More Information about Schinias and our Sxinias Villa on the Aegean Sea

 

 

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Can I contact you?

 

 

 

What is the general description of your house?

 

 

 

What are the bedrooms like?

 

 

 

Where is the swimming pool located?

 

 

 

Can You swim in the winter?

 

 

 

What is so special about Schinias Beach?

 

 

 

Are mass transit services available?

 

 

 

What is the privacy like in the vicinity of your house?

 

 

 

What is traffic like around your house?

 

 

 

What makes the Schinias Community so special?

 

 

 

Is the Schinias Community secure?  

 

 

 

What is the weather like there?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What is so special about Schinias Beach?

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Schinias Beach is perhaps one of the best beaches in the world for small children and adults alike.  The water is crystal clear and shallow.  The beach is protected and rarely has waves of any size.  It does not have any currents or tides to endanger children.  Small children can wade approximately fifty to one hundred meters (yards) out to sea and still be in water that is not over their heads.  Adults must wade about 200 meters out to reach chest deep water where they can either laze around chatting with friends or swim long distances unimpeded by waves and currents. Unlike most beaches in Greece, Schinias Beach is a sand beach with a pine forest growing down to the water’s edge. It is a perfect place for picnics.  Needless to say, it is very popular with Greek parents.  Located at the beach are numerous seafood restaurants and resort clubs offering a large variety of water sports.  Access to the Beach from our community is immediately adjacent to our guarded entrance.  Parking at the beach is plentiful and free.

 

Yahoo Travel rates it in its list of the ten top attractions for Athens area. Here is what they say about Schinias:

 

“The east coast of the Attica Peninsula can be reached within less than an hour from central Athens. This area is the site of Schinias Beach, one of the most beautiful bathing spots of Greece located near Marathon.

The major draw of Schinias is the picture-perfect coastal pine forest that reaches the water's edge as well as the fine sand of the beach. A number of tavernas cater to the needs of day trippers from Athens. Hotels can also be found a few kilometres from Schinias.

The bus to Schinias leaves from Mavromateon Street at the Pedion Areos Park (the nearest metro station is Victoria). For the current bus timetable call the above phone number. 30 210 821 0872”

 

Are mass transit services available? 

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Yes. When we don’t wish to drive into downtown Athens, we take the local bus that connects into the excellent mass transportation system in Athens (subway, surface rail, and bus, thanks again to the Olympics,).  Driving around Athens is difficult because of traffic, lack of parking, narrow crowded poorly defined streets, and poor maps.  I perfer public transportation.  There are numerous bus stops in the Schinias Marathon region.  My favorate is the one at Marathon because of the frequency of the bus service and because seats are always available.  The buses are all modern and new, again thanks to the Olympics.  The first morning bus leaves around 6 AM and the last bus from Athens arrives around midnight.  The bus takes about 45 minutes to reach the nearest subway stop in Athens and between an hour and to one and a half hours or more to reach downtown Athens as the bus is captive to traffic the same as other vehicles are.  The subway is immune to surface traffic and rapidly takes us to all of the sites of antiquity and museums, as well as connects to high speed rail service to other Greek cities and to the airport.  The subway also interconnects with Athens’ new tram system serving the waterfront and Piraeus. Unfortunately, we still need our car as the distances to the bus stops, local restaurants, supermarkets, etc. are too far for walking.   

 

What is the weather there?

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 I can not predict the weather but I can give you data averaged over the past 40 years. 

 

 

 

 

 

Month

 

Average temperature ranges

 

Average

relative

humidity

 (%)

 

Total rainfall

 

Rainy days

 

Average

daily sunshine duration

(hours)

 

oC

 

oF

 

mm

 

inches

low

high

low

high

Jan

6.5

12.9

43.7

55.2

72

44.6

1.82

13

4.5

Feb

6.9

13.6

44.4

56.5

71

48.3

1.90

13

5.1

Mar

8.4

16.0

47.1

60.8

68

42.6

1.68

11

6.0

Apr

11.6

20.3

52.9

68.5

62

28.2

1.11

10

8.0

May

15.4

25.3

59.7

77.5

58

17.2

0.68

7

9.8

Jun

20.1

29.8

68.2

85.6

52

9.7

.038

5

11.4

Jul

22.5

32.6

72.5

90.7

48

4.2

0.17

2

12.1

Aug

22.3

32.3

72.1

90.1

49

4.6

0.18

2

11.5

Sep

19.2

28.9

66.6

84.0

56

11.9

0.47

3

9.4

Oct

14.9

23.1

58.8

73.6

66

47.7

1.88

9

7.0

Nov

11.4

18.6

52.5

65.5

73

50.6

2.0

11

5.5

Dec

8.3

14.7

46.9

58.5

73

66.6

2.62

13

4.4

 

What is the general description of your house?

