Serifos ...more on Serifos

The capital of the Serifos, Chora, actually lies above and overlooking the port, a distance of two kilometers from it; and it is one of the few island capitals not sitting on or immediately adjacent to its main port.  For visitors, the biggest advantage to this is that the views from Chora are positively spectacular.  The lovely whitewashed village still retains much of its medieval character, and part of its charm includes the ruins of its Venetian castle, with the Church of Constantine visible inside, old castle walls (used by many residents to build parts of their houses), the old windmills, and the lovely neoclassical Town Hall, erected in 1907.  Also in Chora, you will find one of the best-preserved Byzantine churches in all of Greece, the Church of Theologos; as well as a small Archaeological Museum that documents the island’s history.     
 
The north of the island has several sites worthy of a visit.  The first is one of the main attractions of the island, the old Monastery of Taxiarhone, resembling an old castle with its 8-meter high outer walls.  The monastery dates to the 16th Century and was once home to 60 monks; today it is the residence of a local parish priest.  Not far from the monastery is the beautiful old village of Panagia, with the oldest church on the island, now some 1100 years old.  The west, south, and east coasts of the island have some lovely small fishing villages and some excellent sandy beaches.  Since the island’s entire coastline of 80 kilometers is heavily indented, you tend to find more small beaches and lovely coves, rather than long sandy stretches.