Watch out for dolphins as you sail east from Skiathos to neighboring Skopelos, which is more rugged and less-developed than Skiathos.  The island is covered in forests of pine, but also olive groves and orchards of plums and citrus fruits for which Skopelos is famed.

Skopelos has been occupied at various times by the Romans, Venetians, French and Ottomans, and its entire population is said to have been murdered by the pirate-admiral Barbarossa in the 16th century.  Things are quieter these days, but there was a fair amount of excitement on Skopelos a couple of years back during the filming of Mamma Mia in various locations on the south-west coast of the island when Pierce Brosnan, Meryl Streep and the rest of the film’s starry cast took up residence. Glossa, with its hillside houses distinguished by painted wooden trim and grey slate roofs, is one of the prettiest and sleepiest towns in the Sporades. Located near the northwest tip of the island, Glossa is much more rural and less developed than Skopelos Town, the main settlement of the island.

There are a couple of tavernas serving local specialities such as pork with prunes and in the small main square on one of the higher hillside terraces of the village, the locals sip coffee under the shade of a large mimosa tree. On a Glossa Skopelos boat charter, you can explore nearby beaches on the northeast-facing coast. Perivoliou is the best – it’s scenic, sandy and has enough surf for body-boarding. Ayios Ionnis Kastri is a picturesque church perched above a sandy cove and makes for an idyllic anchorage on a Glossa Skopelos yacht charter.