Schinias at a glance
Schinias (you'll also see it spelled Schoinias on road signs) sits at the north-eastern edge of the Marathon plain, in the Municipality of Marathon, roughly 45–50 kilometres from central Athens. The beach is a long, open stretch of sand closed off to the east by the Kynosoura peninsula, facing the South Evoikos Gulf, with the mountains of Evia opposite.
The whole area — beach, pine forest, wetland and the Rowing Centre — makes up the Schinias–Marathon National Park, a protected area of over 1,300 hectares established in 2000. The forest behind the sand is one of the very few surviving coastal stone-pine (Pinus pinea) forests in Greece, and that's exactly what gives Schinias its character: shade from real trees a few metres from the water, the smell of pine resin, and cicadas instead of music.
The beach has two faces. The western stretch, near the entrance from Marathon town, is organised: this is where you'll find the beach bars, sunbeds, watersports and the buzz. As you head east through the forest, the beach becomes free and unorganised: a towel under a pine tree, quiet, and the further you walk the fewer people you'll see.
Schinias — photos from the beach
3 photos · rotating every 3 seconds
🚗 ~50 km · 55–65 min
From Ioulianou 50 via Attiki Odos and Marathonos Avenue, no traffic. Tolls about €3.
🚌 KTEL bus from Nomismatokopeio
The Athens–Marathon line. Departures marked "PARALIA" (beach) drop you at Schinias. Ticket about €3.50–4.
🏝️ Sand & shallow water
Fine golden sand, the seabed deepens very slowly. Attica's best beach for small children.
🌲 Stone pines
National Park. Natural shade on the free stretch — and two historic beach bars on the organised one.
Why Schinias is different from the Riviera
On the Riviera beaches you reach by tram, the sea is the Saronic Gulf: pleasant, convenient, but with the city at your back. At Schinias you turn your back on the sea and look at forest. That changes everything — the temperature (pine shade is real shade, not an umbrella), the sound, even the smell.
The second difference is the sand. It's fine, soft, golden — not the coarse pebble of Mikro Sesi, not the mixed sand-and-gravel of Voula. And it carries on into the water: the seabed is sandy and shallow for many metres. You can walk 30–40 metres out and still be waist-deep. That's why it's the first beach I recommend to anyone travelling with small children.
The third is size. Three kilometres of sand means that even on a Sunday in August, there's a spot somewhere along the eastern half where you'll have 20 metres of sand to yourselves. That doesn't happen on the Riviera.
🌬️ The wind — and why surfers love Schinias
The Bay of Marathon is open to the north and east, so on days with the meltemi, Schinias picks up waves and the wind "pulls". It's not the ideal day for swimming with kids — go in the morning, when it's usually calmer, or check the forecast. For windsurfing and kitesurfing, though, Schinias is one of the best spots in Attica for exactly that reason: shallow water, a steady north wind, sand. Both beach bars below run schools and equipment rental.
Free or organised? Both — you choose
Leoforos Poseidonos — the road that enters the park from Marathon — runs parallel to the beach, through the forest. Along it are a series of entrances and parking spots between the pines. The rule is simple: the earlier you turn towards the sea, the more organised it gets; the further you go, the freer it gets.
- Organised stretch (west): sunbeds with an umbrella (prices vary by venue and day — expect beach-bar prices, not municipal-beach prices), showers, toilets, food, drinks, watersports, music. Ideal if you want comfort and buzz.
- Free stretch (east, among the pines): nothing but sand, trees and — in the summer months — a lifeguard at certain spots. Towel, cool box, umbrella if you don't grab a tree. No charge for the beach itself.
As for parking: on summer weekends and holidays, the car parks inside the park run on an organised basis with a small daily fee (a few euros — bring cash). On weekdays there's often no charge at all. Park only in the designated areas — this is a National Park and it is patrolled.
🍹 The two beach bars worth knowing
The organised part of Schinias has several venues, but two have written the beach's history — and sit almost next to each other, at the start of Leoforos Poseidonos. They have very different characters, so pick according to the day's mood.
⛵ Karavi (Karavi Beach)
The best-known name at Schinias, with decades of history. The "boat" is literal: a wooden hull with rigging that became the venue's trademark. Around it, palm trees, grass with green sunbeds, beach volleyball courts, loud music and a young crowd — a Sunday afternoon here feels more like Mykonos than Marathon.
