Tinos
From CruisersWiki
Tinos There are Port(s) of Entry here
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Tinos (Τήνος) or Tenos belongs to the Cyclades group and is a mountainous island of 195 km2 with about 8,500 inhabitants. Its tallest peak, Tsiknias is 729 m (2392 ft). The island is famous for its many villages (64) and its distinctive Venetian dovecotes (800), little white towers inhabited by flocks of white pigeons. Tinos owes its real fame, however, to the miraculous icon of the Madonna discovered in 1822 and now housed in the magnificent church of Panagia Evangelistria in Tinos Town. The yearly pilgrimage of the faithful and afflicted on August 15 has made Tinos the Lourdes of Greece.
The town’s main harbour has an inner basin where around 12 yachts can moor stern/bows-to using their anchors in good shelter from the prevailing northerly winds (albeit with gusts in the harbour). Shelter from southerlies has also been considerably improved with the recent construction of a detached breakwater protecting the harbour from this direction. Water and electricity are available on the quay.
Charts
- BA
- 2682 Kólpos Patalion to Nísos Nísiros
- 1647 Nísos Tínos to Nísos Ikaría
- Imray-Tetra
- G31 Northern Cyclades
- NIMA
- 54334 Plans in the Aegean Sea
- Greek
- 42 Andros to Chalki Island
- 421 Karystos to Naxos
Weather
See Aegean Sea.
Passages
Popular passages/routes, timing, etc.
Islands
None.
Communication
- Coast Guard - VHF channel 12 & Tel. +30 2830 22 348
- Olympia Radio - VHF channel 03 & 04
Also see World Cruiser's Nets.
Warning: The strait between Tinos and Andros to the north, Strait Dhisvato, has a current setting towards the south-west. The strait at its narrowest is just over half a mile wide. With the meltemi blowing there are very strong gusts through this narrow channel. Also the channel between Tinos and Mykonos is notorious for its gusts. With the prevailing northerlies, gusts will often be experienced in the approach to Tinos harbour. Following the recent improvements to the harbour, it is now entered from W, between the W end of the new detached breakwater and the jetty of the outer port, which is used by large commercial ferries. This jetty has a port marker on it and the end of the detached breakwater is marked with a rust-coloured buoy. Note: the passage between the E end of the detached breakwater and the old E breakwater (which still had a starboard mark on it as at September 2011) is very narrow and only suitable for small craft.
Berthing
Visiting yachts should proceed to the inner harbour, where the yacht basin lies immediately to port on entry, past the jetty used by the fast ferries.
Ports
Tinos Harbour
Tinos is the only sheltered harbour in the island. It is a large commercial port with frequent ferries charging in and out. Visiting yachts normally berth stern/bows-to, using their anchors, in the small basin to port on entering the inner harbour. The holding is good in mud and depths at the quay here are around 3.0 metres. Shelter is excellent in the prevailing winds, which tend to blow a yacht off the quay, but gusts will be experienced in winds above force 6. The basin is also subject to regular ferry wash and it is advisable to pull well off and use snubbers on your mooring lines if at all possible. Water is available on the quay (at a charge) and there are a total of six electrical connections distributed between two stanchions at either end of the quay and 10€ electricity cards can be purchased at the nearby kiosk. Orange tee-shirt guys, Marineros, are taking your bow lines. They seem to work for the harbour and come whenever a sailboat arrives to help secure the mooring. Tips are optional though. Later, Myrka will come to collect port fees. She has a tablet and even a mini printer with her for the ticket. +30 6946 580 623
Some nights (or WE) a bar next to the port plays music and there's even a band until 1am. The front road becomes pedestrian, bringing a relaxed atmosphere.Marinas & Yacht Clubs
None.
Anchorages
Tinos has several nice anchorages:
Ayios Fokas
Livadha
Kolympithra
Panormos
Pourgia
Amenities
Facilities | |
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Water | Tinos Harbour: On the quay (charged for) |
Electricity | Tinos Harbour: On the quay (You can purchase 10€ cards from the Kiosk close by ) |
Toilets | N/A (Not Available) |
Showers | N/A |
Laundry | ? |
Garbage | There are recycling bins at the E end of the yacht basin |
Supplies | |
Fuel | Tinos Harbour: by tanker to the quay |
Bottled gas | ? |
Chandlers | Tinos Harbour. Basic chandlery and fishing gears E direction, near Sklavenitis supermarket. |
Services | |
Repairs | N/A |
Internet | Several internet cafés along Tinos waterfront. Also a free Tinos Hotspot wifi network (although unreliable) |
Mobile connectivity | Good 4G except in the anchorages of Panormos where it spotty |
Vehicle rentals | Several rental outlets in Tinos town. Varadis Rent a Car is reliable |
Provisioning
Good shopping in Tinos town.
