Early summer (or late spring) on Hydra can still get quite cold and rainy, whereas July and August are characterized by real scorchers and often a few heatwaves. Temperatures for the summer of 2013 on Hydra are projected to hover in the early 40s. Luckily we always have the sea to cool off in!
Whether you’re new to Hydra or visited long ago or even last year, finding the perfect place to stay, based on your desires and your needs, can be difficult. If you need assistance with finding accommodation that meets specific requirements (no climb, close to town, away from it all), please don’t hesitate to ask us for help. We know where all of the various houses and hotels are located, as well as their features and quirks, and can help you make the best selection.
Vacation rentals are available year-round for periods of up to 3 months.
Read More›Long-term rentals include any rental period of three months or longer. A lease will be signed by you and the landlord stating the amount of monthly rent and the duration of your tenancy. Utilities (water, electric, phone, etc.) are generally not included in the rent. Your landlord or the property manager will receive the bills and let you know the amounts due.
A sea view from one of Hydra’s quiet alleys
Hydra Island provides a range of accommodation for every budget, from luxurious villas and private houses to boutique hotels, self-catering apartments, family-run pensions, and independent rooms for rent. Rates vary by time of year and, often, length of stay, with the summer months being Hydra’s peak season. If you’re new to Hydra or would like advice about the best accommodation for your stay, please contact us. We’ll be happy to help you select your ideal Greek island vacation getaway.
Pension Erofili
Visitors to the island planning to stay fewer than five nights are best off booking into a hotel as private houses and villas typically aren’t available for shorter holidays, and most require that vacationers stay at least one full week, particularly during the high season. You’ll find that Hydra has a wealth of hotels and pensions to accommodate just about every budget and comfort level, some close to the harbor, with its bustling cafes and restaurants and active nightlife, others tucked into quiet neighborhoods, away from it all.
Read More›Hydra has a variety of swimming spots and beaches, some close to town, some remote and secluded, accessible only by boat.
Read More›Dimitri Gassoumis
Dimitri Gassoumis, is well known to many residents and foreigners on Hydra and around the world for his classical, passionate, oil paintings of the Hydra landscape, Athenian gardens and classical Greek themes. The Hydra Gallery is proud to feature 10 of his paintings, opening Saturday June 14th through July 30th.
Panayiotis Tetsis, describes Gassoumis’ work as “a very beautiful example of robust painting”. Tetsis, who is a professor of painting and dean of the School of Fine Arts in Athens, writes: “The integrity, strength and sensitivity of his paintings are his virtues.” (see full article from WWD 09/29/2008: Pete Born)
Gassoumis’ daughter, Athena recalls “My father always likes a creative challenge; I remember the day he told me he was going to paint with a minimal palette to see if he could capture the light. The colors he chose are Prussian blue, yellow ochre, Venetian red and white. He says it’s about moving the paint and capturing the light…”
Gassoumis, now 81 years old, plans to continue painting landscapes of a different theme in the High Desert of Magdalena, New Mexico, while retaining his studio and home on Hydra.
His paintings and exhibitions are now being represented by his daughter Athena Gassoumis, who is co-owner and co-curator of Warehouse 1-10, a Contemporary Art Space in Magdalena, New Mexico, where his work will be on exhibition in December 2014.
Agios Nikolaos is a beautiful and clean sandy beach located on the southwest side of Hydra island, inside a sheltered cove ringed by cool, shady pine trees.
Read More›Kostas Parisis
tel: 22980 52634
mob: 697 7520 859
Carnival revelers wait for the parade to begin.
(© Spilios Spiliotis/Υδρασ Πολιτεια).
For images of the Carnival parade in Hydra Town, see the Υδρασ Πολιτεια blog where Spilios Spiliotis has posted a number of fun photos. The Greek on his page translates roughly to
Hydra: Carnival 2014—a river mirth became a parade of fun and joy. The traditional carnival of Hydra started by Votsi Square [in the center of town by the Raphalias Pharmacy], with lots of fun, joy, and music. The carnival parade follows a route through the picturesque streets of the island … spreading joy and cheer throughout the town. After stops [a various points along the route for refreshment,] the parade ends at Duskos Taverna, ” where the spree lasts until late in the evening.
For a second batch of fun photos from Spilios, click here. Also see Foni Tis Ydra‘s Carnival article.
View Hydra in a larger map
The two primary means of transport on Hydra (besides your feet).
Just 37 nautical miles from Athens in the Argo-Saronic Gulf, the long, narrow island of Hydra (or Ydra) is both cosmopolitan and tranquil. Donkeys and boats are the only form of transport as laws prohibit automobiles (except for a few small garbage trucks), mopeds, and even bicycles. Due to the island’s status as a national historic monument, strict building laws also regulate development, protecting Hydra’s traditional architectural style and enhancing its old-world charm.
Ampitheater of Hydra Town cascading to the Port
The main town of Hydra is built amphitheatrically around the island’s main harbor, lined with large and small yachts, as well as traditional caicques, or fishing boats. Shops, hotels, cafes, and tavernas line the port, while cobblestone streets and alleyways wind along the coast and climb the steep, rocky hillsides, leading to the island’s various neighborhoods and villages. Though Hydra has a year-round population of about 1960 (according to the 2011 census), which can swell to 6000 over the summer, the interior is nearly uninhabited. Fires burned through this once densely forested area in 2007, destroying trees and other vegetation covering nearly one-third of the island.
