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As town beaches go, Romeikos Yialos and Tourkikos Yialos are not at all bad; Riha Nera is even better, with watersports craft on offer. But if you're looking for more pristine conditions, head 3km north past the Akti Myrina to Avlonas, unspoiled except for the Porto Marina Palace luxury complex flanking it on the south. Some 6km from town you work your way through KASPAKAS , its north-facing houses in pretty, tiled tiers, before plunging down to Ayios Ioannis . Here, the island's most unusual taverna (late June to Aug) features seating in the shade of piled-up volcanic boulders, with a serviceably sandy beach just north of the fishing anchorage. If it's shut, Taverna Iliovasilemata to the south is welcoming, with good (if slightly pricey) fish. PLATY , 2km southeast of Myrina, has had its profile spoiled by the kind of modern villa construction that is blighting many Limnian villages latterly, but it does have two nocturnally popular tavernas . By far the better of these is O Sozos , just off the main platia, where you'll have to show up early for a table (groups should reserve on 02540/25 085). Fine orektika , lamb chops, steamed mussels, grilled bifteki, tsipouro and local bulk wine are strong points; the bill shouldn't exceed ?9. The long sandy beach, 700m below, is popular and usually jellyfish-free, with watersports available; except for the unsightly Mark Warner compound at the south end, the area is still pretty rural, with sheep parading to and fro at dawn and dusk. The single hotel , low-rise Plati Beach (tel 02540/23 583 or 094/4965189; ?24-33), has an enviable position in the middle of the beach, but get a room towards the back if you don't fancy noise from the ground-floor bar/restaurant; there are more basic rooms , though with fridges and proper showers, available through Tzimis Taverna (tel 02540/24 142; up to ?24), which divides the lunchtime trade with its neighbour Grigoris near the south end of the beach, though both lose out in the evenings to the village-centre tavernas. The highest standard of studios in the area, if not the island, is the tastefully landscaped Villa Afroditi (tel 02540/23 141, fax 25 031, winter tel 01/96 33 488; ?43-58), with a pleasant pool bar, weekly barbecue nights for guests, and one of the best buffet breakfasts in Greece. The South African management also offers a lovely restored house in Kondias village, which sleeps four - ?73.50 per night for a week's stay. THANOS , 2km further southeast, seems a bigger, more architecturally characterful version of Platy village, with a well-regarded central-platia taverna (evenings only) and high-standard mock-trad bungalows at the east edge (tel 02540/23 162; ?43-58). Paralia Thanous , 1.5km on a paved road below the village, is perhaps the most scenic of the southwestern beaches, flanked by weird volcanic crags and with views on a clear afternoon out to Ayios Efstratios island. Of two tavernas, one, O Nikos (tel 02540/22 787; up to ?24), rents a handful of basic rooms. Beyond Thanos, the road curls over to the enormous beach at Evgatis (Ayios Pavlos), reckoned to be the island's best, with more igneous pinnacles on the west. Despite this rating, there's so far just the regulation music bar/ kantina on the sand, and a full-service taverna across the road. Some 3km further along (11km from Myrina), KONDIAS is the island's third largest settlement, cradled between two hills tufted with Limnos's only pine forest. Stone-built, red-tiled houses combine with the setting to make Kondias the most attractive inland village, a fact not lost on the urban Greeks restoring old houses with varying degrees of taste. Short-term facilities are limited, and aren't much better at the shore annexe of Dhiapori , 2km east. The beach is unappealing (and backed by a huge, fenced-off minefield), the tavernas listless, with the main interest lent by the narrow isthmus dividing the bays of Kondias and Moudhros.
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