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Our house is located directly on the sea shore built into a hill side.  The distance between our rear gate and the sea is approximately 30 to 40 meters. The Aegean Sea is due south of our lot.  The area between our lot and the sea is a  “green area” protected from development. 

 

Our lot slopes down to the south toward the sea and is terraced in five levels.  The lowest level is the service entrance and parking area which is approximately 20 meters above sea level.  The second terrace is a small garden area paralleling the sea.  The third terrace contains the walk-out basement apartment and swimming pool level.  The fourth terrace is the level of the living room floor of the house.  The fifth terrace is the bedroom floor level. 

 

Our house is about 600 square meters in size (approximately 6000 square feet).  It has four stories with three of them having ground level access.  All four stories are serviced by an elevator and marble stairs.  The long axis of the house runs east west.  The southern side of the house faces the sea and the northern side faces inland. With the exception of the third and fourth floors of the house, the northern side is nested into the hill side and the other three sides are above grade with the south side having beautiful views of the sea, off shore islands, and the swimming pool level.  Needless to say, we have large balconies on the southern side that overlook the sea and swimming pool. These balconies also provide privacy for the occupants of the house from the pool level. 

 

Here is a synopsis of each floor of the house (the areas given are based upon exterior dimensions with the areas of balconies excluded):

 

walk-out basement level (two bedrooms, living and dining areas, kitchen, and a bathroom with laundry).  The north and east sides of the basement are below grade with its entrance on the south side.  The basement is on the same terrace as the swimming pool.  It has its private entrance as well as internal access to the other floors of the house. The area of the basement floor is 150 square meters.  The level of the basement and swimming pool is 24 meters above sea level.

 

the living floor (living room, dining room, water closet, kitchen with breakfast nook, informal dining area, entertainment area, atrium, and entrance foyer).  The formal entrance to the house is on the east side.  The kitchen is on the southeast corner with a large bay window overlooking the sea.  Two sliding glass doors and three windows are on the south wall of the living room with sea views and providing access to a balcony that runs the entire east-west length of the house.  Half of the balcony is covered with a roof to provide shade from the sun during the day.  The level of the living floor is 3.3 meters above the swimming pool level or 27.3 meters above sea level.  The area of the living floor is 190 sq meters.

 

the bedroom floor (a laundry room with washer and dryer, four bedrooms - two with private bathrooms and two that share one bathroom).  The level of the bedroom floor is 6.6 meters above the swimming pool level or 30.6 meters above sea level.  The area of the bedroom floor is 170 sq meters.

 

the master bedroom suite floor (bedroom, dressing room, bathroom, and walk in closet).   The master bathroom has a jacuzzi tub and a large walk-in shower.  The dressing room has a large marble and cherry wood double vanity.  The level of the master bedroom suite floor is 10 meters above the swimming pool level or 34 meters above sea level.  The area of the master bedroom floor is 80 square meters.

 

What are the bedrooms like?

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The bedroom floor has four bedrooms and is currently configured as follows:

 

Bedroom no. 1 sleeps two in one queen sized bed, is located on the seaward side of the house (southwest corner) and has a private entrance hall, a sliding glass door on the west side opening onto a private balcony with mountain and sea views, three southern windows with sea views, a private bathroom with walk-in shower, independent air conditioning, and a walk-in closet.  This bedroom is the second master bedroom in the house.

 

Bedroom no. 2 sleeps two in one queen sized bed, is located on the inland side (northwest corner) of the house and has a private bathroom with shower, laundry room with washer and dryer, independent air conditioning, and private entrance to the rear garden.  It has two exterior windows with one having a sea view and the other looking out on a lawn area.  This bedroom also has three interior windows with grills overlooking the atrium. 

 

Bedroom no. 3 sleeps two in one regular sized double bed and is located in the middle of the southern side of the house and has sea views.  It has a sliding glass door in its southern wall leading onto a very large balcony overlooking the sea and pool that is shared with bedroom no. 4, independent air conditioning, and a shared bathroom with bedroom no. 4. 

