your guidebook
Here is some information on the island of Samothrace and a guide for your journey to arrive here.
about the island.
Samothrace (Samothraki) is a rural and remote Greek island of volcanic origin which is its uniqueness & beauty. It is a world away from the larger & more commercialised islands you might have visited in Greece. Full of centuries-old plane trees, olives trees, streams & pebbled beaches set against the rocky mountains filled with the scent of thyme and oregano, it offers a mystical and enigmatic atmosphere. This of course makes it the perfect place to retreat to but it also means life is simple here and so we are encouraged to let go of expectations which can come from how we are used to 'being' on the outside world. Things move slower and it has an imperfect charm which asks us to surrender.
travelling to the island.
You can only arrive via ferry, there is no airport on the island. The quickest route is via the ferry from the port town of Alexandropouli.
Flights: You can fly direct from Athens to Alexandroupouli and there are a couple of flights a day and it takes around 1 hr-1 hr 15 minutes. Flights are operated by Aegean or Sky Express. You can also fly into Thessaloniki and take the coach which is 4 hours direct. The timetable is found here.
There are also longer ferry routes from Athens and alternative islands, see routes to Samothraki on Fast Ferries here.
A little tip: if you sit on the left side of the plane as you are flying to Alexandropouli, you will get the view of flying over the island & on the right side on the return flight.
Ferry: The timetable for September is here . The ferry direct from Alexandropouli to Samothraki takes 1hr 50 minutes. It is 18 euros round trip per person (without a vehicle).
alexandropouli.
Due to ferry & flight schedules, you may need to stay 1 night in Alexandropouli, the port town and gateway to the island. It is a small university city and the perfect place to pick up anything you may have forgotten before you leave the outside world behind...
There are many places to stay, here are some recommendations for different budgets:
All the hotels are in the centre and within close proximity to the port. Alexandropouli Airport is very small and easy to navigate. It is around 10-20 minutes drive from the centre.
There are many places to eat, some we love are:
accommodation on samothrace
Here is a list of accommodation closest to our forest home.
We will do a pick up on Wednesday.
taxi's & car hire.
You can hire a car or scooter on the island or take a taxi. The location of most of our events are in the village of Therma which is around 20 mins drive from the Port. The island is small - it takes 1 hour to drive around the ring road from one end to the other (you can't drive 360° around the island). As long as you keep to the main routes and don't go off-road, it's easy an easy island to navigate.
greek food & tavernas.
There are some wonderful local tavernas on the island serving fresh produce from the land. As it is a small island, there are less dietary specific options generally available. If there is anything specific you like to eat, it is best to pick it up in Alexandropouli which has several organic health shops.