It runs all day: coffee in the morning, beers and cocktails at midday, food (burgers, salads, grills, meze), and summer nights often bring parties. If you want buzz, company and a full-on beach bar, this is it. For quiet, head further east.
🏄 Moraitis Beach
A few metres further on, an entirely different atmosphere. Moraitis has been running since 1979 and is first and foremost a watersports centre: a school for windsurfing, wakeboarding, SUP, kayaking, catamarans, even triathlon training. The straw umbrellas and wooden sunbeds on the sand are more understated, the music lower, the crowd more "sporty".
The kitchen has a very good reputation for a beach bar — from breakfast through to a proper lunch — and the venue stays open year-round, from 9am until sunset, which makes it ideal for an October stroll with a coffee facing the sea. If you want to try windsurfing, this is the spot.
💡 Kathy's tip for the day
Morning on the free stretch, under a pine tree, with a cool box, water and fruit from Ioulianou. At midday, when the sun gets fierce, pack up and walk (or drive) 5–10 minutes to the organised stretch for food and coffee at one of the two venues. That way you only pay for a sunbed for half the day — or not at all — and you get both faces of Schinias in one visit.
🚗 Access by car from Ioulianou 50 — step by step
The main route is about 50 kilometres and takes 55 to 65 minutes with no traffic. Allow 1 hour 20 on a Saturday or Sunday morning in July. It's almost entirely main road — Attiki Odos and Marathonos Avenue — and the final stretch through the pine forest is paved. No dirt track, no worries for a rental car.
Step 1 — From Ioulianou 50 to Attiki Odos (15–20 minutes)
From Victoria you head onto Alexandras Avenue and continue onto Kifisias Avenue, heading north. Just past Marousi you join Attiki Odos towards Airport / Elefsina → Airport. Tolls on Attiki Odos are about €3 and take card.
Step 2 — Attiki Odos to the Pallini / Marathonos exit (10 minutes)
Stay on Attiki Odos towards the Airport and take the "Pallini – Marathonos Avenue – Rafina" exit. Follow the signs for Rafina / Marathon: you'll join Marathonos Avenue, the historic road linking Athens and Marathon — yes, it's the reverse route of the marathon race.
Step 3 — Marathonos Avenue: Pallini → Pikermi → Nea Makri → Marathon (25–30 minutes)
Marathonos Avenue passes through Pallini and Pikermi; at the Rafina junction continue straight towards Marathon (not right for Rafina), it descends into Nea Makri and runs alongside the sea towards Marathon. Just past Nea Makri, on your right, you'll see signs for the Tomb of the Marathon Warriors — if you have 20 minutes, it's worth the stop on the way back.
Step 4 — Marathon → Schinias through the pine forest (10 minutes)
Before you enter the town of Marathon, follow the signs for "Schinias" and "Olympic Rowing Centre": turn right towards the sea onto Leoforos Poseidonos. Within a few minutes you'll pass the National Park sign and the road sinks into the stone pines. The first venues you'll see on your left are Karavi and Moraitis — for the organised stretch, park here. For the free stretch, keep going straight and pick one of the entrances among the pines.
🗺️ Map 1: Ioulianou 50 → Schinias by car (the full route)
The route via Kifisias, Attiki Odos, Marathonos Avenue and Nea Makri. Tap the beach pin for Google Maps directions from the apartment.
🛣️ The toll-free alternative: via Dionysos
If your GPS suggests Kifisia → Dionysos → Nea Makri, that also works: about 46 kilometres, no tolls, through the pine-covered slopes of Mount Penteli with lovely views over the Evoikos Gulf on the way down. It's a mountain road with bends and one lane each way, though — slower in practice and not for anyone prone to car sickness. For a first visit, stick to Attiki Odos.
🚌 Access by bus (Attiki KTEL) — step by step
This is the part most guides get wrong, because it changed. Schinias is not served by Athens' urban buses (OASA) — it's outside their area. You go by the intercity Attiki KTEL, on the Athens – Nea Makri – Marathon line. And the line's starting point is no longer Pedion tou Areos (Mavromataion), as older guides say — since 2021 it has moved outside Nomismatokopeio metro station, on Mesogeion Avenue.
Step 1 — Ioulianou 50 → Nomismatokopeio metro station (25–30 minutes)
From Victoria (Line 1) take the metro towards Piraeus and get off at Omonia (2 stops). Change there onto Line 3 (blue) towards Airport / Doukissis Plakentias and get off at Nomismatokopeio — 9 stops, about 15 minutes. A single 90-minute ticket (€1.20) covers both lines. Coming out of the station, the KTEL stops are right outside, on Mesogeion Avenue — look for the big coaches signed "RAFINA", "N. MAKRI", "MARATHONAS".
