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GREEK CITIES AND GREEK ISLANDS
ABOUT LIMNOS
Travel to Limnos!
Limnos (or Lemnos, as it is often spelled) is the eighth largest island in the Aegean Sea and lies in the North Aegean, between Lesvos and Samothraki. The island is some 475 square kilometers (150 square miles) in size, with mountains and fertile valleys and with a coastline of 260 kilometers (161.5 miles). It actually forms one Prefecture together with Lesvos and a smaller island, Aghios Efstratios. It is of volcanic origin, and a series of ancient myths relate to this fact. According to one of them, Hephaestus, the god of forging and blacksmithing, fell onto this island when he was literally thrown away from Olympus by Zeus. The local people looked after him and he, in return, taught them his skills. One of the islands mountain peaks was reported in antiquity to blow out smoke and fire, a good analogy to a gigantic forge.

The islands main town and port is named Myrina, situated on the west coast. There are another 30 villages on the island, the largest of which is Moudros, which is also the islands second largest port and located in the south. Limnos possesses a strategic position in the northern Aegean and thus has always had a strong military presence by the Greek Air Force, which may be the reason for its being discovered as a resort only recently. The inhabitants make a living on fishing, farming and animal husbandry (mainly sheep and goats). They are welcoming to their visitors in the genuine Greek way, as they address them as guests rather than as a possible source of income. And more and more visitors do come, especially those who like Greek Cuisine, the beauty of the land and seascapes, the wide range of excursions offered to trekking-lovers, interesting archaeological sites, including the medieval castle in Myrina and the archaeological museum, and the many fine sand beaches on its long coastline. The climate is of the Mediterranean type, with warm summers and mild winters. As it happens throughout the Aegean Sea, there are strong winds in late August and early autumn, high time for windsurfers.

Limnos is by no means a rich island. This is visible in the sad state of the capital's old neoclassical buildings, which is in direct opposition to the wonderful attitude of its proud inhabitants. There certainly must have been better times, when sailing ships dominated over commerce and transported goods throughout the Mediterranean and the Aegean. We believe that tourism is bound to give a new thrust to the local economy because of the many attributes of the island and its people.

Limnos has low and windswept hills, flat cultivable plains, beautiful seashores, salterns and water biotopes, sandy beaches and volcanic shaped rocks that make the island unique.

According to greek mythology, the goddess Hera got very angry with her son Hephaestus one day, and threw him off Mt. Olympus. He landed on Limnos, where he was taken care of by the people, making the island his special place. Although some myths refer to Sicily as his workshop, others hold that he worked on Limnos. What is certain, though, is that Hephaestus was the patron god of this island, and that at least one temple was built to his honour here.
Above Myrina, Limno's capital, towers the kastro. It was probably an acropolis in antiquity, but what we see today dates back to the Venetians. There is also an interesting archaeological museum in Myrina, with findings from around the island. In Myrina there is an archeological museum that is worth a visit as it houses many ancient relics and ceramics excavated from nearby Polyohni and dating from prehistoric times. As well as finds from Polyohni there are also relics from Myrina, Hephaestea and Kavirio.
Poliochni is also an ancient settlement that has been excavated on Limnos. Its people left in the middle of the 2nd Millennium BC, probably because of an earthquake. At Repanidi there ruins of a castle from the Byzantine era. The Church of Life-giving Source (Zoodochos Pigis) is important for those interested in history, since there is a statue here of the young girl called Maroula, and who fought the Turks on her own in the 15th century .Not far from Myrina is the large picturesque village of Kondias with its traditional island mansions. 28 km from Myrina is the village of Kaminia. Here you can see the ruins of the ancient settlement of Polyohni . Close to Kaminia is the village of Moudros which used to be the old capital of Limnos. Heading north-east from here is the village of Kondopouli where the two ancient settlements of Hephaestea and Kavirio can be seen. At Hephaestea are the ruins of an ancient settlement that you can visit. Even though the place was settled way before then, there are findings of temples and a Roman theatre here. Nearby is located the Temple of Kavirio which was probably used for religious ceremonies in ancient times. At the north-east tip of Limnos is the village of Plaka where you will find the spa at Agios Haralambos. At Skandali you can also visit the monastery of Agios Sozon

