Mikro and Megalo Neorio Beaches

Neorio is really two beaches in a row on the west coast of Kalavria, Mikro (the small one) and Megalo (the big one), separated by an outcrop of rock and an easy walk from Poros town. And they are the answer to a very specific question: where can I swim and eat well without moving from the spot.

Because what sets Neorio apart is not the sand or the water, which are fine without being spectacular. It is that here there are fish tavernas right on the shore, the kind that hang the octopus out to dry in the sun by the door and serve your lunch ten metres from where you left your towel.

What the two beaches are like

Megalo Neorio is the bigger and the more organised. Sand mixed with fine gravel, sunbeds for hire, a watersports centre with water-skiing, banana boat and kayak hire, and several restaurants with terraces over the beach. It is the one most families choose.

Mikro Neorio is smaller and more intimate, with a couple of tavernas and less infrastructure. It tends to be quieter and it is the one we prefer for spending the afternoon.

Both share the useful characteristic of this coast: the water is very calm. You are in the sheltered part of the channel, with the coast of the Peloponnese opposite, and there is practically never any swell here. For small children and for nervous swimmers it is the best on the island alongside Askeli.

Pain points

Shade: limited. There is the odd tree and the taverna awnings, but most of the sand is exposed. If you go in August, either get up early or pay for a sunbed with a parasol.

The bottom: sand mixed with stone in some areas, with the odd pebbly stretch. It is not uncomfortable but water shoes improve the experience, especially at Mikro.

Engine noise: being a watersports area and a water taxi stop, there is more boat movement than on other beaches on the island. If you are after absolute silence, this is not it.

Crowding: less than Askeli, more than Monastiri. On an August weekend you notice it, but it rarely reaches saturation.

Eating here, which is the real reason

The Neorio tavernas have a reputation on the island and quite a few Athenians cross over specifically to eat here. Fresh fish by weight, Greek salad, mezedes and house wine from the barrel. The bill usually lands between 15 and 22 euros a head, which for being right on the beach is reasonable.

Practical tip: ask the price of the fish per kilo before choosing it. That is the norm all over Greece and it avoids surprises at the end.

And go early or book in August, because the front-row tables fill up by half past two and after that there is a wait.

Getting there

The water taxi from Poros port is the best option and the most fun: little wooden boats that do the trip in ten minutes for a few euros, with no fixed timetable. When you want to go back, you ask for one from the shore.

The bus that leaves Iroon square gets here in about fifteen minutes, every half hour from May to October.

And on foot from town it is twenty-five or thirty minutes along the coast road, a pleasant walk first thing or at sunset, with the channel always in view.

The full west coast plan

Neorio works very well as a base for a day on the west coast. From here it is another ten or fifteen minutes north to Russian Bay and its ruined shipyard, and another ten on foot to Love Bay.

The sequence we recommend: a morning of swimming and snorkelling at Love Bay, a fish lunch at Neorio and a siesta in the shade of the tavernas. It is the easiest and most enjoyable day on Poros, and it does not require hiring anything.