Question 1

Where does my host deliver the car in Chios?

Accepted Answer

Most Sync hosts deliver to your hotel or any address in Chios Town, or to Chios Airport (JKH), which is 4km south of the city center. If you're arriving by overnight ferry, your host can meet you at the port in the morning when you disembark. Agree on the exact time and location when you book. Your host will confirm before arrival.

Question 2

What is mastic and why does it only come from Chios?

Accepted Answer

Mastic is a resin that oozes from wounds in the bark of the Pistacia lentiscus tree. When it dries in the air it hardens into translucent, slightly pine-scented teardrops. The same tree species grows across the Mediterranean, but it only produces harvestable quantities of resin in the south of Chios, in an area of about 70 sq km around 24 villages called the Mastichochoria. Why only here remains not fully explained: the microclimate, soil chemistry, and local growing conditions all seem to combine in a way that doesn't replicate elsewhere. Attempts to grow productive mastic trees in other parts of Greece and the Mediterranean have consistently failed.

The harvest process is entirely manual. In July and August, producers score the bark with a special tool to open small cuts, then clean the ground beneath the tree and spread white calcium carbonate powder on it. The resin drips from the cuts and falls onto the white ground, where it can be collected after it hardens. Each tree produces about 60-200 grams per year.

Mastic has been traded since antiquity. Under Ottoman control (1566-1912), the Mastichochoria villages were given special privileges because of the Sultan's demand for mastic: it was used to freshen breath in the imperial harem. The Genoese controlled the trade in the medieval period. Today mastic has EU Protected Designation of Origin status and is used in liqueur (Mastihashop, Skinos), chewing gum, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, and as a cooking ingredient.

You can buy mastic products directly from the Chios Mastiha Growers Association (CMGA) shops in Chios Town and in Pyrgi village. The pure crystalline resin, the liqueur, and the chewing gum are the most distinctive purchases. Prices are lowest at source.

Question 3

What makes the Mastichochoria villages worth visiting beyond the mastic?

Accepted Answer

The Mastichochoria are a group of medieval fortified villages in the south of Chios, built by the Genoese in the 14th and 15th centuries specifically to house and protect the mastic-producing population. Their layout is unlike any other villages in Greece: they were designed as fortresses from the beginning, with the outer ring of houses forming a continuous defensive wall, a single heavily fortified entrance gate, a central watchtower (the pyrgos), and a dense internal maze of lanes so narrow that two people can barely pass.

Pyrgi is the most distinctive: the exterior walls of the houses are decorated with a geometric black-and-white pattern called xysta, made by scratching through a layer of dark plaster to reveal the white underneath. The pattern covers the entire village, every facade, and creates an effect that looks like nothing else in Greece. Pyrgi is 25km from Chios Town.

Mesta is the best-preserved of the medieval villages in terms of its fortified structure: the stone buildings, the single surviving gate, the vaulted passageways between buildings, and the central square with the medieval church are largely intact. It's less tourist-oriented than Pyrgi and easier to wander in without crowds. Mesta is 26km from Chios Town.

Olympi is smaller and even less visited, with the original central tower (pyrgos) still standing. Between the three villages, Pyrgi for the xysta pattern, Mesta for the medieval atmosphere, Olympi for the pyrgos and the quiet. All three are within a few kilometers of each other in the south of the island and can be visited in a half-day loop from Chios Town.

Question 4

What is Nea Moni and why is it considered one of the finest Byzantine monuments in Greece?

Accepted Answer

Nea Moni (New Monastery) is an 11th-century Byzantine monastery 15km west of Chios Town, set in the mountains at about 450m altitude. It was built between 1042 and 1055 under the patronage of Emperor Constantine IX Monomachos, who funded it lavishly after three monks from Chios reportedly performed a miracle for him. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

What makes it exceptional is the mosaics. The katholikon (main church) contains a cycle of Byzantine mosaics dating from the 11th century that are among the finest surviving examples of middle Byzantine art in the world. The figures, on a gold ground, show the Baptism, the Crucifixion, the Descent into Hades, and individual saints, executed with a quality of craftsmanship that was matched only in Constantinople itself. The 1881 earthquake badly damaged the dome and part of the church, but the surviving mosaics in the narthex and nave remain largely intact.

The monastery also holds a painful secondary history: during the Chios Massacre of 1822, Ottoman forces killed most of the monks and many islanders who had taken refuge inside the walls. The ossuary near the entrance contains the skulls and bones of those killed, displayed openly as a memorial.

The drive to Nea Moni from Chios Town (15km, about 25 minutes) passes through pine forest and arrives at the monastery on a ridge with wide views over the island. The monastery is open most of the day; a dress code applies (shoulders and knees covered). Allow 1.5-2 hours for a proper visit including the mosaics and the ossuary. Go in the morning when the mosaics catch the best light through the windows.

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Frequently asked questions about car rental in Chios

Where does my host deliver the car in Chios?

What is mastic and why does it only come from Chios?

What makes the Mastichochoria villages worth visiting beyond the mastic?

What is Nea Moni and why is it considered one of the finest Byzantine monuments in Greece?

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