Greece: Southwest Peloponnese

Our Spring motorhome tour from the UK to Mainland Greece has already taken us across many countries in Europe and after an overnight ferry journey from Ancona in Italy, we have finally arrived in the Peloponnese, Greece. This first leg of our trip has already been very exciting and diverse, read all about it here.

The Peloponnese is located in the southernmost region of the Greek mainland, connected to the central part of Mainland Greece by the Isthmus of Corinth land bridge. It is the largest peninsula in Greece and it was once upon a time the playground of an Ancient Greek Civilisation with many myths and folklore tales inspired by this rugged mountainous region and perfectly unspoiled beaches of its coastline. 

Arriving in the Greek port of Patras we were excited to get started. Our plan was to explore the Peloponnese in an anti-clockwise direction, but soon after arriving in the city port of Patras we pointed Big Bill – our motorhome towards the Northeast for a visit to a very special railway line, before heading back towards the Southwest Peloponnese.

Our Itinerary for this part of our trip was as follows: Patras>Diakopto>Olympia>Pylos>Methoni>Koroni>Ancient Messini>Mystras

From Patras to Diakopto it was a short drive of about 1 hour to the friendly Beach Cafe Camper Stop (GPS 38.22368; 22.14663) near Diakopto. Run by a Greek couple the small site has spaces for about 10 camper vans, it is perfectly located on the southern shores of the Gulf of Corinth.

From Big Bill – our motorhome – we had gorgeous views of the pebbly beach with its crystal clear water. The cost of our stay was just 10 Euros per night or if eating at their excellent Taverna and spending over 30 Euros on food and drinks the overnight stay was free. So we were glad to have stayed here for two nights enjoying their delicious meals and wine both nights. 

We rode Little Bill – our scooter – from the campsite into town the next day for a trip on the Odontotos rack railway line from Diakopto to Kalavryta. We lucked out with buying the train ticket at the station, since we got the last two tickets available for that day. There are only 6 trips per day, with 3 going from Diakopto to Kalavryta and 3 returning journeys from Kalavryta to Diakopto. Many people hike at least one direction, but we decided to buy a return ticket by train, leaving on the 12:17 and returning on the 13:37. With hindsight we should have booked to return on the 16:45 from Kalavryta, giving us more time to explore the town. 

This vintage railway line was completed in 1895, a project made difficult due to the mountainous geography of this region. It is one of the narrowest railways in the world with a width of only 750mm (2ft 5 1/2in) gauge. The train clicks into a rack and pinion system to get up the steeper slopes. From sea level it climbs 720m (2,360ft) in 22.3km (13.9 mi) with a maximum gradient of 17.5%. A remarkable feat of engineering back in 1889 when an Italian company started construction. 

The scenery grows increasingly dramatic as the trainride skirts around the rock face of the mountainous landscape with views along the Voraikos Gorge and the gushing sounds of the fast river below, the journey takes about one hour, passing through seven tunnels with many twists until arriving at the top of the hill.

Arriving in the small town of Kalavryta we were a little disappointed to realise that our time in this charming place would be very short indeed. We made the mistake of booking our return journey with the next train down and therefore we only had about 10 minutes to have a look around. Sadly not enough time to visit the Holocaust Museum or have a meal in town. 

The museum tells the history of the brutal reprisal massacre which took place here during World War II. Many of the local men and boys were executed by the Nazis in reprisal of the 81 German soldiers that were taken prisoner and then executed by the Greek Resistance. 

The railway return journey was even better, since we got better seats and the train had plenty of empty seats, making it easier to move from one side of the carriage to another to enjoy the best views of the Gorge. We spotted our neighbours, from the campsite, who were unable to get a train ticket and decided to hike the 22 Km uphill to Kalavryta, a hike that can take up to 5 hrs with some dark tunnels to cross (hikers are advised to take a torch). 

In our opinion this vintage rack-and-pinion railway journey is an unmissable trip for anyone visiting this region of the Peloponnese. 

Back at our beachside campsite we chilled out for the rest of the afternoon, just enjoying our peaceful surroundings, before going for dinner at the campsite Taverna. We shared a meal with a young German couple, Francisca and Yochen who have visited the Peloponnese many times before. It was great to get some tips of places to visit and in particular good places to overnight with our van. 

