How to Get to Alonissos Island Greece in 2024
Are you wondering how to get to Alonissos island in Greece in 2024? Look no further.
This article has been written by a local and will discuss every possible transport method that you can use to get to Alonissos island. It includes options for travelling domestically within Greece and from other countries in Europe/the globe.
Alonissos Island Greece
The gorgeous little island of Alonissos Greece is a natural beauty. It sits in the Sporades archipelago in the Aegean sea in northeastern Greece.
There are 24 islands that make up this archipelago but only four are inhabited. (Namely, Skiathos, Skopelos, Alonissos and Skyros).
While Skiathos and Skopelos are tourist favourites. (And ever-increasing in popularity due to being home to many Mamma Mia filming locations), Alonissos flies largely under the radar.
This may be, in part, due to the fact that the island is a bit of a challenge to get to. Alonissos is perhaps best known for being home to the National Marine Park of Alonissos.
This is a protected area that is the largest of its kind in Europe and is home to various endangered terrestrial and marine life species, including the Mediterranean monk seal (monachus monachus) and several species of dolphins and whales.
This Mediterranean paradise hasn’t become gentrified or suffered from mass tourism in the same way that other Greek islands have. For now, it remains one of the least commercial, traditional sleepy island idylls.
How to Get to Alonissos Island Greece in 2024
The best way to get to Alonissos island Greece depends on your starting point. If you are travelling directly to Alonissos/the Sporades islands from your home country, the easiest option is to perhaps fly to Skiathos and then take the ferry.
There is no airport on the island of Alonissos and the nearest one is on Skiathos. It sounds like a pain, but it is actually relatively easy to get a flight to Skiathos and then take the boat over to Alonissos.
If you are already in Greece, you can fly domestically to Skiathos and then take a ferry.
Or you can travel overland and then take a ferry from Volos and Agios Constantinos on mainland Greece, or the nearby islands of Skopelos and Skiathos. Phew.
Let’s look at the individual options so that you can work out which one is the most convenient for you.
How to get to Alonissos from Europe and overseas
The easiest way to get to Alonissos from Europe and overseas is to fly to Skiathos and then take the ferry. You can get direct flights to Skiathos from various cities in Italy, Germany, France and the UK.
Lufthansa, Easyjet, Jet2 and several other low-cost European carriers fly to Skiathos. Once you arrive at Skiathos international airport (JSI), take a cab to Skiathos town for the port.
This only takes around 5-10 minutes, costs around €5-6 and there are always plenty of taxi drivers waiting at the airport.
Then, take the ferry bound for Alonissos. This should take between 1.5 and 2 hours.
How to get from Athens to Alonissos
Arguably the most convenient way to get to Alonissos island from Athens is to fly. You can get a domestic flight from Athens to Skiathos island.
A one-way ticket during the peak season (May to September) costs around €60 each way. There are upwards of 4-5 flights per day, so you won’t be short of options.
The flight from Athens to Skiathos takes just 40 minutes. Sky Express, Aegean airlines and Olympic air service this route. Upon arrival, head to the port for the ferry to Alonissos.
Your alternative options for getting to Alonissos from Athens and Attica are to travel to Volos and then take a ferry, or travel to Evia and take a ferry from Agios Constantinos. Both options are discussed below.
Getting from Athens to Alonissos via Volos
If you prefer not to fly from Athens to Skiathos for Alonissos, you can travel to Volos and then take the ferry. Keep in mind, that the amount of overland and ferry travel that this entails can take a whole day.
There is currently no direct train from Athens to Volos. So, you can take a train from Athens to Larissa, change and head to Volos, or you can take a KTEL bus the entire way.
KTEL is the Greek national bus network. It consists of 62 regional companies which each serve a specific region of Greece.
This can be confusing as these various regional bus companies have been combined under one umbrella yet they essentially operate independently. So, there is not one central website for purchasing bus tickets in Greece.
Instead, you have to know the specific regional carrier/website. From Thessaloniki, this is KTEL Makedonia. From Athens, this is KTEL Attikis.
Public transport in Greece is great. Services run regularly and are usually punctual.
How to travel from Thessaloniki to Alonissos
There are currently no direct flights from Thessaloniki Makedonia airport (SKG) to Skiathos. The easiest way to reach Alonissos then is to travel overland to Volos and then take the ferry.
You can travel from Thessaloniki to Volos by train (with a change in Larissa) or by bus. Arguably the bus is faster and more comfortable as it gets you straight there.
Trains depart from Thessaloniki several times a day, starting at 5:35 am, with the last service of the day at 23:50 pm. The entire journey by rail takes between 2 hours and 50 minutes and 4 hours and 15 minutes depending on the specific service that you travel on.
Train tickets cost between €17 and €26 each way. If you choose to travel by bus, you can get a single ticket between Thessaloniki and Volos for €21 and a return for €35.
The bus journey takes about 2.5 hours depending on the traffic and terminates at KTEL Magnissias station in Volos. From here, you can take the ferry to Alonissos.
One thing to keep in mind when travelling overland is the time that you are scheduled to arrive and the ferry times to Alonissos. If you aren’t able to schedule your arrival in Volos for the early afternoon, you may have to stay overnight and then get a ferry to Alonissos the next day.
(This isn’t the worst idea in the world as Volos is a charming place in itself and is affectionately known as “Little Thessaloniki”.)
