From summer 2026, Czech travellers will have two new options for less-crowded holiday escapes.

The travel company Čedok is introducing direct flights from Prague to Porto Santo, a small Portuguese island near Madeira, and to the Greek island of Skyros, one of the Sporades’ least-visited destinations.

Porto Santo, little known outside Portugal, lies a two-and-a-half-hour ferry ride from Madeira.

Its ten-kilometre golden beach, made of fine sand rich in crushed coral minerals, is said to have therapeutic properties. Alongside the beach, the island offers sand baths, panoramic golf, and relaxed dining in family-run restaurants.

History enthusiasts may recognise Porto Santo as a one-time home of Christopher Columbus. It was here that he met his future wife and received valuable maritime charts as part of her dowry—maps that would later shape his voyages.

The island’s Columbus Museum preserves this chapter of his life.

Čedok’s CEO, Stanislav Zeman, said the company is responding to a growing demand for “quieter, higher-quality places outside the mainstream.” He noted that Porto Santo fits the trend of travellers seeking destinations less saturated with mass tourism.

The second addition to Čedok’s network is Skyros, a hilly island in the Aegean Sea. Remote and relatively untouched by large-scale tourism, it retains a strong sense of tradition.

Visitors will find medieval architecture in its capital, a network of hiking trails, and numerous secluded sandy beaches—ideal for those in search of peace.

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