious reasons.
Tinos is an attractive island with pretty villages and reasonable roads for exploring the island. There are a couple of good hiking trails, but many trails are becoming difficult to follow as they aren't being maintained. See the hiking section of this blog for details.
We were a bit underwhelmed by Tinos Town. It pales in comparison to Naxos Town. We enjoyed wandering around Naxos Town every evening but one visit of about an hour was enough for Tinos.
The island of Tinos is definitely worth visiting but you do need a car. A stay of 3 to 4 nights is sufficient.
2. Tinos Town
The main, and probably, only sight to see is the imposing Panayia Evangelistria Church. Most Greek visitors come to the church to see an icon famous for its healing powers.
There are 2 long straight streets going uphill from the harbour to the church. You can enter the church and there isn't an entrance fee.
The western street has a long thick runner attached to the side of the street to protect the hands and knees of devotees crawling up the hill. We didn't see anyone doing this. The eastern street is lined with stalls and shops selling religious items.
We found free parking on the upper section of the western road to the church. When driving in Tinos Town ensure you have all your car papers as the Port police stopped us and asked to see them.
Most of the restaurants are in the central harbour area.
3. Villages around Exobourgo Mountain
Exobourgo Mountain is 570 metres high. It is an imposing mountain of barren rock and is circled by several pretty Greek villages. The top can be reached by steep steps from the village of Xinara but we didn't climb up. We visited the villages of Tripotamos, Skalados, Xinara and Falatados.
Tripotamos is the most interesting of these villages and is a 10 minute drive from Tinos Town. It has old buildings, tunnelled alleyways and churches. Some dilapidated buildings have been restored and turned into small hotels and holiday homes. Vehicles can't enter the village and there is limited parking on the main road above the village.
Falatados is also worth visiting and has several white washed churches. There are 2 free car parks. The first one was full but there was space at the next car park.
4. The Village of Kardiani
We stopped off at the beautiful village of Kardiani on our drive up north to Mamados to do a hike.
We parked on the main road and walked down to Kardiani. We were concerned the road to the village would be steep and narrow but it was fine.
5. Hikes on Tinos
5.1. The Condition of Hiking Trails on Tinos
The Tinos Trails website lists 12 hikes that have well marked trails on Tinos. These trails aren't well maintained. A March 2023 review on Tripadvisor reported that many of the paths were overgrown and impassable.
The reviewer said "It got to the point that I was dreading every time the trail got into nature, and was relieved when the way marking led to asphalt road. The opposite of what you're supposed to feel when hiking!".
The reviewer said that trails M3, M3a and E4 were fine and I can confirm that in June 2023 trails M3a and E4 were in good condition. The reviewer didn't walk trails T3, M2, E1, E2.
It is possible that the trails will be cleared but also possible that they will become even more neglected. A good way of checking is to read recent user reviews of the hikes on the Wikiloc and Alltrails websites.
5.2. Tinos Trail M3A - Livada Beach to the Lighthouse on Papargyros Cape
This is a very scenic coastal trail that takes about 40 minutes each way. It isn't a circular hike so you walk back on the same trail.
The trail starts from Livada beach. There is a signpost just above the middle section of the beach. Once you have found this sign it is very easy to follow the trail. It is very well marked with red & white paint. The Alltrails app shows the route.
Initially the path climbs up and then descends steeply before climbing to the lighthouse. It isn't a difficult path but there are lots of loose stones so it is best to walk carefully. The final section is a bit exposed when it is very windy.
The tourist map indicates that almost the entire road to Livada beach is unpaved. In reality only the final 3 kilometres is unpaved. It is possible to carefully drive a saloon car until the last two hundred metres before the beach. We parked on the side of the road just before that section.
If you want a longer hike you can add on the M3 hike from Myrsini to Livada beach. This trail was reported to be in good condition in March 2023. You would have to hike back up the same way. The Alltrails app shows that there is an elevation gain of 400 metres and that the hike takes 3 hours 15 minutes.
5.3. Tinos Trail: E4 Mamados - Mali - Koumelas - Marlas - Mamados
This circular trail descends from the inland village of Mamados to the coastal villages of Mali and Koumelas. The trail back ascends to the village of Marlas, close to the starting point at Mamados.
The trail was well marked, except in 1 place, and is in good condition. We used the Wikilok app to help follow the route. The Alltrails app has a fairly similar route.
It is an open walk with good views and takes about 2.5 hours. There is a beach at Mali so you can have a swim there. There is a free car park at Mamados.
I recommend this hike and in June 2023 it was one of the few trails on Tinos that weren't overgrown.
6. Car Ferries to and from Tinos
We travelled to Tinos on a car ferry from Naxos and departed on a car ferry to Andros. Both ferries stopped at Mykonos. When we saw the cruise ships moored at Mykonos we were pleased that we weren't staying there!
There are several car ferries sailing between Tinos and Andros but only two car ferries that sail between Naxos and Tinos. Both routes are fairly quick and take less than 2 hours. The cost for the car was between Eur 36 to Eur 40 which I felt was reasonable.
7. Car Repairs
We had some problems with our car while we were on Tinos. A local recommended a garage and the mechanic was excellent. He spoke good English, was very helpful and the cost was very reasonable.
The workshop is behind a Shell petrol station on the northern outskirts of Tinos Town. It is on the left hand side of the road to Tripotamos. Only the Shell petrol station is visible from the road.
The workshop name is Delatolas, K., & A. O.E.
8. Accommodation on Tinos
We stayed in a studio apartment that we rented through Airbnb for Eur 70 per night. We weren't very impressed with it but it gets good reviews. I have reviewed it on my blog "UK to Greek Islands Accommodation - Part 2" (number 3).