Agios Nikolaos Monastery

Agios Nikolaos stands on the rise between Spetses town and the Old Harbour, roughly halfway along the coast walk, and it is the oldest religious building of any consequence on the island. The monastic complex dates from the eighteenth century, and it is dedicated, inevitably on an island of shipowners, to Saint Nicholas, patron of sailors.

You climb a flight of steps up from the coast road and come out into the courtyard, and the first thing you notice is the floor.

The courtyard and the mosaics

The pebble mosaic here, votsalota in Greek, is among the best on Spetses, which on an island where the craft is everywhere is saying something. Black and white sea pebbles set on edge in geometric patterns, with the double-headed eagle, ships and crosses among the motifs. It is worn smooth by two centuries of feet and it is far more impressive in person than photographs manage.

The other set piece is the bell tower, a tall white construction with arches, standing above the harbour. It is the thing you photograph from a boat coming into the old port and it is one of the island’s emblems.

Inside, the church is small, dark, heavy with icons and hanging lamps in the way island churches of this age are. Give it five minutes for your eyes to adjust before you decide there is nothing to see.

Why it matters historically

Two things attach to this place, and they are worth knowing because they are why locals treat it as more than a pretty courtyard.

The first is that the flag of revolt was raised here in 1821 when Spetses declared for the Greek uprising. The monastery was the natural gathering point for the island and it is where the declaration is commemorated.

The second is a strange one. When Napoleon’s son-in-law and Corfu governor died and his body was being moved, or in some tellings when the remains of a French admiral were in transit, a body was kept in the monastery for a period. Versions of this story circulate on the island with different names attached. We mention it because you will be told it, and we would not swear to the specifics of any single version.

The honest part

It is a working religious building, not a museum. There is no ticket office, no set of posted hours you can trust, and no guarantee that the church itself is unlocked when you arrive. The courtyard is generally accessible; the interior is a matter of luck and timing, and it is more likely to be open in the morning and around service times. If getting inside matters to you, ask at your accommodation which mornings it tends to be open.

Dress code applies. Covered shoulders, knees covered, no beachwear. People walk up here in swimming costumes from Kaiki and are turned away, and rightly so. Carry a light layer if you are combining it with a swim.

The steps. It is a proper climb up from the road, uneven, in full sun. Not long, but not something to do at two in the afternoon in August with a pushchair.

Feast day. Saint Nicholas is celebrated in December, so it does not affect summer visitors, but if you are here in early December expect the monastery to be the centre of the island that day and expect it to be busy.

Photography inside churches is often not permitted, and where it is, flash is not. Look for a sign, and if in doubt, do not.

Fitting it in

Agios Nikolaos costs nothing and it takes fifteen or twenty minutes. Do it as a stop on the walk out from Dapia to the Old Harbour, ideally in the late afternoon when the light is on the bell tower and the harbour below is starting to fill up for the evening. That single walk is the best cultural hour on Spetses and it needs no ticket and no vehicle.