 

Bedroom no. 4 sleeps two in two single beds and is located on the southeast corner of the house and has sea views.  It has a sliding glass door in its southern wall leading onto a very large balcony overlooking the sea and pool that is shared with bedroom no. 3, independent air conditioning, and a shared bathroom with bedroom no. 3.   It also has a window in its eastern wall.

 

Where is the swimming pool located?

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Access to the swimming pool from the living level is down a flight of external stairs from the living room and kitchen.  The pool is located on the same level as the basement and surrounded on three sides by a patio.  The southern side of the pool faces the sea overhangs the lower garden. The swimming pool is a private residential pool and like most residential pools, we have no life guards on duty.  We do insist that children be accompanied by adults at all times and children who can not swim wear flotation devices. 

 

Can you swim in the winter?

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The swimming pool is not heated and the pool’s water is usually too cold for swimming from November through April.  The rainy season and cooler weather starts in late September and generally ends in early May.  Seasonal variations sometimes result in the swimming season starting earlier and ending later.

 

The water temperature in the Aegean Sea in the area cools during the winter but does remain warm enough for short swims.  The major factor governing swimming in the sea during the winter is air temperature.  Generally the air is too cool for comfortable swims from December through February.  However, we do have some days in the winter with no wind and warmer temperatures (15 degrees C) where the sun beams down making noon day swims in the sea possible.  I must say, however, that only a very few people do swim year round here in Greece.  Although neither the pool nor, most likely, the sea are suitable temperature wise for swimming during the winter and early spring, walks along the seashore are always pleasant and relaxing.  The views are always beautiful.  Traffic is essentially non-existent. 

 

What is the privacy like in the vicinity of your house?

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Our house, Schinias Villa, is located in Athens’ summer resort community of Schinias.  Our community is one of the very few planned communities in Greece.  Most of the land area is left as “green areas” and is in its natural state.  This means that we have a lot privacy form the open space and by not stacking houses one on top of the other as is done in Athens and most other communities in Greece. 

 

What is traffic like around your house?

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Our house is a corner lot.  Our lot is completely fenced in with a concrete wall topped with steel spears.  Both streets are dead end roads so we have no through traffic.  During the week we have almost no traffic at all.  On summer weekends, a lot of people from Athens come to Sxinias Beach and a few of them come into the community to swim in the cove below our house.

 

What makes the Schinias Community so special?

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Schinias is within the township of Marathon.  Marathon is located on the fringe of the Athens urban sprawl but it still retains its rural character. Many of its inhabitants commute daily to their jobs in Athens using either their private automobiles or the local bus service.   Day trips into Athens are easily done by private car or by using the local bus.  Access to the national highway and day trips to other sites of antiquity are fast and easy.  

 

Our house is located within the planned community of Dikaston Eisaggeleon Schinias, one of the most prestigious communities in Greece.  Most of the land within the Community Dikaston Eisaggeleon Schinias is set aside as "green" areas with only about 30% used for building lots.  The Community Dikaston Eisaggeleon Schinias is gated with a guard and is very secure.  The homes in Schinias range from small summer cottages to large villas. 

 

All of the geographic area of Schinias is a National Environmental Park as well as a European Union Environmental Preserve.  Only one road enters the park and it has no exit.  The only road into our community branches off the park’s road and also has no exit.  All of this means that we have very little automobile traffic making our community very private, very quite, and very safe. 

 

The lack of through traffic makes our roads ideal for walking and jogging.  We have a road and walking path that parallels the coast line just a few meters above the sea that is great walks in the cool of the afternoon and early evening.  (Due to Greece’s location relative to time zones, we have day light almost until 10 pm during the first part of June.)  One interesting day hike is to walk across country to the ferry port of St. Marina, take the ferry to the island of Evia, hike on the island then return to Sxinias.

 

Is the Schinias Community secure? 

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Yes.  Community Dikaston Eisaggeleon Schinias is very secure even though access is not restricted.  The community is gated with a guard.  During the summer when government dignitaries are in residence, we often have secret police and military guards on patrol.  The Greek fire department keeps a fire watch over the Marathon Plains from the hill by our entrance.  During the recent Olympic Games the countries of the United States, the United Kingdom, France, and China rented homes here to house their Olympic rowing teams rather than have them stay in the Olympic Village. 

 

Can I contact you about your home, Schinias, Athens, Greece, or your Art Gallery?

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Drop us an email any time at: info@sxinias.com  We will be happy to respond.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Home    Tour   Exterior    Living Level    Bedrooms   Penthouse  Basement  Schinias    Day Trips  Map   Information   Art Gallery