Schinoussa, like its neighbours Donousa and Koufonisia, has an easygoing pace and a rare sense of timelessness, although high season can be realtively lively. The island has a gentle landscape and the major settlement Hora (Panagia) has a long, narrow main street lying along the breezy crest of the island. There are several beaches scattered round the low-lying coast. On the way down to Tsigouri beach is a little folk museum that features a reconstructed bread oven. Opening hours go with the flow of island life.

Dirt tracks lead from Hora to beaches around the coast. The nearest are sandy Tsigouri and Livadi, both uncrowded outside August. Haul a little further to decent beaches at Almyros with its shallow water and the three small bays of Aligaria.

A little to the northeast of Iraklia, the island of Schinoussa  is just beginning to awaken to its tourist potential. Its indented outline, sweeping valleys and partly submerged headlands – such as the sinuous, snake-like islet Fidou – provide some of the most dramatic views in the group. Boats dock at the small port of Mersini, which has a taverna; a road leads up to Hora (also called Panayia)  with some stony shortcuts for the upper bends. There are no fewer than sixteen beaches dotted around the island, accessible by a network of dirt tracks. Tsigouri is a ten-minute track walk downhill from northwest Hora and gradually being developed.

Schinoussa is an island and a former community in the Cyclades, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Naxos and Lesser Cyclades, of which it is a municipal unit. It lies south of the island of Naxos, in the Lesser Cyclades group, between the island communities of Iraklia and Koufonisia. The specific geographical coordinates are 36°52’20.7″N 25°31’09.7″E in Aegean Sea.