Myrina is the capital and harbour of the island, built on a small peninsula between two capes, separated by the imposing rock and its fortress. Tourkikos Gialos has great taverns and a small harbour for fishing boats, while Romaikos Gialos is filled with beautiful neoclassical buildings extending throughout the seashore of the beach while the arched paved alleys lend the town an exceptional colour. The fortress located on a steep elevation crowns the hill between the two shores and offers outstanding views.

Deer wondering freely in the area will surprise you in a good way. Some other interesting sites are those of the prehistoric settlement of Myrinas, behind Riha Nera beach and that of Artemis church as well.

Some villages of particular interest are: Kaminia (ancient Poliohni) and Kontopouli where the ruins of ancient Ifestia are, the church of Kaviron and the Filoktitis cave. Close to Kontopouli is Alyki Lake which is a shelter of rare birdlife. Other beautiful villages are: Kaspakas, Thanos, Kontias, Skandali and Kornos

Getting There
By sea: Frequent connections with Lesvos (Mytelene), Hios and Kavala. There are also connections with Rafina, Piraeus, Alexandroupolis and Thessaloniki.
By hydrofoil: There are links with Lesvos, Samos, and Hios.
By air: Daily service from Athens and Thessaloniki. There are direct charter flights from Europe.

Getting Around
There is a bus service to Varo, Lyhna, Moudro, Roussopouli, Kaminia, Agia Sofia, Caspaka, Korno, Agio Dimitrio, Pedino, Portiano, Rimano, Kalliopi, Panagia, Plaka. Car, bike rentals and taxis are available

Limnos has many beaches. You can go searching for your own, quiet spot if you want, or visit the more popular ones, for example Fanaraki, Riha Nera, Romeicos Gialos and Kaminia.With a coastline of 259km there are many beautiful sandy beaches to be found all over the island. Close to Myrina you can enjoy the shallow waters and golden sands of beaches like Romeikos Gialos, and Riha Nera. Beautiful sandy beaches are not hard to find. Try too the beaches of Avlona and Plati . At the village of Kondias is the pretty sandy beach of Evgati and enjoyable swimming to be had at Kotsinas near Repanidi. The beach of Varoskopos, close to the village of Kaminia is attractive whereas south-east at Moudros is the beach of Fanaraki with the beach of Agios Gianis close by. On the north-east coast of the island, not far from Plaka is the small village of Panagia. There are some lovely beaches also around this whole area, such as Agia Sotiras and, a little further, Kolokithi beach.
Limnos is an excellent island for trying out some really genuine meals. There are many restaurants in Myrina and the villages, but you should ask for the local specialties if you really want a taste of Limnos. There are various seafood specialties, local cheese, honey and wine, as well as a renowned halva - a kind of sweet. Transportation on the island is good with local buses connecting all the main villages and towns., there are also taxis and vehicles for rent on the island, as well as boats that go to the various beaches. There are flights to Limnos from Athens, and you can also get a ferry boat from Rafina to get here.There is also ferry connections to Limnos from Lesvos, Chios and Thessaloniki. Limnos has ferry connections with Mykonos, Paros Syros, Kos, Patmos and Rhodes as well as Volos Kavala and Alexandropoulis in Northern Greece. The climate of Limnos is warm, with lots of sunshine, especially during the summer. The weather is mild throughout the year, even during the winter months.

Beaches
Evgati Beautiful sandy beach (1 Km from Kondias)
Keros Sandy, one of the best, the most popular.
Plati Sandy beach.
Riha Nera Fine grains of golden sand, swallow waters.
Romaikos Yialos Shallow waters
Thanos Beautiful golden stretch of sand.