Arriving
What time do you land?
1The Çeşme crossing lands you on the main quay in Chios Town, in the middle of the town itself. Passport control is on the quay; allow time for it in both directions.
2Sailings are seasonal and operated by more than one company, and the schedule changes year to year. Check the current departures before you build a day around them.
3Car hire desks are a short walk from the quay, but a car booked in advance is far more reliable than one found on arrival. Taxis wait at the port; buses leave from the station a few minutes along the waterfront.
Choose a plan
The one to choose firstClassic ChiosThe medieval south and the Byzantine mountain in a single loop, with lunch in a mastic village and a swim before the return.Genoese, Byzantine, OttomanHistoryThe castle, the museums and Nea Moni: the layers of the island read in one day without leaving the centre and the mountain above it.A swimming dayBeachTwo contrasting coasts in the time available, chosen on the morning wind rather than in advance.Mastic, citrus and the marketFoodA day built around what the island actually produces: mastic in the south, citrus in Kampos, and the town market in between.With childrenFamilyShort drives, shallow water and one village that children remember: a day that does not depend on anyone standing still in a museum.On foot, by bus and by taxiNo rental carA full day without driving, using the fact that the boat lands you inside the town rather than outside it.The mastic villages, slowlySouth ChiosOne region rather than the whole island: three fortified villages, the museum that explains them, and a swim underneath.
The boat decides the day.
Be back at the quay a clear hour before the return sailing. Passport control, ticket collection and the queue for boarding all take longer than the walk suggests, and the boat does not wait.
Be back at the quay a clear hour before the return sailing. Passport control, ticket collection and the queue for boarding all take longer than the walk suggests, and the boat does not wait.
The other direction
From Chios to Çeşme for the day
The crossing to Çeşme leaves from the same quay in Chios Town and lands in the marina at Çeşme, a few minutes on foot from the castle and the market street. The day is short, and the same rule applies in reverse: passport control on both sides, and an hour of buffer before the return sailing.
A day is enough for Çeşme itself — the Genoese castle, the covered market, the beaches at Ilıca and Alaçatı twenty minutes away by taxi or dolmuş. It is not enough for Izmir or Ephesus unless you are prepared to spend most of the day travelling.