The Island of Syros is the administrative centre for the whole group of Cyclades. Even so, Syros is surprisingly low-key and not so well known among the tourists. There is an airport on the island but there are no charter flights to Syros. Mostly people come to Syros with a ferry but all too many are just passing through and changing ferries. Syros unlike the other island of the Cyclades is not dependent on tourism; it has several other economical incomes. Syros is however very attractive and has many interesting sights for tourists and good resorts for having a holiday. The capital Ermoupoli is the most attractive with many neoclassical mansions, marble-paved squares and streets and huge churches. It’s a lively place, with lots of things to see and do. Ermoupoli is the main port and practically everything in town is situated by the seaside. Easy to explore and if you only have an hour or so before catching the next boat, you have time to see some of this beautiful town.

Ermoupoli is not only the administrative centre but also the religious centre of the Cyclades. In this relatively small town they have both the Catholic settlement of Ano Syros and the Orthodox settlement of Vromado. Closest to town, Vromado hill and church of Anastasis are easy to access on foot by lots and lots of stairs, and narrow pavements. The climb is worth the effort because the view up from the hill is fantastic. Ano Syros is on the neighbouring hill, more on the side of town and a little further but also worth visiting. The finest of all sights is the 13^th century cathedral of Agios Georgious. Narrow streets and stairs makes the place surprising to wander around. Ano Syros was also the birth place of the famous Rembetika singer Markos Vamvakaris and now there is a house museum to represent his life and music.

In town you can spend hours walking around. Getting lost is not an option as the town is very small. Houses are not so tall and most of the streets are parallel to the harbour. The centre of the town is Plateia Miaouli, the main square; on one side is the town hall. If you hear people say it’s the most beautiful town hall in the whole of Greece, they are right about it. It is magnificent. On one end of the town hall is a small archaeological museum, one of the oldest in Greece. Close to the main square is the Apollon theatre, which is a miniature replica of the La Scala opera house in Milan... Not so unique. Even though the harbour has some very big ferries during the day, it can be a very nice place for a stroll any time of the day. There are tens of cafés and restaurants one next to another, small shops and since we are in Syros, the home of delicious nougat, halvadopites. Also a Turkish delight loukoumia is well presented here in the shops. There is even a Casino in the port.

Outside town is relatively quiet but you can find many nice resorts by the coast in the south of the island. There are frequent bus connections around the southern part. Biggest loop the bus does with the villages of Galissas, Finikas, Megas Yialos, Vari and Azolimnos. The bus goes either way. It’s easy to use the bus to see most of the resorts by hopping on and off the bus. Also in springtime there were a lot of busses passing the villages. There are several beaches along the road.  Best beaches I found in Vari. The village is up on a hill with the beach resort below. Neighbouring Achladi, and Azolimnos are just a few kilometres outside the town. Mostly beaches are sandy and sheltered. The village of Finikas has a very picturesque harbour with many sailing boats from Greece and abroad. Galissas village is the most “touristy” with modern hotels and watersports on the beach.

Spending time in Syros in mid-April, was perfect. Less tourists, practically none, just some Greeks who had come to spend Easter on the island and a few small groups of foreigners. I arrived to town at 3am which was not the best time to arrive. Finding a hotel took me quite a while, especially finding one open was hard. Smaller ones were closed, of course because it was not the season to wait for tourists to arrive, so I ended up in the fine A-class hotel at the end of the harbour. It was a good choice, with reasonable prices. It is close to the centre and with excellent views over the harbour. I used bus only to explore the island and in one day I saw a lot, but also too little. I had town well explored and enjoyed it very much. I will be waiting for my next visit to the island, it’s just so beautiful.