Evia· Κάρυστος
Karystos & Mount Ochi
A nineteenth-century grid town under Mount Ochi, with a Venetian tower on the seafront, a red castle above it and the Dimosari gorge dropping to the sea.
- Hiking
- Beaches
- Road trips
Karystos sits at the southern end of the island, a nineteenth-century grid of a town with the Venetian tower of Bourtzi on the seafront and the ruined Castello Rosso above it. It is the only part of Evia most Athenians reach by boat rather than by road: ferries run from Rafina to Marmari and Karystos, and Megali Ammos and Psili Ammos are the beaches they use on a weekend.
The mountain behind is famous for two things. Cipollino marble was quarried here for Roman Rome, and half-finished columns still lie on the slopes. And the drakospita — megalithic buildings of enormous dry-laid slabs whose purpose nobody has settled — stand above Styra and on Ochi itself, next to the ancient acropolis.
The walk everyone comes for is the Dimosari gorge, which drops from the saddle below Ochi through plane trees and waterfalls to the sea at Kallianou: around ten kilometres, mostly downhill, best done with a taxi arranged at the bottom.
🏛️ Karystos & Mount Ochi
Attractions · Karystos & Mount Ochi
🏖️ Karystos & Mount Ochi
Beaches · Karystos & Mount Ochi
🍽️ Karystos & Mount Ochi
Restaurants & tavernas · Karystos & Mount Ochi
🛏️ Karystos & Mount Ochi
Where to stay · Karystos & Mount Ochi
Hotels on the map · Karystos & Mount Ochi
Live prices and availability on a map centred on this exact spot — hotels, studios and villas — so you can judge the distance to the beach, the port or the village from here rather than guess from an address.
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Tours and day trips from here
Boat trips, guided tours of the ancient sites and tickets bookable ahead — free cancellation on most.
- The Dimosari gorgeAround ten kilometres downhill from the saddle below Mount Ochi to the sea, through plane trees and waterfalls. Arrange the taxi at the bottom first.See guided tours →
- A day out of AthensNo ferry needed: you drive over the bridge at Chalkida in about an hour and a quarter, and Eretria's excavations are an hour and a half from the Acropolis.See day trips →
- The springs at EdipsosA spa town since antiquity — Strabo and Plutarch wrote about it. Hot water still runs out of the rock into the sea, free to anyone who sits in it.See guided tours →
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Where to stay
The other parts of Evia
- Edipsos & the northThermal water running out of the rock at Loutra Edipsou, the green corners around Limni, the pilgrimage at Prokopi, and the sandy Aegean coast at Agia Anna and Pefki.4 attractions · 7 beaches · 5 restaurants & tavernas · 4 where to stay
- Chalkida, Eretria & DirfysThe strait where the current runs backwards, the excavated ancient city at Eretria, Mount Dirfys behind them, and Kymi with the boat to Skyros.4 attractions · 4 beaches · 7 restaurants & tavernas · 6 where to stay
Before you go
Car hire from local firmsIsland rental companies rather than the international desks — usually cheaper, often with full insurance and no card deposit. On Crete, Kefalonia or Naxos a car is what gets you to the beaches the buses do not reach.Compare local cars →Scooter, ATV & bike hireThe classic island runabout for coves and hilltop villages. Wear the helmet, check what the insurance excludes, and be honest about gravel roads — they are where most rental accidents happen.Find a scooter →Car hire, budgetAn aggregator that tends to surface the lowest headline prices. Read the fuel, insurance and ferry clauses — many contracts do not allow the car on a boat.Compare prices →
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