I took two trips with the Mercury Express and they were some of my most memorable days on Lesvos. There’s not much information online about tours and excursions in Lesvos so I thought I’d share some details here.
If you’re looking to take a boat trip in the Molyvos bay area the main two boats that run regular schedules are the Mercury Express and the glass-bottomed Calypso.
Additionally, there are some boats in Molyvos harbour that offer private hire and fishing trips – you can find out more about these by asking around the harbour or any travel agency in the area. I booked my trips with Lesvorama (simply because it was the one nearest to me) but the Mercury is actually run by the same people that run the tour agency next to the Seahorse Hotel in the harbour.
The Mercury Express schedule changes weekly and will vary a bit with the weather too.
Just to give you an example, when I was there in July it looked like this:
- Swim and Snorkel to Rabbit Island (Monday)
- Skala Sikamineas Starlight Cruise (Friday)
- Skala Sikamineas Day Cruise (Tues/Fri)
- Day Cruise with BBQ (Weds/Thurs/Sat/Sun)
The Calypso schedule looked like this:
- BBQ to Rabbit Island (Mon/Sat)
- Minicruise to Rabbit Island (Tues/Fri/Sun)
- Sunset cruise to Skala Sikamineas (Tues/Thurs/Fri/Sat/Sun)
- Day cruise to Skala Sikamineas (Weds)
Between the two you’re bound to find something that suits. I took the Sunset Cruise to Skala Sikamineas and the Day Cruise with BBQ, both with the Mercury Express. Here’s their website.
In Molyvos the boat leaves from the harbour, next to one of the restaurants (but not the Seahorse Hotel restaurant). You’ll see it, and there will be plenty of people waiting in the same area. The boat also picks up from Petra harbour before setting off on route. Looking at the schedule it lists Petra as the first stop but I’m not sure this was the case on both my trips.
My first pleasant surprise is that there are sun loungers up on the top deck of the boat so get up there quick if you want to bagsy one. The seating downstairs is bench-style and has a decent amount of shade.
It was reasonably windy on my first trip so I was a bit concerned about the sea being choppy but once we’d cleared Molyvos it was actually fine. Our Starlight Cruise left at 5:30pm and returned by 10pm (this might vary).
The trip to Skala Sikamineas was probably my favourite thing that I did on Lesvos. Before I booked I wondered if it would be worth it as it doesn’t include any food or time snorkelling on the beach.
It’s a tiny harbour village attached to the larger Sikamineas which is further uphill and inland.
But it’s SUCH a beautiful little village and it has a completely different feel to Molyvos. It’s in one of the greenest parts of the island, completely surrounded by pine forests and is so isolated on the coast it feels like you’re sailing to a tiny island. It reminded me a bit of Kastos near Lefkada (which I visited on a great boat trip with the MS Christina). You can’t get here by bus from Molyvos and there are only one or two places to stay.
It’s best known for its photogenic church next to the harbour, the Holy Church of the Dormition of the Virgin Mary, better known colloquially as the Church of the Mermaid Madonna. It was famous by the author Stratis Myrivilis who wrote ‘The Mermaid Madonna’ here in the 1950s. It’s a story of Greek refugees from Asia Minor in the 1920s, and the image of a mermaid Madonna mysteriously appears and disappears on the chapel wall.
If you want to spend some time at the beach there’s a small one behind the harbour but neighbouring Kagia Beach has much more space. It’s a 20-minute walk (with an uphill), maybe you can fit it in if you visit during the day but in the evening we didn’t have enough time. Just enough for a wander around the village, a quick shop, and then dinner.
And dinner is the main point here. There are two tavernas right on the harbourfront which seemed just enough to seat everyone who had come to visit that evening. I dined at Anemoessa whilst the sun went down. Perfect.
The other taverna is shaded by a magnificent mulberry tree. There are several cafe/bars and a few classy gift shops selling nice jewellery, rugs, and ceramics.
We sailed back to the last of the fiery sunset accompanied by some Greek music.
The second trip I took was the BBQ day cruise because I wanted to get some dedicated snorkelling time in. The snorkelling on Lesvos is fantastic – I think it must be thanks to the mineral-rich volcanic rocks on the seabed. A lot of beaches seem to have pebble seabeds in the shallows but sandy as it gets deeper – and as you get deeper the sea becomes a magnificent shade of turquoise.
Where the boat anchored we had a mix of pebble and sand. It was nice change to swim in deep water too as most of the beaches are pretty shallow and it takes a long time to wade out to a decent depth.
One thing to note is that the Mercury website mentions itineraries to Korokaki and the uninhabited Tokmakia Islands. This looks like a really beautiful area with untouched sandy beaches, but when I was there the boats weren’t going that far, rather we dropped anchor in a secluded bay east of Skala Sikamineas and had more time in the water. I have it earmarked for next time.
For the day cruise we left at around 10am and returned at 4pm. Lunch was included and the crew whipped up pork and chicken souvlaki, salads, and watermelon. A glass or two of local wine or beer is included but it isn’t an all-inclusive booze-cruise boat.
For getting in and out of the water there’s a ladder and several places to jump from. There were plenty of kids on the BBQ trip, whereas the evening cruise was mainly couples and solos. You do have to bring your own snorkel gear. The boat wasn’t overcrowded – Lesvos isn’t that kind of island thankfully.
Overall these were two very enjoyable experiences and I’m really glad I got to visit Skala Sikamineas and swim in the amazing turquoise seas (because the sea at the beaches, whilst clear, is definitely darker and not quite so enticing).
Read more about Lesvos:
How to Get Around Lesvos By Bus
A Quick Guide to Skala Eressos
Image credits: All images © The Mediterranean Traveller