Eating out
- Numerous restaurants and cafes in Tinos town
- Plentiful tavernas along Panormos waterfront
Transportation
- Buses to most local destinations
- Ferries to Rafina and Piraeus
Tourism
History
The ancient name of the island was Ophiousa, meaning with snakes, because it was infested with small vipers. The name Tinos maybe is a corruption of the Phoenician word Tunnoth ("snake"). The island was settled by the Ionians in the 10th century BC. The Persians occupied the island in 490 BC but after the Battle of Marathon is was freed. Following the liberation a sanctuary was built dedicated to Poseidon because he sent a flock of storks that ate the snakes. Pilgrims and afflicted persons would go to the island to celebrate the December festival of Poseidon, the Poseidonia, and many were cured from their afflictions. In Roman times Mithridates of Pontus (Black Sea) invaded the island and destroyed its towns in 88 BC. After the Fourth Crusade (1202-1204 AD), the Venetians conquered the island from the Byzantines. The Gizis, its Venetian masters, built the fortress Of Santa Hellena at Exombourgo, on the foundations of the old acropolis. This fortress, deemed the strongest in the Cyclades, withstood all eleven attacks of Barbarossa. In 1715 AD, long after the rest of Greece had been occupied by the Ottomans, the island was surrounded by a massive Ottoman fleet. The Venetians finally surrendered. Their captains were executed in Venice, and Santa Hellena was blown up. The result of this long occupation by the Venetian was that most of the island inhabitants became Catholic. Even today, Tinos has the largest number of Catholics in Greece.
Tinos stayed under the Ottomans until the Greek War of Independence of 1821. In the second year of the war a nun, Pelagia, had a vision of the Madonna who directed her to look under a certain rock. Next day, remembering her vision she looked and found the icon which proved to have very potent in healing powers. The icon inspired the Orthodox inhabitants to revolt and liberate their island. A church, the Panagia Evangelistria was built at the site where the icon was found. People flock to this church and dedicate diamond, pearls, engraved human limbs, in silver and gold, engraved ships, etc. Religion has become the island's major industry.
Places to Visit
The church of Panagia Evangelistria in the town of Tinos is the highlight of any visit to Tinos. The interior of the church is wonderfully ornate and filled with votive offerings from the faithful as well as the celebrated icon itself. There is also an Archaeological Museum in Tinos town (open 8-3 except Mondays), which contains artifacts from the Sanctuary of Poseidon and Amphitrite. The excavation of the sanctuary can be seen in Kionia about 4 km W of the town.
Another place worth visiting is the Kechrovouni Convent, one of the largest in Greece where Sister Pelagia, now a saint, had her vision which led to the discovery of the icon of Our Lady of Tinos. On the way one can see many picturesque villages. If you continue on to the massive rock of Exombourgo and are feeling energetic, the climb up to the Venetian fortress on the top is rewarded with stunning views. A few kilometres further on is the tiny village of Volex, remarkably sited among a field of huge boulders. Now a tourist village (but none the less attractive for that) it has two shady tavernas which make a good lunch stop.
The island of Tinos is famed for the quality of its marble and has given rise to several generations of marble sculptors whose work is to be found all over Greece and the rest of the Mediterranean. There are few houses in Tinos without a carved marble fanlight or window surround to catch the eye. In the village of Pyrgos, which is together with its neighbour Isternia the main centre of marble carving, there is a Museum of Marble Crafts which details the history of the industry on Tinos. In addition, there are two modern sculpture museums in Isternia and in Pyrgos, the latter being the former house of the famous Greek sculptor Giannolis Halepas.
Another unique feature of the island are the ornate dovecotes, introduced during the period of Venetian occupation to provide a popular delicacy to the dinner tables of Constantinople. Although they can be found all over Tinos, some of the best examples are at the villages of Tarampados and Smardaki and on the road to the small beach resort of Kolympithra.
Finally, the village of Kardiani on the road from Tinos town to Pyrgos and Panormos is well worth a diversion for its remarkable site in a natural amphitheatre looking over towards the island of Kea and its narrow lanes cooled by constant spring waters from the slopes above.
Friends
Contact details of "Cruiser's Friends" that can be contacted for local information or assistance.
Forum Discussions
List links to discussion threads on partnering forums. (see link for requirements)
Links
- Tinos at the Wikipedia
- Tinos at the Wikivoyage
- Panagia Evangelistria at the Wikipedia
References
See Greece.
Comments
We welcome users' contributions to the Wiki. Please click on Comments to view other users' comments, add your own personal experiences or recommend any changes to this page following your visit.
Verified by
Date of member's last visit to Tinos and this page's details validated:
- May 2010 (Tinos Harbour, Livadha, Kolympithra, Pourgia) --Istioploos Travels with S/Y Thetis
- September 2011 (Tinos Harbour, Panormos) --Athene of Lymington 21:19, 3 September 2011 (BST)
- September 2011 (Tinos Harbour) --Yachtbillabong
- August 2016 (Panormos) --Istioploos
- June 2022 (Tinos Harbour) --Smoothtraveller
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Contributors to this page
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Names: Lighthouse, Istioploos, Athene of Lymington, Yachtbillabong |