What to see in Aegina
For an island an hour from Piraeus, Aegina carries an absurd amount of history. It minted the first silver coin in European Greece, and for a year in 1828 it was the capital of the newly independent country, so the sights range from a Doric temple on a pine ridge to a neoclassical tower where the founding decrees of the Greek state were signed. Add a major pilgrimage church, an abandoned medieval town on a hillside and the lone column at Kolona ten minutes' walk from the harbour, and you have more than most Cycladic islands manage. The honest caveat is that they are scattered across 87 square kilometres, so seeing them properly means a scooter, a car or a patient relationship with the island bus. Doing it all on foot from the port is not realistic.
Places of interest
Church of Agios Nektarios and Monastery of the Holy Trinity
One of the largest churches in the Balkans. A pilgrimage destination: thousands of the faithful visit the tomb of Saint Nektarios. Free entry, legs must be covered.
Kapodistrias Orphanage (The Prisons)
A large Kapodistrian building from 1828-1829, known on Aegina as The Prisons. It began as an orphanage for the children of the War of Independence and later served as a school, library, museum and jail.
Kolona Hill (Temple of Apollo)
An archaeological site with the single surviving column of the 6th century BC Temple of Apollo. Panoramic views over the harbour. The ticket includes the Archaeological Museum of Aegina, with pottery, coins and ancient weapons.
Markellos Tower
A 19th-century tower built by the politician Spyros Markellos. It was the seat of government when Aegina was the capital of modern Greece (1828-1829). Today a cultural centre with free exhibitions.
The Medieval Village of Paleochora
Aegina's capital from the 9th century until 1826. Abandoned after the pirate Barbarossa attacked in 1537. Today a ghost village with more than 30 chapels scattered among the ruins.
Temple of Aphaia
One of the best-preserved Doric temples in Greece. Built in the 5th century BC, it looks out from a hilltop above Agia Marina. Well worth pairing with the beach.
Temple of Zeus Hellanios
An archaeological site in the interior of Aegina, near Pachia Rachi, where a 13th-century Byzantine church was built on top of the ancient temple of Zeus Hellanios. The staircase, walls and ashlar blocks of the classical sanctuary survive.