Step 2 — The right bus: "MARATHONAS – PARALIA"
The Marathon line runs about 12 departures a day. Most terminate in Marathon town, 4 kilometres before the beach. The ones you want are the departures marked "PARALIA" (beach) on the KTEL timetable: these continue from Marathon town to Schinias and drop you on Leoforos Poseidonos, right by the beach bars. At the time of writing, the "PARALIA" departures from Nomismatokopeio are at 10:05 and 16:15, on weekdays and weekends.
Ask the driver before boarding — "does this go to Schinias beach?" — and they'll confirm. The ticket is issued on board (or at the terminal's ticket office) and costs about €3.50–4 per person, one way. Bring cash to be safe. The journey, via Marathonos Avenue and Nea Makri, takes about 1 hour 15 minutes to the beach.
Step 3 — Getting back
Same rule in reverse: Marathon → Athens buses marked "PARALIA" pass the Schinias stop before continuing to Marathon town. The afternoon departures that suit best are usually around 15:30 and one more early evening. If you miss the last "PARALIA" bus, you have two options: a taxi to Marathon town (a few euros, 4km) and any bus to Athens from there until late evening, or — for walkers — 45 minutes on foot through the plain.
⚠️ Check the timetable before you set off
KTEL times change by season, and in autumn 2026 roadworks in Marathon are affecting some routes. The official source is ktelattikis.gr (the "Rafina – Nea Makri – Marathon" page) and the phone line 210 88 08 000. Check the night before — and ask us at reception, we check it regularly.
🗺️ Map 2: Nomismatokopeio → Schinias by bus
The intercity bus route from the terminal outside Nomismatokopeio metro, via Marathonos Avenue, Nea Makri and Marathon town, to the beach stop.
🗺️ Map 3: Inside Schinias — what's where
The two beach bars at the start of Leoforos Poseidonos, the free stretch among the pines further east, and the Olympic Rowing Centre behind the forest.
📍 For your GPS
On Google Maps type "Karavi Schinias" or "Moraitis Beach" for the organised stretch, or just "Schinias beach" for the park. Signal is good at the park entrance — it drops inside the forest, so decide where you're stopping before you go in.
⚠️ When to go — and when not to
Schinias is big, so it doesn't "fill up" the way a small beach does. What fills up is the road and the parking: on a Sunday in July, after 11am, Leoforos Poseidonos through the forest crawls along and the car parks near the venues are full. So:
- A weekday is always better — especially June and September, when the sea is warm and the forest is almost yours.
- If it's the weekend: leave Ioulianou before 9am by car. By bus, the 10:05 departure gets you there just before 11:30 — tight, but you skip the parking problem.
- On days with a strong north wind (above force 5), Schinias is for surfers, not families. Head to A' Plaz Voula instead, which is sheltered.
- Late afternoon, 5–7:30pm: the crowds thin out, the light comes in low through the pines, and the sea usually settles. The best swim of the day.
What to bring — checklist
- Beach towel or a straw mat — for the free stretch. (Not the apartment's white towels, please 🙏.)
- Umbrella — optional. Arrive before 10am and you'll find a pine tree; after that, maybe not.
- Water and snacks — there's no kiosk near the free stretch. The venues are at the western end.
- Cash — for parking, the bus ticket, and just in case at the venues.
- Sunscreen and a hat — the sand and shallow water reflect a lot.
- Sand toys if you have kids — worth it here, the sand is perfect for castles.
- Insect repellent for the evening — there's a wetland next door, and after 7pm the mosquitoes come out.
- A bag for your rubbish — it's a National Park. Whatever you bring, take back.
- A screenshot of the KTEL timetable, if you're going by bus.
