Hydra vs Poros
Hydra or Poros? Ferry times from Athens, beaches, prices and crowds compared side by side, with a straight answer on which of the two suits your trip.
Hydra
RomanticNo cars, no motorbikes: just donkeys and boats. Perfectly preserved neoclassical architecture and international artists.
Read the guidePoros
FamilySeparated from the Peloponnese by a 200-metre channel. A clock tower with a view, pine woods down to the water, and a lemon forest on the far shore. The green escape of the Saronic.
Read the guideThe short answer
On the fast boat from Piraeus, Poros is the closer of the two: 1 h 10 min against 1 h 45 min for Hydra, a difference of about 35 minutes each way. On a short trip that gap is worth more than it looks, because it applies twice.
Hydra does not allow visitor cars, so you arrive on foot and get around by water taxi, mule or your own legs. Poros does, and the ferry carries them.
Poros has the better swimming, 3 out of 5 against 2 for Hydra. It also has more of them: 5 beaches covered here against 4.
Poros is the cheaper base, around 60 euros a night against 130 on Hydra, roughly 117 percent more. Over a week that is about 490 euros of difference on the room alone.
Poros is the quieter of the two. Both fill up at summer weekends when Athens empties into the Saronic, but Hydra carries more visitors through the season.
The numbers
| Hydra | Poros | |
|---|---|---|
| Fast ferry from Piraeus | 1 h 45 min | 1 h 10 min |
| Conventional ferry | - | 2 h 30 min |
| Ferry from | 30 EUR | 15 EUR |
| Departures per day | 5 | 5 |
| Beaches covered | 4 | 5 |
| Places and museums | 6 | 6 |
| Activities | 4 | 5 |
| Room per night from | 130 EUR | 60 EUR |
| Food per day | 40 EUR | 22 EUR |
| Recommended days | 2 | 2 |
| Population | 1,972 | 4,167 |
| Area | 52 km2 | 31 km2 |
| Visitor cars | No | Yes |
| Best season | May - Oct | May - Oct |
| Beaches | ||
| Landscape | ||
| Food | ||
| Nightlife | ||
| Connectivity |
Which one for your trip
Choose Hydra if
- A car-free island appeals and you are happy to walk or take a water taxi
Choose Poros if
- Swimming is the priority and you want the better beaches of the two
- You are short on time and want the shortest crossing from Athens
- You are watching the budget
- You want the quieter island
- You want to bring a car or need one for mobility reasons
- You are travelling with children