Lemnos

North-East Aegean Islands

Lemnos (or Limnos) produces some of the best retsina in Greece, and other wines too for those whose palate does not take to Greece’s unique resinated drink. The vineyards are in the western and more volcanic half of this island, which is almost cut in two by the deep gouge of Moudros Bay, one of the biggest and best natural harbours in the Aegean. 

View of Myrina

In complete contrast to the barren and rocky western half of Lemnos, the east is mostly low-lying and agricultural, apart from several areas of marshland. There are a number of good beaches scattered around the coast, although nowhere has really developed very much in terms of tourist facilities. The main town is Myrina, or Kastro, on the west coast, which is also where the ferries call in that link the island with towns such as Kavala and Rafina on the mainland, and other islands like Lesbos and Chios. There is also a small airport with daily internal flights to Athens, Thessaloniki and Lesbos.

Myrina

Myrina is an enjoyably ordinary town, with an attractive waterfront, a couple of decent beaches close at hand and a picturesque small fishing port. There are also the ruins of its Byzantine Castle to explore, and from here there are excellent views over the town and the whole west coast from the site where the original acropolis once stood. In the old part of the town there are cobbled streets and some grand Ottoman houses, some of which have seen better days.

In one 19th-century mansion is the Archaeological Museum, which does its best with the limited displays that it has. There are several minor classical sites around the island, such as Polyochni (which dates back to 3000BC), Ifaistia and Kabireio, but much work remains to be done on these.

Retsina - Yammas!

Getting to Lemnos

Flights to Lemnos
You can fly to Lemnos International Airport from Athens on Olympic Air. There are also flights on Sky Express to Lemnos from Thessaloniki, Lesbos and Ikaria. British Airways also do direct summer charter flights from London Heathrow Airport to Lemnos. 

Ferries to Lemnos
There are daily ferries to Lemnos (or Limnos) from Kavala on the Greek mainland, with a journey time of between four and five hours. There are also one or two ferries a week to Lesbos (journey time over five hours). Ferries between Athens and Lemnos depart from the ferry terminal at Lavrio, about 30 miles south-east of Athens. There are 1-2 sailings per week and the  journey time is 10-11 hours.

Blue Star Ferries also call in at Lemnos on their Thessaloniki-Piraeus route, enabling you to island-hop to some of the North-East Aegean and Cyclades islands on the same route.

Ferries in Greece

Ferries in Greece has an excellent and very thorough website where, in addition to checking ferry schedules and times, you can also book tickets and get lots of useful information about travelling by ferry in Greece.


Where is Lemnos?

Where to Stay on Lemnos

We have more pages about the North-East Aegean...

  • Chios

    The Greek island of Chios or Hios is a large island in the North East Aegean close to the Turkish coast, south of Lesvos and north of Samos, and famous for its mastic trees.

  • Best Things to Do on Thassos

    The best things to do on Thassos in the North East Aegean islands of Greece include its beaches, mountain hikes, and visiting its ancient archaeological sites.

  • North East Aegean Islands

    The North East Aegean Islands include Lesvos, Thassos, Chios, Samos, Fourni, Ikaria, Limnos, Samothraki and here are tips on ferries, flights and what to do.

  • Ikaria

    Ikaria (or Icaria) is an island in the North East Aegean Islands of Greece between Samos and Mykonos and is truly one of Greece's travel secrets.

  • Samos in the NE Aegean Islands of Greece

    Samos is in the NE Aegean islands of Greece with attractions including Heraion and Pythagoreio, and this page tells you what to see and how to get there.

  • Lesbos or Lesvos in the North East Aegean Islands of Greece

    The island of Lesbos or Lesvos is in the North East Aegean Islands in Greece, and on this page you can see information including flights and ferries.

  • Thassos in the North East Aegean Islands of Greece

    Thassos is in the North East Aegean and on this page from the Greece Travel Secrets website you can also see information about flights and ferries to Thassos.

  • Samothraki

    Samothraki (Greek) or Samothrace (English) is a small island in the north-east Aegean Sea with the closest Greek islands being Thassos and Lemnos.

  • Museum of Samos Wine

    A visit to the Museum of Samos Wine to learn about the muscat grapes that produce the best dessert wines in the world and also the Greek spirit, Metaxa.

Enjoy this page? Please pay it forward. Here's how...

Would you prefer to share this page with others by linking to it?

  1. Click on the HTML link code below.
  2. Copy and paste it, adding a note of your own, into your blog, a Web page, forums, a blog comment, your Facebook account, or anywhere that someone would find this page valuable.

Latest Posts

RSS

  1. Greek Recovery Funds to Go into Acropolis Upgrade Works

    Twelve projects including upgrade works on the Acropolis have been cleared for funding out of “Greece 2.0” – the country’s recovery plan approved earlier this month. Alternate Finance Minister Theodor…

    Read More

  2. US Keeps Covid-19 Travel Restrictions Due to Delta Variant

    The United States will keep all existing Covid-19 travel restrictions in place due to concerns over the spread of the highly transmissible Delta variant, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki announce…

    Read More

  3. Chania, in Western Crete

    Chania is the main city in Western Crete with a lovely setting and a beautiful harbour as well as several museums.

    Read More

  4. Cyprus Obliges Travelers from Greece to Undergo Testing Before Arrival

    Greece has been placed on the Covid-19 orange list of Cyprus’ colour-coded country categorization travel system, based on a new epidemiological risk assessment of countries. The new changes come into…

    Read More

  5. Greece’s Indoor Restaurants, Venues Only for the Vaccinated

    Starting Friday, July 16, indoor venues such as restaurants, bars, and theaters will only be accepting vaccinated and seated-only customers until August 31, Development and Investments Minister Adonis…

    Read More

  6. AEGEAN Begins Operation of Seasonal Base on Mykonos

    Greek carrier AEGEAN has started the operation of its seasonal base on Mykonos, aiming to enhance its flagship quality services and improve the connection of the popular Cycladic island with major int…

    Read More

  7. UK Revises Advisory for Greece, Paves Way for Travel

    The UK’s FCDO revised its travel advisory for Greece after announcing on Thursday that as of July 19 travelers from amber-listed countries would not be required to self-isolate upon return.

    Read More

  8. Greece to Launch ‘Covid Pass’ App that Checks Customer ‘Safe’ Status

    Greece said this week that starting July 15, restaurant and F&B business owners would be able to download an application that will check whether the health/vaccination status information provided by c…

    Read More

  9. Authorities Recommend Self-test for Land Travel in Greece

    Travel by road domestically in Greece will not require a negative rapid test but the presentation of a negative self-test is highly recommended, said Deputy Civil Protection Minister Nikos Hardalias d…

    Read More

  10. Covid-19: Greece Extends Rules for Domestic Flights to the Islands

    The Hellenic Civil Aviation Authority (HCAA) has extended the travel rules for passengers of domestic flights traveling from the mainland to the islands, until 6am, on Thursday, July 15.

    Read More