We left early next morning bound for Ancient Olympia. The anti-clockwise direction of the Peloponnese meant we had to backtrack on ourselves a bit, back to Patras and then continuing on to Olympia. We took the toll road paying Euro 5.30 and arriving at Campsite Diana by lunchtime. 

Ancient Olympia – The Birth Place Of The Olympic Games

We were surprised at the size of the town of Olympia. For some reason we thought it was going to be a large town, but we were pleasantly surprised at how small and compact it is, situated in a valley surrounded by mountains. 

We stayed at Camping Diana (GPS 37.6454; 21.6234) and used our ACSI card to get a discount, only paying 25 Euro per night with an electric hook up included. The site was lovely with spacious pitches and even a swimming pool, but the best thing was the location, we could walk everywhere from the site. All the attractions were within easy walking distance and there were plenty of nice restaurants nearby also. 

From our window we spotted a large Dutch overland van with Mum, Dad and two young children, they were soon having fun in the swimming pool. Our immediate neighbours were a retired couple from Germany. We have not seen any British vans here in Greece so far on this trip, the great majority are German vans, with a few Swiss, Dutch and Austrians. We are not complaining, they are all very friendly and we are surprised at how well they all speak English. 

The main attraction here is of course Ancient Olympia. We visited early the following morning, arriving there before the large tour buses. The cost to enter was 12 Euro (May 2022), which included 3 different sites: the Ancient Olympia Ruins, The Olympia Museum and the Museum of the History of the Olympic Games. Worth every penny in our opinion. 

Ancient Olympia is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The first Olympic Games were held here in 776 BC and then every four years after that. The winning athletes were given superstar status and the closest a mere mortal could be to a god. To take part on the Olympic Games one had to be freeborn, Greek and a man. Women were not allowed to compete. 

In 393 AD the Emperor Theodosius I abolished the Olympic Games in a bid to curtail the perceived bad Greek pagan rituals. The Temples fell into disrepair, also fires and earthquakes finished off what was left. Excavation work started in the 18th Century uncovering the site buried under many metres of silt and earth. There are still on going excavation works even now. 

The Archeological Site of Olympia is fascinating, but it does require good imagination to see past the heavily damaged buildings and crumbling columns scattered around the 550 square kilometres site. It is an evocative site and it is not difficult to imagine how exciting it must have been for the spectators and in particular for the athletes to compete here in its heyday. 

We particularly loved visiting the stadium, where athletes would be competing in running events. Brian and I had a go at running a few meters of the 192 metre long race track. There were a group of youngsters having a go at a sprint finish and competing against each other. It was fun to watch them. 

Afterwards we walked over to the Archeological Museum of Olympia, one of the most important museums of Greece, which gave us a really good insight on what Ancient Olympia was all about. There are many well preserved artefacts, sculptures, bronze figures, weapons. 

 Famished after all the walking around the Ancient Site and the Museum, we decided to head into town for lunch. The small town is very walkable and we soon found a lovely Greek Taverna under a huge tree and devoured some delicious Greek food whilst people-watching from our comfortable outdoors sitting area.

It was funny to watch the many tour guides giving instructions to their group and telling them that they would have 1 hour for lunch and a look around town, returning promptly afterwards to the meeting location.

We have on occasion done this kind of tour, where one is herded along like sheep following the leader and always having very little free time to explore. We were feeling very pleased with ourselves having all the time we wish to have, there was no need to hurry. Already we were loving the slow pace of life in Greece and feeling privileged to be here.

Our ticket to visit the Museum of the History of the Olympic Games in Antiquity was valid until the following day, therefore we just walked there the following morning from our campsite to explore at a leisurely pace.

It is another fascinating museum, taking you through the history of the Olympic Games as well as other sports festivals and events. It is a small museum and we explored it all in about one hour. Afterwards we walked back to our campsite, before driving onwards to our next destination. 

Navarino Coast 

 Driving about two and half hours in a Southwards direction from Olympia took us to our next destination. Campsite Navarino Beach (GPS 36.9459; 21.7082), near the pretty town of Pylos-Nestor, here we paid 18 Euro per night including the electric hook up. Situated directly on the beach, just about 300 metres from the village of Gialova, we could not be happier with our choice. A popular place for windsurfing, we noticed how the wind would pick up in the afternoon making it perfect for windsurfing. We enjoyed the beachside location and watching the colourful windsurfers sails and manoeuvres from the comfort of our home-on-wheels. 

