Ermoupoli Waterfront

Ermoupoli, the capital of Syros, was founded in the 1820s by refugees from islands such as Chios and Psara who fled the Greek War of Independence, and the town was named after Hermes, the god of trade. In the nineteenth century it grew into the leading port of Greece, with shipyards, factories and merchant fleets, and the waterfront reflects that wealth. Today the Ermoupoli Waterfront is a broad curved promenade lined with elegant neoclassical buildings, one of the grandest harbour fronts on the Aegean Sea.

The seafront district to the east, called Vaporia, takes its name from the steamships, or vapores, that once docked here. Its streets of tall stone mansions built for shipowners and merchants, with ornate balconies and carved doorways, step down to rocky platforms at the water's edge, where waves lap just below the terraces. Some of the houses have been restored as hotels and cafes, and the walk along the coast at sunset is a local ritual.

The central harbour is dominated by Miaouli Square, a large marble-paved plaza named after Admiral Andreas Miaoulis, a hero of the war of independence, whose statue stands in its centre. The Town Hall, completed in the late nineteenth century to a design by the architect Ernst Ziller, closes the north side and is one of the most imposing neoclassical buildings in Greece. Ziller also designed the Apollon Theatre, a small opera house that took inspiration from La Scala, a few steps away. Cafes under arcades around the square make it a popular place to sit.

Visitors can follow the paved promenade along the harbour, with tavernas serving fresh fish and meze, and bars that fill in the evening. Narrow lanes lead inland from the waterfront to the Archaeological Museum, the Church of Saint Nicholas and the old shipyard district of Neorio. Above the town, the hilltop settlement of Ano Syros, a medieval Catholic quarter founded in the thirteenth century, is a short but steep walk away, with the cathedral of Saint George at the summit and wide views over the sea.

The waterfront is free and open all day. It is flat and easy to walk, and lively until late. Summer evenings are busiest, but the town is a year-round, working city rather than a resort, so cafes and the promenade stay active outside high season too.