The beautiful Astypalea Island or Astypalaia is small island in most western archipelago of the Dodecanese group on the Greek Aegean Sea.
The island is southwest of the beautiful Kos Island and the beautiful Kalymnos Island, southeast of the beautiful Paros Island, the beautiful Naxos Island and Amorgos Island and northeast of the beautiful Santorini Island or Thira.
It stretches about 97 square kilometres, very near to the islands in the Cycladic group of islands in its neighbourhood. The island is very narrow almost in the middle of the island that seems like dividing it into two parts, the northeastern and the southwestern parts, as the island lies in a diagonal position.
That band of land runs about 10 kilometres shaping the island as a butterfly. This shape might have reflected in the Greek mythology as it says that Astypalea was a woman before Poseidon abducted her and shaped her with wings and a tail of a leopard. However, no band of land makes this tail.
This band of the beautiful Astypalea Island faces the islets of Chondro, Glyno, Agia Kyriaki, Koutsomyti and Kounoupi on the south of it and Fokionisia at the north.
The Municipality of Astypalea is part of Kalymnos peripheral unit. There are more than 1,238 inhabitants in the island. Astypalea has beautiful green valleys and coves with stunning views.
The Italians called it Stampalia and the Ottomans called it Istanbulya. The very interesting thing about this name, is that it is relevant to the word "aspitalia", which it means hospital in some local Arabic speaking areas in the middle east that Turkey had ruled in the past. The word was, apparently converted from "astypalea".
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Most of the activities in the beautiful Astypalea Island are on the Capital Astypalea Town or Hora Town as the local call it, which is at the top of the hill and on the beautiful resorts on the eastern and southern coast of Astypalea.
There are more than five flights weekly from the beautiful Astypalea Island or Astypalaia to Athens, three flights weekly to the beautiful Rhodes Island, the beautiful Leros Island and Kos.
Ferries connect the island with the mainland and other islands on the Aegean Sea. There are more than five ferries weekly to Piraeus in Greece connecting with the islands of Naxos and Paros. Two ferries run weekly to Rhodes connecting with Kalymnos and Kos.
Interiorly, there are excursion boats that run to the remote beaches of Vatses, Agios Ioannis and Kaminakia. The excursion boats go from the beautiful Astypalea Island or Astypalaia to the islets of Kounoupa and Koutsomytis, as well.
Buses run more than three times daily between the main towns in the island, connecting Hora with Skala, Livadia and Analipsi, as well as taxis. There are some cars rental and scooters rental outlets.
Astypalea Beautiful Towns:
The main settlements in the beautiful Astypalea Island or Astypalaia are the capital, Astypalea or Hora and Skala, or as the locals call it Pera Yialos, or Pera Gialos.
Hora or Chora has remains of a Venetian castle from the 15th century, with footbaths lead to it and windmill square at the top with restored mills on the way.
Giovanni, one of the Venetian Quirini families built the castle in 1413. The people in this area lived inside the area of the castle in the Middle Ages to protect themselves from outsiders' attacks.
The earthquake destroyed the stone built house and the inhabitants departed from the area starting of 1953.
People enjoy stunning views from the top of the town. Beautiful white coloured Greek houses with bright coloured doors, balconies and banisters surround the area of the Venetian Kastro.
Pera Gialos or Skala, which is connected to Astypalea, was the main port of the island until the port moved to Agios Andreas on the middle of the island.
From the centre of Skala, a steep road leads to Hora and another road at the right of it leads to the airport, running through beautiful land.
It has a small archaeological museum at the beginning of the road that leads from Skala to Hora presenting the archaeological treasury of the the beautiful Astypalea Island, including collections from the Mycenaean period to the Middle Ages.
It displays findings such as Mycenaean chamber tombs from the excavation done in Armenohori, Aphrodite's small Roman bronze statue from the excavation done in Trito Marmari. Those are beautiful towns in Astypalea.
Other beautiful towns, beautiful beaches and beautiful hotels in Astypalaea are down on the second section of the page below the form. Cheap flights with cheap hotels in the beautiful Astypalea Island are affordable. See the image at the right column.
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