Ηiking & accommodation on Ikaria

The Ikarian Centre is located on the island of Ikaria and offers educational, cultural and agricultural programmes and activities to the island’s visitors. The Centre’s headquarters on the rural and mountainous village of Arethousa, away from the usual crowded tourist destinations, include seminar rooms for small groups of students and a small hostel for small groups or individuals visitors

At 1997 the Centre hosted the 4th European Volunturly Service (EVS) project that took place in Greece. The purpose of the project was to clean an and mark some of the old main footpaths connecting the villages of the island.

Today we offer hospitality at the Centre’s hostel on the picturesque and quiet Arethousa, to anyone who wants to stay with us and to escape from the usual tourist destinations and habits and wish to spend some days in a rural environment, close to the nature.

We also offer hiking & learning programs that combine accommodation, hiking with a guide, eco-guided activities, visits to the island’s artisans and lectures – discussions that allows visitor to get to know the natural and cultural environment of the island better and at the same time to enjoy the time they spend on the island.

The rescue, the management and the development of the island’s natural and cultural environment is still between our interests. For this reason, we organize voluntary projects for the maintenance the mapping of the old footpaths of Ikaria.

The Centre also offers Greek language courses to foreigners since 1995. Today summer language courses are also offered on the island of Samos. Also since winter 2009 the Centre offers Greek language courses on-line.

The Centre’s infrastructure in Arethousa, including the hostel and the seminar rooms, is available to teachers, organizations or small groups of people that wish to organize a short or a longer meeting or course.

For Ikaria’s visitors, groups and individuals, not residents of Ikarian Centre’s hostel.

Only few places in the Aegean islands can claim such a diversity of wild and primeval natural beauty.

There are several hiking & trekking tours you could get along for all levels of ability, to an astonishing range of habitats from sea shores to the mountain tops, through
• ancient paths and trails
• stone-paved mule tracks
• riverbeds
• gorges
• forests
• valleys
• fresh water streams
…and so many other exceptional landscapes.

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