Skyros island’s local council has unanimously rejected a proposed urban development plan that includes expanding its tourism infrastructure with marinas and cruise ship docks.
The island’s residents voiced strong opposition, choosing to maintain their traditional lifestyle over large-scale tourism.
The proposals included organised areas for hotels and severe limitations on free-range livestock grazing, which currently covers 80 percent of the island.
Mayor Kyriakos Antonopoulos emphasised that visitors come to the Greek island for its natural beauty and small, family-run accommodations, not large resorts.
“We’d rather stay ‘undeveloped’ than lose what makes Skyros unique,” he told local news outlet ekathimerini.
The council’s decision reflects a broader sentiment on the island to protect its environment and resist heavy tourism, an issue that has become most prevalent on the islands of Santorini and Mykonos, which are bowing under the pressure of millions of tourists a year.
While the debate over development plans are set to continue, the locals remain committed to preserving the island’s character.
Skyros is the southernmost island of the Sporades in the Aegean Sea. It is also the largest of the archipelago and has a population of around 3,000 as of 2021. One account associates its name with “skyron” or “skiron”, meaning “stone debris” – the island has a reputation for its decorative stone.
It is often described as one of Greece’s best “hidden gems”, offering picturesque spots, unique coastline and a non-touristy atmosphere.
According to Greek mythology, Theseus – the divine hero famous for slaying the Minotaur – died on the island when the local king threw him from a cliff. It is also famous in myths as the place from where Achilles set sail for Troy after Odysseus discovered him in the court of Lycomedes.
Skyros has a hot-summer Mediterranean climate, with mild, rainy winters and warm, dry summers. The north of the island is covered by forest, while the south is dominated by the highest mountain called Kochila, which is bare and rocky.
The main port, on the west coast, is Linaria, through which the island can be visited by ferries from the port of Kymi in Euboea (Evia). Skyros also has a small airport that is connected to Athens and Thessaloniki and you can fly from Heathrow or Luton.
This is a far cry from the type of tourism that now dominates the island of Santorini. For the 25,000 or so permanent residents, the once idyllic island of quaint villages and pristine beaches has been ruined by mass tourism. In fact, the Greek government has proposed legislation that would impose strict building restrictions on the island to attempt to curb the impact of tourism.
This summer, as many as 17,000 holidaymakers a day transverse through the narrow streets of Fira, Santorini’s iconic cliff-top town having arrived on cruise ships and day-trip ferries.
“There have been times when the pressure is unbearable,” said Zorzos, speaking of occasions when five cruise ships have arrived at the same time.
