SurfinGR, Chios, Kontari

Activities: Kitesurf, SUP
Popularity:
Style: Freeride, Freestyle, Wave
Level: Intermediate, Good, Specialist

The beach of Kontari can be found 3 km away from Chios Town, on the south side, near the airport and it overlooks the capital of the island. It is a beach made out of coarse sand and small pebbles. On the beach there is sometimes a lot of wind (from the north).

Best Months: July, August
Medium Months: January, February, March, April, May, June, September, October, November, December
Wind Type: Thermal Winds, Frontal Winds
Best Direction: N, NE, NW, SE, S
Main Direction: N, NE, NW, S
Worst Direction:
Wind Factor: 11-16 knots (4 bft), 17-21 knots (5 bft), 22-27 knots (6 bft)
Main Wind Direction: Onshore, Side Onshore
Blowing at: Morning
Wave Tack:

Blowing in the morning. Meltemia (strong N winds) during July and August 6-7 bft during that time. No wetsuit during summer time, short wetsuit during spring and autumn, long warm wetsuit during winter.

Type: Chop, Small Wave (< 1m), Medium Wave (1-3m)
Quality: Clean
Depth: Average (deepens gently and incrementally)
Seabed: Sand, Rocks
Attention: Rocks

Days with strong wind lifts lots of chop and kicker waves. Sand and rocks at the bottom.

Type: Sand, Pebbles, Rocks
Size: Medium
Bathers Period: June, July, August
Bathers: Sparse
Shade: Sparse
Kid Friendly:
Attention: Rocks

Sand mixed with thick sand, very small pebbles and rocks. It has enough space for families as close to 150 m long. Tight spot because of trees on the beach line.

GPS Google Maps: 38.336170, 26.145985

Access to Kontari: The beach is near the town of Chios, being only 5 km from it (5 mins with a car or 20 mins walk from town center) and right next to the airport.

Access to Chios: It is easy to travel to Chios by ferry or plane from Athens. There is also ferry connection between Chios and other close islands as well as air connection with various Greek airports, especially in summer.

Arrival by Airplane: The airport "Homer" in Chios is located in the region of Kambos, 3 km from Chios Town. There are daily flights to Chios from El. Venizelos airport in Athens and the flight time is 1 hour. There are also flights to Chios from Thessaloniki about 3 times per week, operated by a small air company. In summer, there are also flights from Chios to other Greek islands, such as Samos, Kos, Mytilene and Rhodes, operated by another small company.

Arrival by Ferry/Boat: There are ferries to Chios from the port of Piraeus, the main port of Athens, all year round. These ferries run 3-4 times per week and the trip takes about 9 hours with conventional ferries and 4,5 with high-speed ferries. Depending on the schedule, these ferries might also connect Chios with other Greek islands, including Mytilini, Psara, Oinousses, Limnos, Kavala, Samos, Ikaria, Mykonos, Syros and others. In summer, there are also ferries to Chios from Kavala, a port town in northern Greece, once or twice per week. All year round, there is ferry connection between Chios and the port of Cesme, close to Izmir Turkey.

Domestic Transportation: The best way to explore Chios is by car; you can either bring your own vehicle or rent one on the island. However, you can also use the bus services, since there are frequent itineraries.