More about hotels in North Aegean
The North Aegean isn't one island. It's four: Lesbos, Chios, Samos and Lemnos, each a short flight or ferry from Athens and a world away from the crowds on Mykonos or Santorini. Lesbos presses its own olives into oil and its own grapes into ouzo. Chios grows the only mastic resin trees on earth. Samos still claims Pythagoras as a local, and its vineyards climb the same hillsides he would have walked past. Between the four islands you get whitewashed harbour towns, stone mountain villages, and beaches that stay quiet even in August.
There's a stay to match all of that. A family apartment two minutes from a beach on Lemnos. A boutique room in a converted mansion in Mytilene. A resort on Samos built into an olive-grove hillside. Wherever you land, expect fewer crowds and better value than the more famous islands further south.
Where to stay in North Aegean
- Mytilene Town (Lesbos): the island's capital and main ferry hub. Neoclassical mansions built by 19th-century olive oil merchants now hold small hotels and cafes, most a few minutes' walk from the harbour.
- Molyvos (Lesbos): stone houses stacked up a hillside below a hilltop castle, with ouzo bars set into the old sea captains' houses. Quieter than Mytilene, and a better base if you want village life over town life.
- Chios Town: the main port on Chios and the easiest base for day trips into the mastic villages. A long waterfront strip of tavernas keeps it lively after dark.
- Pythagorio (Samos): a small harbour town named for the island's most famous ancient resident, close to the airport and to the muscat vineyards climbing Mount Ambelos.
- Myrina (Lemnos): a fishing town below a hilltop castle, with two sandy bays inside the town itself. The quietest of the four island capitals, and the one with the shortest walk from bed to beach.
How much is North Aegean accommodation?
Expect to pay somewhere around AU$110 to AU$130 a night for a typical mid-range room across the North Aegean, noticeably less than the well-known islands further south. Prices climb in July and August and ease off again from late September.
- Budget hotels and guesthouses: from AU$60 per night. Simple, family-run rooms, often with a kitchenette, usually a short walk from the harbour rather than right on it.
- Mid-range hotels and apartments: from AU$110 per night. Private balconies, sea or garden views, and breakfast included more often than not.
- Boutique stays: from AU$180 per night. Restored mansions, windmills or captains' houses, with design-led rooms and more personal service.
- Luxury resorts: from AU$300 per night. Private beach access, spa treatments, and half-board dining built around local olive oil, wine and produce.
Top-rated hotels in North Aegean
- Casa Cook Samos: an adults-only design hotel near Pythagorio, built around six pools set into an olive-grove hillside above the coast.
- Royal Pearl Island Chios Hotel & Spa: Chios's first five-star hotel, with a restaurant named after the island's mastic and rooms that open straight onto the pool.
- Lemnos Village Resort: a family-friendly resort right on one of Lemnos's longest sandy beaches, with its own windsurfing, kayaking and tennis set-up.
- Delfinia Hotel & Bungalows: low-rise bungalows scattered through a pine grove on the edge of Mytilene, a short walk from the beach.
- Doryssa Bay Hotel: a beachfront resort on Samos built like a traditional village of whitewashed, sugar-cube houses, a short walk from Pythagorio's harbour.
Tips for finding the perfect accommodation in North Aegean
- Ferries, not flights, connect the four islands to each other. Pick one island as your base and treat the others as day trips, rather than trying to island-hop with luggage every two nights.
- August books out fast, especially beachfront rooms on Lemnos and Samos. Lock in dates two to three months ahead if you're travelling at the peak of summer.
- If mastic and the medieval villages are why you're visiting, stay in or near Chios Town. It's the shortest drive to Pyrgi and Mesta of anywhere on the island.
- Sea-view rooms cost noticeably more on Samos's north coast, around Kokkari and Pythagorio, than in Vathy, the inland-facing capital. Worth paying for if the view matters more than a short walk to restaurants.
- On Lesbos and Samos, look for stays described as being on an olive grove or a vineyard. It's a genuine feature of the local landscape rather than marketing language, and usually means a quieter setting a few minutes from the coast.
