Windmills, Poets and a Donkey-Friendly Corner: Beyond Sifnos's Coast
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About the Tour
About the Tour
Exambela is one of Sifnos's quietest villages, tucked away from the island's busier coastal areas. On this walking tour, we'll explore the Agia Varvara neighbourhood through its stone-paved paths, where stories of poets, windmills, and ancient agricultural traditions still linger.
The tour starts on the asphalt road beside the Agia Varvara bus stop. From there, we'll climb away from the traffic and into a network of narrow lanes lined with whitewashed cubic buildings, their flat rooftops and small windows reflecting centuries of practical Cycladic design. Along the way, we'll encounter the agricultural landmarks that once sustained the community, hear about the poets who called this neighbourhood home, and take in sweeping views of dry stone walls, scattered chapels, and dovecots stretching across the hillside.
The tour ends back at the starting point near the bus stop, where the old stone-paved road connecting all seven central villages of Sifnos continues in both directions.
On this 30-minute tour, you'll have a chance to:
- Spot a converted windmill that once was an important part of community life
- Learn how carob seeds are forever connected to gold
- See the side-by-side houses of two Sifnian poets, including Provellegios, whose preserved home still holds his 1800s books and original desk
- Notice a deliberately cut wall corner, built to make donkeys life easier
- Examine an aloni and find out what this circular stone floor was used for and how
- Hear why islanders historically built their villages inland and not by the beach
If you are a curious walker who enjoys the kind of everyday detail that rarely makes it into guidebooks, this short tour of 30' is made for you!
Tour Producer
Tour Producer
Ronia Anastasiadou
Hi, I am Ronia, your guide in Sifnos!
I was born, raised and studied journalism in Athens, Greece. In 1994 I decided I didn't want to live my life in the big city and went to Sifnos, my mother's home island, to do an experiment for two years. It's been more than 30 years since then and I am still there!
I worked in many jobs and in different positions in the tourism chain, only to conclude in 2004 that what I needed was a job of my own that involved everything that brought me to Sifnos and everything that made me stay – the local culture. Somehow, and after many seminars, certifications, apprenticeships in heritage interpretation and perseverance, Sifnos Events was born, organizing activities - experiences to be precise - and events for visitors to the island.
Twenty years later, Authenticity.gr is the place to host many different personal experiences connected to local culture and Sifnos Events is the website for the events, seminars, exhibitions.
Apart from that there are many other things I love doing among them alternative therapies, writing and traveling.
Through the voice tours I hope I will have the opportunity to reach more of you, distroy some Greek myths and prove some others, show you the local way and compare it with yours, talk about our common heritage.
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Preview Location
Preview Location
Location 6
Wall
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It seems like there is a missing part, doesn't it? It is not exactly two walls creating a corner, it is like someone took a piece of the wall out. Correct? Well, the truth is they built it that way on purp...
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Major Landmarks
Major Landmarks
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Super Market ARADES
Getting There
Getting There
Route Overview
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Start locationΚΥΚΛΑΔΕΣ, Apollonia 840 03, Greece
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Total distance434m
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Final locationXP8H+C5, Apollonia 840 03, Greece
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Distance back to start location144.34m
Directions to Starting Point
the tour starts at Arades area in Exambela, on the asphalt road, in front of a few steps going up, next to Agia Varvara bus station. On your right you can see Arades Super Market.
You can drive there and park your car at the free parking lot a few meters away.
Or you can come by bus and ask them to stop at Agia Varvara Station, next to the super market.
If you are in Apollonia area you can easily walk to the starting point which is also the ending point
Show Directions
Tips
Tips
Places to stop along the way
If you feel like having some extra energy after your tour, there is a pastry shop in the area, the only one in Exambela, open all year long.
There is also a super market near the starting point, a place you can buy alcohol and a gym. On the other side, a few hundreds of meters along the road, you can rent e-bikes. Apart from these, the other shops in the area, are more for locals needs (building materials, carpentry, plumber, English lessons).
Best time of day
Any time of the day is fine.
A general advice is to avoid the central villages during the hottest part of the day, from 2pm to 6pm, during the summer months (June, July, August)..
Precautions
This is an easy and short tour, suitable for very young, young and not so young visitors which doesn't need special equipment, or special shoes. Even flips flops do!
A hat, sunglasses, sunscreen and a bottle of water are always useful during walks in summer.
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