How to get to Alonissos from Volos
Ferries run between Volos and Alonissos multiple times per day. The journey takes between 3 and 5.5 hours.
Seajets and Hellenic Seaways both operate on this route. Expect to pay between €30 and €50 for a ticket.
Buy your tickets online in advance via Ferryscanner to secure your place. If you want to purchase your tickets from the ticket office on your day of travel, make sure you arrive at least an hour before your ferry is scheduled to depart.
How to get to Alonissos from Agios Konstantinos (Evia)
1-2 ferries per day depart from Agios Konstantinos in the Mantoudi region of Evia during the summer months. Since public transport options are limited, this option is perhaps best reserved for those who are renting a car in Greece.
Driving to Agios Konstantinos and taking the ferry from there saves having to trek to Volos. But if you are going to be relying on public transport, it makes things more awkward so you may as well just take the train/bus to Volos.
You can review the ferry timetables and fare information from Agios Konstantinos to Alonissos via Ferryscanner here.
How to get to Alonissos from Skiathos and Skopelos
It is very easy to get from the islands of Skiathos and Skopelos to Alonissos. Ferries run between the islands daily and operate multiple times a day during the summer months.
(They start in Volos, stop in Skiathos and Skopelos via Glossa and Skopelos town, before ending in Alonissos). It takes 1.5-2 hours to get to Alonissos from Skopelos town.
There are two main ports on Skopelos island – Glossa, in the northernmost part of the island, and Skopelos town (Chora) in the southeast. It takes about an hour and ten minutes to reach Alonissos from Glossa, and about 30 minutes to reach the island from Skopelos town.
On exceptionally windy and stormy days, Agnontas port on Skopelos’ west coast is sometimes used as an alternative. From here, it takes approximately 40 minutes to get to Alonissos.
These islands don’t see the same hordes of tourists as more popular islands in the Cyclades such as Mykonos or Santorini. So, even if you head to the ticket office at the port to buy your ferry ticket right before its departure, you will rarely (if ever) find that a ferry is fully booked.
Still, to save time and stress, consider booking your tickets online in advance via Ferryscanner.
FAQs
Do you have any further questions or concerns about how to get to Alonissos Greece? The answers to some frequently asked questions are detailed below.
Hopefully, you will find the details that you are looking for there. If not, please do not hesitate to reach out to me.
Where do you fly to go to Alonissos?
You need to fly to Skiathos to get to Alonissos. This is the closest airport to the little island as Alonissos does not have its own.
If you are flying to Alonissos from further afield/outside of Europe, you may have to change flights in Athens or Thessaloniki.
How long is the ferry from Athens to Alonissos?
You cannot take a direct ferry from Athens to Alonissos. Alonissos, in the Sporades archipelago in Northeastern Greece, is on the opposite end of the country to the Greek capital.
Instead, you can head to Agios Constantinos or Volos on the mainland and then take a ferry from there. It takes around 3 hours and 50 minutes on the ferry from Agios Constantinos to Alonissos.
Anes ferries is currently the only company servicing this route. (Although Greek ferry schedules are often set to change at a moment’s notice.)
From Volos to Alonissos, it takes between 3 and 5.5 hours. The ferry crossing time varies depending on whether you take the slower car ferry or the faster hydrofoil.
How do I get to Alonissos by ferry?
You can get to Alonissos by ferry from Agios Constantinos or Volos on mainland Greece, or from the nearby islands of Skiathos and Skopelos. Ferries depart daily and run more frequently during the peak summer months. (May to September).
You can use Ferryscanner to check the latest routes and timetables and to purchase your tickets online in advance.
What is the closest airport to Alonissos?
Skiathos island’s Alexandros Papadiamantis Airport (JSI) is the closest airport to Alonissos island. Skiathos airport is just a couple of miles away from Skiathos town.
From Skiathos town port, it takes 1.5 – 2 hours to reach the port of Patitiri on Alonissos.
How long is the ferry from Skiathos to Alonissos?
The ferry from Skiathos to Alonissos takes between 1.5 and 2 hours depending on the specific vessel that you travel on.
How much is the ferry from Skiathos to Alonissos?
A one-way ferry ticket from Skiathos to Alonissos costs between €11-17.5. There is some variance depending on the specific time you travel and the service you use.
How do you get to Alonissos from the UK?
It is relatively easy to get to Alonissos from the UK, although you do need to use a couple of different transport methods. First of all, you need to fly to Skiathos.
Jet2, TUI, BA Cityflyer and British Airways all fly direct to Skiathos from various British airports. Birmingham, Manchester, Bristol, Edinburgh, Leeds, Newcastle and several London airports have direct flights to Skiathos.
Keep in mind that tourism to this part of Greece is very seasonal. There are several flights running every day from May to September, but your options will be very limited outside of that period.
Once you land at Skiathos JSI airport, take a cab to Skiathos town. From there, you can take the ferry from Skiathos to Alonissos.
This only takes about 30 minutes.
Final thoughts
Do you have any additional questions on how to get to Alonissos? I’ve been living in Greece since 2017.
I am happy to help out with any of your Greece trip-planning questions and queries. You may also find my Facebook group “All Greek to Me” useful.
In this group, you can ask me and other expats and travellers in Greece for help and advice when organising your Greece holiday.
Wishing you safe travels, always! Geia! Melissa xo