Tinos Yacht Anchorages: The Complete Guide

Tinos sits in the Cyclades.

The Cyclades are dominated by the summer Meltemi (Etesian) northerly, strongest mid-July to mid-August (around Force 5 to 7, gusting higher in open water).

Plan south legs downwind and overnight on lee and south coasts.

May, June and September are calmer.

This guide covers the island's main anchorages with the practical detail charterers and captains actually use: depth where a published cruising source documents it, holding, and shelter direction.

Where a figure was not documented we say so rather than guess.

Ashore: The Church of Panagia Evangelistria, the holiest Orthodox shrine in Greece (major pilgrimage on 15 August), the marble-sculpting village of Pyrgos, and over 1,000 Venetian-era dovecotes across villages like Volax and Kardiani.

Tinos is the pilgrimage island beside Mykonos and the one the captain crosses to with care, because the Mykonos-Tinos channel gusts hard in the Meltemi.

The five records are chosen by the wind: Panormos bay on the north-west, sand and seaweed with good holding, some Meltemi protection and an uncomfortable swell; Ayia Thalassa north of it, around five metres, the better shelter within the bay; Pourgia on the north side facing Andros, around seven metres with good holding, tenable with no Meltemi or in a southerly and exposed to the north; Kolympithra on the east, three to six metres over sand, good in calm or no-Meltemi conditions; the Chora and its port, the inner basin best protected, swell from the west and north-west, busy with ferries day and night, the church of Panagia Evangelistria above it.

Syros is 25 nautical miles from Mykonos on our distance table and Tinos lies between them.

The yachts that carry the Cyclades wind comfortably are the 20 metre and larger catamarans and the 26 metre and larger motor yachts: on the Greek Charter Index 2026 a 20 to 22 metre sailing catamaran runs EUR 31,500 to 43,500 a week, a 23 to 24 metre EUR 54,900 to 90,000, a 26 to 31 metre motor yacht EUR 35,900 to 75,000, per yacht before VAT and APA.

Where can a yacht anchor at Tinos?

Tinos has 5 anchorages in this guide: Panormos bay (NW coast), Ayia Thalassa (north of Panormos bay), Pourgia (north side, facing Andros), Kolympithra (east side), Tinos town / Chora (main port). Each entry below gives depth, holding, shelter direction and what is ashore.

Which Tinos anchorages are sheltered from the meltemi, the summer north wind?

Panormos bay (NW coast): Some protection from the Meltemi but uncomfortable swell. Kolympithra (east side): Good in calm or no-Meltemi conditions.

How deep are the anchorages at Tinos?

Ayia Thalassa (north of Panormos bay) around 5m; Pourgia (north side, facing Andros) around 7m; Kolympithra (east side) 3-6m. Depths are typical sand-bottom anchoring depths; the captain drops on current chart data.

What is the holding like at Tinos?

Panormos bay (NW coast): Sand and seaweed, good. Pourgia (north side, facing Andros): Good. Kolympithra (east side): Sand.

When is the best time to anchor at Tinos?

The Cyclades are dominated by the summer Meltemi, the northerly that blows hardest from mid-July to mid-August, around Force 5 to 7 and gusting higher in open water, and Tinos is the island where it is felt most on the crossing: the channel from Mykonos gusts hard, and the north-coast bays, Pourgia and Kolympithra, are for the days it is not blowing. The pilgrimage on 15 August fills the Chora. June and September are the months for the dovecote villages, Pyrgos and Volax, from a quiet anchorage, and on the Greek Charter Index the shoulder months price 15 to 25% below peak on the same rate card with three to four months of lead time rather than a year.

What does the captain plan around at Tinos?

Cross from Mykonos in the morning calm, never into the afternoon channel. The inner port at the Chora for the church and the town, with the ferry traffic expected day and night; Ayia Thalassa, around five metres inside Panormos bay, for the Meltemi night, tucked to the north; Pourgia, around seven metres, and Kolympithra, three to six over sand, only when the Meltemi is absent or the wind is south. Syros, with Finikas in three to six metres, is the bolt-hole of the group when Tinos has none. Depths and holding here follow published cruising sources; the captain confirms the anchor drop against current charts on arrival.

Cyclades

Saronic

Ionian

Sporades

Dodecanese

Crete