July in Spetses is not a secret. The ferries are full, the harbors are lively, and the island is exactly what you came for.
The question is not whether to come in July. The question is how to move through it.
Start Before the Heat Does
By ten in the morning, July has made its intentions clear. The light is direct, the town center fills up, and the water taxis start queuing. The island’s rhythm in high season runs early and late, the middle hours belong to shade and stillness.
Dappia itself is worth arriving at before the ferries do. The promenade is paved with black and white sea pebbles and lined with old cannons. At seven in the morning, with a coffee and no particular agenda, it is one of the finer places to be in the Saronic Gulf.
At Thimaras Hotel, the garden is at its most alive before nine. Breakfast is served outside with the sound of birds and the morning breeze. A swim in the pool before hitting the beach. The adults-only serenity of the hotel remains even when the island around it is buzzing.
The Beaches Worth the Effort
The organized beaches near town fill up by mid-morning in July. Worth knowing: there are also some non-organized beaches inside and around the town, ideal for a more carefree swim.
One way to spend a July day, is to take a traditional wooden boat from the main port and visit beaches around the island while enjoying the scenery. The route passes a lot of coves and stops at Xylokeriza, Agioi Anargyroi and Agia Paraskevi. But it is a way of seeing Spetses from a different point of view.
- Agia Paraskevi — Considered by many the most beautiful beach on the island. Pine trees reaching the sea, clear water, a small beach bar. Far enough from town to stay manageable even in high season, accessible by bus or boat.
- Garyfalos — A hidden bay between the Old Harbour and Agia Marina. A local favourite that most visitors walk past without noticing. No facilities, no sunbeds — bring what you need and enjoy the day like a local.
An Evening at the Old Harbour
July evenings in Spetses have a particular character. After eight, when the heat has subsided and the day-trippers have taken the last bus back, the island shifts.
The Old Harbour is where this shift is most visible. The boatyards that once made Spetses one of the greatest shipbuilding centers of Greece still operate here — craftsmen working with wood in ways that have not changed in generations. Follow the waterfront to its end and you reach the lighthouse, where a bronze mermaid sculpture by Natalia Mela looks out across the Saronic Gulf in permanent, unhurried contemplation.
If the evening calls for something different, the Titania open-air cinema — open since 1960 — screens films under the July sky. It is the kind of thing that sounds minor and turns out to be the thing you remember most.
Tables fill slowly and stay full late. It is the hour when Spetses is most worth staying for.
Getting Here and Getting Around
The most relaxed way to reach Spetses is to drive south from Athens past Corinth and Epidavros towards Porto Heli, then take the short boat crossing from Costa. Boats from Piraeus are the alternative if you prefer to leave the car behind from the start.
Either way, you leave the car behind on the mainland, which is part of what gives the island its calm.
On Choosing July Anyway
July is loud in the way that any beautiful place is loud when people discover it. But Thimaras Hotel offers the – much needed – tranquility throughout the day so that visiting Spetses in July can still be a relaxing experience!
Thimaras Hotel is located in Kokkinaria, a ten-minute walk from the center of Spetses town. Free port transfer upon arrival and departure is included with every stay.
Reservations: thimarasspetses.reserve-online.net