Reminiscent of Hydra’s proud past, the architecture of the main town is extraordinary. Mingled among the islanders’ cascading whitewashed homes, with their brightly colored windows, stately, gray-stone mansions, built in the eighteenth century by wealthy merchants and ship owners in the Venetian style, watch over the main harbor. Many of the Hydra island mansions have been faithfully restored, and several house museums or galleries and are open to the public.
Fishermen sell fresh catch right from the boat
Despite the island’s rich history as an eighteenth and nineteenth-century naval and commercial power, Hydra’s economy today depends primarily on tourism and fishing. In the late 1950s, artists and writers, such as Canadian singer Leonard Cohen and novelist Henry Miller, started coming to Hydra. Since it has served as the setting for numerous movies and novels, as well as a destination or residence for artists and intellectuals, both Greek and foreign.
Local traditions remain very much a part of the fabric of life on Hydra, with religious celebrations dotting the calendar. As Hydriots take particular pride in the role their ancestors played during the 1821 Greek War of Independence, each June, the island also hosts a spectacular commemoration of Hydriot Admiral Miaoulis’s battle against the Turks, bringing Greeks from all over the country for a weekend of festivities, a naval reenactment, and fireworks. …Because its fleet was the body of the marine war during the Greek War of Independence in 1821, as it is still witnessed by the castle, the canons and the representation of the important marine battles and victories that still exist in the town of Hydra and on the entire island.
From Kamini to Hydra Port, the coast is lined with beaches and swimming rocks
The sea around Hydra is deep, clear, and cool. Most of Hydra’s swimming areas are located on the rocks lining the island’s coast, though there are a few sand or pebble beaches. The main bathing areas in Hydra Town include Spilia and Hydronetta, and Avlaki’s swimming platform and Kamini’s pebble beach are another five to fifteen minutes respectively along the coast road heading toward Vlichos, another pebble beach with umbrellas, and Vlichos Plakes, a sand beach. Heading along the coast road in the opposite direction from Hydra Harbor will take you to Mandraki. Other beaches include Molos, Bisti, and Agios Nicolaus, reachable by boats leaving hourly from the Hydra’s main port.
Though the name Hydra means ‘water’ and refers to ancient springs that once provided the island’s water source, these days just about all water is imported, and those who don’t have private cisternas (wells for trapping rainwater) mostly drink bottled water. For this reason, Hydra is a particularly arid island, and any farming and animal husbandry are generally limited to family concerns.
Old windmills dot Hydra’s hillsides
On a visit to Hydra, soak up the island’s rich history and culture by visiting the island’s mansions, museums, galleries, churches, and monasteries. Wander the quaint and charming cobblestone streets past brightly colored doors framed with brilliant bougainvillea or plumbago, stroll the road along the coast with its stunning Mediterranean views, or hike the island’s rural trails, past pine trees and olive groves, shepherds herding sheep, and donkeys grazing patiently in the fields. Browse the boutiques and gold shops and admire the yachts moored in Hydra’s bustling port. Enjoy a quiet, traditional taverna meal in one of the neighboring villages. Have a night out on the town, dining in one of Hydra’s restaurants, then partaking in the active nightlife on the Port.
Hydra now has two dentists. Michalis Grigoropoulos has opened shop on Miaoulis Street, next door to Hydr@Tech, up from the Zefiros Taverna, across from Lulu’s.
Read More›Cozy suites close to Hydra Port
Hydra Suites is a boutique guesthouse located in a recently renovated, 18th-century Hydriot home. Situated in the main city of Hydra and just a five-minute walk from the harbor, it consists of three one-bedroom apartments with kitchen facilities, each sleeping 3 to 4 people. The complex also includes four individual rooms. The building is fully air-conditioned, and some rooms have a breathtaking view of the harbor. Internet access is free for guests.
Read More›Located just up from Hydra Harbor, up from the Alpha Bank, on a side street near Kai Kremmidi, the Amalour Bar, and Bratsera Hotel, this full-service pharmacy has an English-speaking owner/pharmacist.
Read More›This full-service pharmacy is located in Hydra’s main square in one of Hydra’s most photographed historic buildings. The owner/pharmacist speaks fluent English.
Read More›Dentist Panagiotis Zervos performs teeth cleanings and checks, fillings, bridges, crowns, and the like.
Read More›This small hospital is available for residents and visitors in case of illness or emergency.
Read More›This English-speaking doctor’s service is located in Hydra Town on Miaoulis Street, up from the Angelica Hotel. Please call 22980 29720.
For obvious reasons, Hydra’s ambulance, a small golf cart-like vehicle, is only available near the port and on level roads. Arrangements can be made to have patients requiring ambulance services carried, either by individuals or donkey, to an accessible area. Call 22980 53150 or 53151.
Hydra has no fire department. To report a fire, please call 199 or notify the police at 22980 52205. For forest fires, call 191.
We are David Fagan and Jennifer Kelland. David has lived on Hydra year round for nearly thirty years; Jennifer has been visiting Hydra since the age of 10 and joined him as a permanent resident in 2007. Winter in, summer out, we share a converted donkey shed overlooking Kamini Harbor and the Peloponnese with our two dogs. We adore our Greek island home and are happy to offer assistance or advice to visitors seeking tourist information or accommodation and others interested in learning more about Hydra. Our aim is to put as much up-to-date information about Hydra at your fingertips, but we’re just an email away if you can’t find what you’re looking for.
Best wishes, Jennifer and David
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Located just steps off Hydra Harbor, Zefiros serves traditional Greek food.
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