Tinos looks small from the ferry deck, but it is a long, mountainous island, roughly 40 kilometres from end to end, and its best places are scattered across it: marble villages on the slopes, beaches on the north coast, monasteries on the ridges. How you move between them shapes your stay more than most visitors expect, so here is what we tell friends who ask.
Do you need a car on Tinos?
It depends on how you want to stay. If you will spend your days in Chora, the port town, and take the odd bus to a beach, you can manage without one. If you want to wander between villages, reach a trailhead early, or sleep in a quiet village such as Dyo Choria or Triantaros, a car, or at least a scooter, turns a good holiday into an easy one. Most guests who stay with us hire one for part of the week at least.
The KTEL bus: cheap, slow and charming
Tinos has a public bus network run by KTEL, with the central station in Chora a short walk from the port. Five main routes link the town with dozens of stops, including Tarambados, Kardiani, Pyrgos, Panormos, Volax and Falantados. In summer the popular routes run several times a day; in spring and autumn there are fewer departures, and in winter fewer still. Evening service is limited and late returns from the villages are rare, so plan your way back before you set out. Fares are modest, and timetables change from year to year, so check kteltinou.gr or ask at the station the day before. The bus is a lovely way to see the island if you are not in a hurry, and a frustrating one if you are.
Taxis
The island has a small taxi fleet, and cars wait at the port, in Chora and in the larger villages. A taxi is the practical answer for a late arrival off the ferry, a one-way walk with a lift back, or a dinner in a village where you would rather not drive. In August, especially around the 15th, book ahead. Ride-hailing apps such as Uber do not operate on Tinos.
Hiring a car or a scooter
Several rental agencies work from Chora near the port. A small car is all you need: village lanes are narrow and walled in stone. In July and August reserve about a week ahead; the rest of the year you can often arrange it on arrival. Scooters are popular, but you need the right licence, helmets are mandatory, and the meltemi wind makes exposed ridge roads tiring on two wheels. Read the insurance terms, and ask whether unpaved roads to remote beaches are covered.
If you would rather book before you travel, you can compare car rental prices on Tinos on DiscoverCars. (Partner link: we may earn a small commission, at no extra cost to you.)
Driving on Tinos: a few honest tips
Main roads are generally well kept, but mountain roads are narrow and winding and a few routes to remote beaches are unpaved. Distances look short on the map and run long on the ground: Chora to Volax is about 13 kilometres, Chora to Pyrgos about 23, which is 35 to 40 minutes at a calm pace. Village streets were laid out for donkeys and dovecote keepers, not for cars, so drive slowly past the marble lintels and sound your horn on blind bends (read more about the dovecotes of Tarambados and the villages of Tinos). Parking in Chora fills up quickly in summer: arrive early, or leave the car a little way out and walk in.
Where to stay, and how to get around from our villages
Our four holiday houses are traditional Cycladic stone houses in Dyo Choria and Triantaros, renovated into quiet vacation rentals with terraces over the Aegean. They are the kind of place where you park once and walk to the square for coffee, then drive out for beaches and monasteries. If you are still deciding where to stay in Tinos, our advice is a hired car for the days you plan to explore; read how to get to Tinos for the ferries. Blue Horizon suits a group sharing a car, and the others sleep two to six. Message us through the enquiry form with your dates and we will help you plan the logistics.