🗓️ How to plan your day — Kathy's schedule
Two versions, depending on how you travel. Both for a weekday in June or September.
| Time | 🚗 By car | 🚌 By bus |
|---|---|---|
| 8:30am | Coffee and cheese pie from a bakery on Ioulianou, water from the supermarket, and set off. | Same breakfast, more relaxed — you've got time. |
| 9:30am | Arrival at Schinias. Park on the free stretch, pick a pine tree, first swim. | Metro Victoria → Omonia → Nomismatokopeio. At 10:05 the "MARATHONAS – PARALIA" bus. |
| 11:30am | Swim, walk along the sand towards Kynosoura, read in the shade. | Arrival at the beach stop. Towel on the sand next to the venues, or a 10-minute walk east for quiet. |
| 1:30pm | Lunch at Moraitis (quieter, good kitchen) or Karavi (livelier). Cold beer, salad, grilled food. | |
| 3:00–5:00pm | Siesta in the shade, or a windsurfing/SUP lesson at Moraitis if you're up for it. | |
| 5:00–6:30pm | The best swim of the day, with the crowds gone. | Last swim until 5pm — then to the stop in time for the afternoon "PARALIA" bus to Athens. |
| 6:45pm | Head back with a 20-minute stop at the Marathon Tumulus for the golden light. | On the bus; Nomismatokopeio around 7:15pm, Ioulianou before 8pm. |
🌊 What else is nearby
- Tomb of the Marathon Warriors: the burial mound of the 192 Athenians who fell in 490 BC, 5 minutes from the park entrance. Schinias is exactly where the Persian ships anchored — you're swimming in history. Full details in our Marathon–Vravrona day trip guide.
- Olympic Rowing Centre: the artificial lake from the 2004 Games, behind the forest. A quiet spot for a walk or a bike ride, with the mountains reflected in the water — and often rowing training in the morning.
- The wetland and Kynosoura: for keen walkers, the eastern end of the beach leads to the rocky peninsula. Birds, tamarisks, and almost no one.
- Mikro Sesi: 20 minutes further north, through Grammatiko, a completely different beach with pebbles and island-like water — we wrote about it yesterday. By car, the two combine perfectly in one day.
- Rhamnous: the ancient fortified deme with the Temple of Nemesis, 20 minutes north. One of Attica's most atmospheric ancient sites, almost always empty.
Frequently asked questions
Can I get to Schinias by public transport?
Yes. By the intercity Attiki KTEL, on the Athens–Marathon line, from the terminal outside Nomismatokopeio metro station (Line 3). Choose the departures marked "PARALIA" (about 10:05 and 16:15), which continue to the beach. Ticket about €3.50–4, journey about 1 hour 15 minutes. The other departures terminate in Marathon town, 4km from the beach.
Does the KTEL still start from Pedion tou Areos / Mavromataion?
No — that's the most common mistake. Since 2021 the starting point for buses to Rafina, Nea Makri and Marathon is outside Nomismatokopeio metro station, on Mesogeion Avenue. From Ioulianou 50 you reach it in 25–30 minutes by metro (change at Omonia).
Is it an organised beach?
Both. The western stretch, near the entrance, has beach bars (Karavi, Moraitis and others) with sunbeds, food and watersports. The eastern stretch, among the pines, is free, with no charge and no facilities beyond a lifeguard in summer.
Is it suitable for children?
It's arguably Attica's best beach for small children: fine sand, water that stays shallow for dozens of metres, natural shade. The only caveat is days with a strong north wind, which brings waves — check the forecast.
Do I have to pay to get in?
Not for the beach. On summer weekends and holidays, the organised car parks inside the National Park charge a small daily fee (a few euros). Sunbeds at the beach bars are charged separately.
How far is it from Ioulianou 50 by car?
About 50 kilometres via Attiki Odos and Marathonos Avenue — 55 to 65 minutes with no traffic, up to 1 hour 20 on a weekend morning. Tolls about €3. The whole road is paved.
Is there food?
Yes, on the organised stretch. Karavi (Poseidonos 198) and Moraitis Beach (Poseidonos 210) serve everything from coffee and breakfast to a proper lunch, at beach-bar prices. On the free stretch, bring your own.
When's the best time to go?
On a weekday, in June or September, morning or late afternoon. On weekends, go before 9am by car, or take the 10:05 KTEL bus and skip the parking altogether.
Sources:
- Attiki KTEL — Rafina – Nea Makri – Marathon timetable (Nomismatokopeio terminal, "PARALIA" departures)
- Municipality of Marathon — Attiki KTEL bus timetables and announcement of the terminal's relocation (2021)
- NECCA — Schinias–Marathon National Park (area, protection status)
- Moraitis Beach — Schinias (since 1979, watersports, hours)
- Karavi Schinias — official page
- Travelstyle — Schoinias Beach, Attica: the route and tips (in Greek)
- Route data: OpenStreetMap / OSRM (distance and driving time with no traffic)
— Kathy
