Description of the attraction
Skiathos is the capital of the island of the same name in the Aegean Sea. The city was built in the form of an amphitheater in a picturesque bay on the southeast coast of the island. It is a typical Greek resort town with narrow streets and white tiled houses.
In ancient times, during the wars with the Persians, the island did not have much influence. In 480 BC. off the coast of Skiathos, the fleet of the Persian king Xerxes was severely damaged and the fleet of the Persian king Xerxes I was severely damaged. The Greeks trapped the Persians in a narrow bay near Cape Artemisium between the island of Euboea and mainland Greece. This was the only chance to defeat the vastly outnumbered Persian army. Here the first battle took place, which went down in history as the Battle of Artemisia. The Greeks managed to finally defeat the Persian fleet already near the island of Salamis (Battle of Salamis). After the victory and until the loss of its independence, Skiathos was a member of the Delian League. The city was destroyed by Philip V of Macedon in 200 AD.
In 1207, the island was captured by the Gizi brothers, who built a small Venetian-style fortress in Skiathos, similar to the Bourdzi fortress in Nafplion, to protect against pirates. Unfortunately, the fortress was not reliable enough. In the middle of the 14th century, the inhabitants left the city and settled in a more inaccessible place on a high cliff in the northern part of the island. The new settlement was called Castro. The population finally returned to the territory of ancient Skiathos only at the beginning of the 19th century. The city was rebuilt. During the Second World War, Skiathos was thoroughly destroyed during the bombing.
In the post-war period, the city was gradually restored and in 1964 was designated by the National Tourism Organization of Greece as a promising area for tourism development. A new coastal road, airport and hotels were built. Today the city has a fairly well-developed infrastructure. There are shops, banks, schools, post office, etc. Skiathos has an excellent selection of hotels and cozy apartments, as well as great restaurants, cafes and nightclubs. Vacationers will delight the picturesque nature and excellent beaches of Skiathos.
Among the main attractions worth visiting while vacationing in Skiathos are the Alexandros Papadiamantis House Museum, Skiathos Castle and the Panagia Evangelista Monastery.
