Skinaria Beach Bar — The Remote One Worth Reaching

The track to Skinaria is not for nervous drivers. It descends through scrubland on a surface that alternates between loose gravel and exposed rock, and after ten minutes you begin to wonder if you’ve taken a wrong turn. Then the cove appears — a small bay ringed by cliffs, with water so clear the bottom is visible from the clifftop, and a black-pebble beach with room for perhaps 40 people maximum.

The beach bar is a wooden structure at the back of the beach with parasols, sun loungers, and a kitchen that operates on the correct assumption that people who’ve made this journey are happy with good simple food.

The Experience

This is a full-day destination rather than a meal stop. The snorkelling is the draw: the water stays shallow for 20 metres, then drops off into a rocky reef on the eastern side of the cove that hosts grouper, octopus, sea urchins, and — if you’re lucky — the occasional passing sea turtle. The visibility is among the best on the island when the water is calm.

The beach bar has snorkelling masks and fins for rent; the owners know the reef and will tell you where to look.

The Food

The kitchen is small and the menu reflects this honestly: club sandwiches, Greek salads, grilled cheese wraps, cold drinks. It’s beach food at a beach — the point is not the food. But the Greek salad is made with proper tomatoes and good feta, and the homemade lemonade (whole lemons, water, mint, sugar) is one of the best cold drinks available in the south of the island.

Cold beer — a Mythos, condensation running down the side, after 45 minutes of snorkelling. No further description needed.

Getting There

By car: from Keri village, take the track signed for Skinaria. Allow 15 minutes of careful driving. By boat: water taxis occasionally run from Keri Lake — ask at the Keri harbour in the morning.