Ierissos is one of the oldest and largest villages of the Municipality of Aristotle. It is a beautiful and modernly built seaside town with a rich historical and cultural heritage. The inhabitants of Ierissos, Stratoniki and Stagira are locals and their main occupations are tourism, fishing, mining, agriculture, logging and services.
It is historically the continuation of ancient Akanthos. The excavations in the area began about 25 years ago in the cemetery of Akanthos, right where today’s Ierissos is built. More than 9,000 Hellenistic and Classical tombs have been excavated and most finds are found in the Archaeological Museum of Polygyros. Throughout the Ottoman period it was one of the Mademoiselle. The inhabitants of Ierissos participated in the revolution of 1821. The current settlement was built from the beginning when the old one was flattened – after the seven-wheeler earthquake of 1932.
At the entrance of Stratoni stands out the tower of Krouna and a little further out of the harbor stand the walls of Ancient Akanthos. Particularly important is the natural peculiarity of the Municipality, which starts from mountainous and forested areas, leading to open seas and clear sandy beaches, while the islet of Ammouliani is the only one in the wider region. Most tourists visit Ierissos either to get to Mount Athos or to enjoy its sandy beaches. It has the advantage of having beaches suitable for swimming and awarded with blue flag, beach bars, cafes and taverns in the settlement, on the coastal pedestrian street that make it a unique holiday destination. Departing from Ierissos towards Nea Roda, you will see left and old shipyards.
The area has many interesting customs. Of particular interest is the custom in the so-called Black Alonis, or The Black New Alonis, every year on the third Easter day. It is a location near Ierissos where, in 1821, the Turks, at the command of Sintik Yusuf Bey, slaughtered 400 Ierissians. Since 2005, the Center for Culture has the ambition to host large objects of religious worship, which are now carefully guarded by the fathers of the monastic state, for the pleasure of its visitors (and especially of the women who are unable to violate the abbot) . In the first digital 3D amphitheater in Greece, one can see, with the help of special glasses, stereoscopic documentaries on Mount Athos and Marine Life. Approved by the European Investment Bank as a center for the promotion of Mount Athos and the area before Athos with the use of modern technology.
