Neos Marmaras Guide: Sithonia's Biggest Resort Town

Neos Marmaras (Νέος Μαρμαράς, sometimes written Nea Marmaras or simply Marmaras) is the largest resort town on Sithonia, and it sits on the opposite coast from Sarti. It has a small harbour lined with seafood tavernas, a long history of refugees and monks behind it, one of Greece's best-known resorts next door at Porto Carras, and boats heading out to nearby islets.

If you are staying in Sarti, it makes an interesting day out. This guide covers what the town is, how to get there, what to do, and how it compares as a base.

What Neos Marmaras is

Neos Marmaras is a town on the Sithonia peninsula in Chalkidiki, Central Macedonia, in the municipality of Sithonia. It had about 3,000 permanent residents at the 2021 census (3,038), and the summer population rises to around 20,000.

The town sits on three shoreline hills below the mountains Itamos and Dragoudeli.

A refugee town

Neos Marmaras was founded in the mid-1920s by Greek refugees from the Marmara islands, after the Asia Minor catastrophe and the population exchange. The first refugees came ashore at a place then called Balabani.

Many residents also came from the mountain village of Parthenonas on Itamos, which was abandoned in 1970. The area had earlier been used by Athos monks for a metochi (dependency) of the Grigoriou Monastery, which still operates. The town became a popular tourist destination from the 1980s.

Getting there

From Sarti, Neos Marmaras is about 41 km by road. The drive time depends on season and traffic, so check a live map for it. That makes it a day trip rather than a quick hop.

From Thessaloniki it is roughly 115 to 125 km, depending on where in the city you start, and about two hours by car (our guide to getting to Sarti from Thessaloniki covers the Sarti end of the journey). The town is about 55 km from Polygyros and about 9 to 20 km from Nikiti, depending on which part of Nikiti you count from.

By bus, the KTEL timetable for autumn 2026 showed three buses a day each way between Thessaloniki and Sarti, calling at Nikiti and Neos Marmaras. The Thessaloniki to Neos Marmaras full fare was EUR 15.60. There is a Sarti connection: Sarti to Neos Marmaras takes about 60 minutes and costs EUR 6.40. Summer schedules differ, so check the official KTEL Chalkidikis (opens in a new tab) site for times on your date.

The harbour and boat trips

The heart of the town is a small harbour (a limanaki), lined with seafood tavernas that fill up in the evening. The refugee boat Santala is displayed in front of a wine bar.

Water taxis and small boats for 2 to about 150 people can be arranged with skippers on the quay. Typical destinations include Porto Carras, the Spalathronisia islands, Kelyfos and day cruises to the Kassandra coast, and there are trips along the Sithonia and Kassandra peninsulas with a swim stop at the islet Kelyfos. Times and prices change with the season, so ask at the harbour the day before. Our guide to Sithonia boat trips and day cruises covers the wider picture.

Kelyfos and Spalathronisia

Kelyfos (Κελύφος, "Turtle Island") is a small private islet just outside the bay opposite the town, shaped like a turtle and open to visitors. Spalathronisia is the largest island on the west side of Sithonia, near Azapiko Beach.

If boats appeal, our guide to Vourvourou and Diaporos Island covers the east coast version of the same idea, with island coves reached by boat or kayak.

Porto Carras

Porto Carras (Πόρτο Κάρρας) is a large resort just south of Neos Marmaras on the west coast. By road it is about 5 km, around 9 minutes, from the town. Sithonia has few giant hotel complexes, and Porto Carras is the big exception.

The resort was created by the Greek shipowner Yiannis Carras in the 1960s and 1970s, with the architect Walter Gropius involved in the early plans.

Its facilities include:

• Hotels: Meliton (5-star) and Sithonia (4-star), plus bungalow-style hotels.
• A large vineyard of around 475,000 square metres and tens of thousands of olive trees (figures vary, as our food and wine guide notes).
• Sports areas including golf, a spa and a casino.
• The largest private marina in northern Greece, with 315 berths.

The Porto Carras vineyard and wine cellar are worth a visit in their own right, and the wine Domaine Porto Carras comes from the estate. For more on the wine, see our guide to Greek food and wine of Chalkidiki.

Beaches near the town

The town has a choice of beaches, from the main town stretch to quieter bays a short drive away.

• The main town beach runs from the harbour towards Porto Carras. It is shallow and partly organised, with a lifeguard, parking and disability-accessible facilities.
• Banieres, beginning near the football ground, has coarse sand and a gently sloping seabed.
• The sand varies from fine to coarse along this stretch, so pick your spot once you see it.
• Azapiko is a well-known beach outside the town.
• Lagomandra is near Neos Marmaras and, like Porto Carras, has held Blue Flag status. The list changes each year, so check the Blue Flag Greece site, or see our guide to Blue Flag beaches in Sithonia and Chalkidiki.

Churches, history and the monastery connection

The main church is the Pammegiston Taxiarchon. A small chapel of Timios Prodromos (St John the Baptist) stands on the site of the first wooden church, with its feast on 29 August.

For the longer history, the two threads to hold on to are the refugee settlement of the 1920s and the older monastic link, since the Grigoriou metochi was there first.

Neos Marmaras versus Sarti: which base?

The real difference is character and coast.

• Coast: Neos Marmaras is on the west coast of Sithonia and Sarti is on the east, facing the Singitic Gulf and Mount Athos. Our Sarti beach guide explains the view Sarti has.
• Size: Neos Marmaras had 3,038 permanent residents in 2021 and about 20,000 in summer. Sarti had 1,054 at the same census.
• Resort scale: Porto Carras sits next door to Neos Marmaras.
• Distance between the two: about 41 km by road from Sarti; check a live map for the drive time.

Which suits you depends on whether you want a bigger harbour town with a large resort nearby or a smaller village on the sunrise coast. Many visitors will do both, with one as a base and the other as a day trip. To compare seasons, see our best time to visit Sithonia article: the air and rain figures there come from the Neos Marmaras weather station.

For the peninsula as a whole, our complete Sithonia guide puts the towns and beaches side by side.

If you decide to base yourself on the Sarti side, Sarti Thea Boutique Rooms is in Achlada, on the hill above Sarti harbour, with free parking on site for the drive across.

Practical checks

• Drive from Sarti: about 41 km by road; check a live map for the time.
• To Porto Carras: about 5 km, about 9 minutes from the town.
• Buses: KTEL Chalkidikis ran three a day each way via Neos Marmaras in autumn 2026, including to Sarti (about 60 minutes, EUR 6.40); check the official site for your date.
• Boats: times and prices change with the season; arrange them with skippers on the quay.
• Beaches: Blue Flag status changes yearly, and the sand varies from beach to beach.
• History in brief: founded in the mid-1920s; Porto Carras built in the 1960s and 1970s.

Quick answers

Is Neos Marmaras close to Sarti? Not very. It is about 41 km by road (check a live map for the time) and on the opposite coast of the peninsula.

Is it a village or a town? A town. It had 3,038 permanent residents in 2021 and about 20,000 in summer.

Where did the people come from? Greek refugees from the Marmara islands settled it in the mid-1920s, and many residents also came from Parthenonas, the mountain village on Itamos that was abandoned in 1970.

Can I take a boat from the harbour? Yes. Water taxis and small boats can be arranged with skippers on the quay; times and prices change with the season, so ask there.

Does Porto Carras have a wine estate? Yes. The Porto Carras vineyard and wine cellar are well worth a visit. We cover the wine side in more detail in the food and wine guide linked above.

Is there a Blue Flag beach in town? The awards change every year. Check the Blue Flag Greece site for the current list.

Quick facts