BOAT-COMPARATOR Guide

Renting a Boat to Hydra, Poros and Aegina: The Car-Free Saronic Gulf

Hydra's centuries-old car ban, Poros's lemon-tree forest, Aegina's ancient temple: the guide to renting a boat in the Saronic Gulf, a short hop from Athens.

Less than two hours by boat from Athens, the Saronic Gulf packs a concentrated dose of Greek island life within easy reach: car-free Hydra, Poros with its lemon-tree forest, and Aegina with its ancient temple. A compact playground often overlooked in favour of the more distant Cyclades.

Hydra, the island without cars

Hydra has banned motor vehicles for decades: donkeys, mules and handcarts carry luggage from the small horseshoe-shaped harbour, lined with 18th-century shipowners' mansions. The anchorage off the harbour, much sought-after in the evening in summer, is worth reaching by early afternoon to find a sheltered spot.

Poros, the lemon-tree forest

Poros, separated from the Peloponnese by a channel so narrow you could almost shout across it, hides on its mainland side the Lemonodasos, a vast lemon-tree forest planted in the 19th century. Anchoring in the sheltered channel makes it a restful stop between more exposed sailing days.

Aegina, the temple and the pistachios

Aegina, the closest island to Athens, holds one of the best-preserved ancient Greek temples, the Temple of Aphaia, perched on a wooded hill above the east coast. The island is also Greece's leading pistachio producer — a good excuse to restock before heading back out.

A gulf under ecological watch

The Posidonia seagrass meadows fringing these three islands are monitored regularly: a study assessing the ecological health of Saronic Gulf coastal waters, based on biotic indices applied to Posidonia meadows, helps identify the most sensitive zones around Hydra, Poros and Aegina (Gerakaris, Panayotidis, Vizzini, Nicolaidou & Economou-Amilli, Effectiveness of Posidonia oceanica Biotic Indices for Assessing Ecological Status of Coastal Waters in Saronikos Gulf, Mediterranean Marine Science, 2017, see the study on Google Scholar) — good reason to anchor on sand rather than seagrass, as everywhere in the Mediterranean.

Wind, season and where to book

More sheltered than the Cyclades, the Saronic Gulf largely escapes the summer meltemi, making it a more forgiving destination for a first sailing trip in Greece. The useful season runs from April to October. Boat-Comparator compares Boataround, SamBoat and Click&Boat live departing from Athens; see also our guide to boat trips in the Saronic Gulf from Athens to choose between Alimos and Lavrio as a starting port.

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