After a meal at a Taverna in the village we were treated to an amazing sunset ending another perfect day in the Peloponnese. 

The next day we felt like we had woken up in paradise, the beach front location was so beautiful and peaceful. We fired up Little Bill – our scooter- for a trip to Voidokilia Beach, were we really did find a paradise beach. 

Whilst Brian relaxed on the sand at the beach, I decided to do something a bit more energetic and go hiking to higher ground so I could get a good view of this stunning beach. During my hike I met a group of people travelling this coastline by boat. They have anchored their catamaran at the sheltered bay and have come ashore to explore and walk their dog. 

From the high up view point I could see how the beach curves around forming the perfect shape of the Greek letter omega. At the top of the hill I could also see the Old Navarino Castle, where often people hike up to for some fabulous views of the beach and surrounding area.The hike is on the lagoon-side track labelled “Nestor’s Cave”. It can also be approached by road from the village of Petrohori, 6km north of Gialova. Unfortunately we did not visit this castle ruins, apparently the views over the region are fabulous. 

On the land-facing side there is a strip of dunes by the Gialova Lagoon, an important bird habitat and the lagoon is chosen as a stop for more than 250 migrating bird species. In the far distance I could spot Big Bill waiting patiently for us at the campsite. We returned to Big Bill for our lunch and afternoon rest, before riding Little Bill again, this time in the opposite direction towards Pylos to explore the Castle/Fortress. 

Pylos

Pylos is located on the shores of the largest natural harbour in the Peloponnese, many wars have been fought on this coastline. There are many historical and natural attractions. The town itself is small but very pretty with a great selection of restaurants, tavernas and bars.We rode Little Bill up to the Fortress to learn more about this area. 

Pylos Castle – Also known as the New Navarino Fortress (Neokastro or Niokastro), is an Ottoman fortification built in 1572/3 guarding the strategic Bay of Pylos from the southern entrance of the bay. The Northern entrance is guarded by the 13th Century Old Navarino Castle also known as Paleokastro, the one that can be assessed by a hike from Voidokilia Beach as previously mentioned or by road from the northern edge of Gialova.

The Fortress is a fascinating place to visit, but also a great place to appreciate the surrounding area and get a birds eye view of this region. To enter the castle was 6 Euros, the fee included a visit to the fascinating archaeological museum and some very interesting underwater archeology exhibitions. 

Afterwards we rode Little Bill down the hill and stopped for dinner in Pylos town square,  before returning home to Big Bill for another very peaceful night on our beachside location. After staying here for two nights it was time to move on.

Next day we did not have to travel far to find our next destination, just 12 km away we found the pretty seaside town of Methoni.

Methoni

Staying at Camping Methoni (GPS 36.8177; 21.7145) we again used our ACSI card to get a discount, paying 18 Euros per night for a very spacious pitch and electricity with lovely views over the beach and the old Methoni Castle in the distance.

Before setting off on our exploring we had a bag full of laundry to get done, fortunately the campsite had very good washing machine facilities and we soon had all our recently washed clothes hanging out to dry under some warm sun and gentle sea breeze. 

The main attraction here is the magnificent Methoni Castle/Fortress, built by the Venetians in 1209 AD it is separated from the land by an artificial moat and occupying the entire area of the cape. The Fortress was an easy walk along the sea front from our campsite, so we just headed over there later in the afternoon. 

The mighty Fortress has been left to decay, but there is lots to see and we enjoyed exploring the grounds and old buildings, including the Church of Metamorfosi of Sotiros, with a name like that we were curious to see inside. We felt like being on the film set of Game of Thrones.

As we walked around the grounds Brian got startled by a large snake sunbathing on a large rock…or rather he startled the snake which scarpered away into the bushes. 

With the evening fast approaching we looked for a place to have a meal. The small town had many nice looking traditional Greek tavernas and bars by the seafront. But we decided to try the family owned Taverna Nikos and we were not disappointed, the food was delicious with a cozy atmosphere and very friendly service. The waiter spoke English, there was no menu so he invited us into the kitchen to choose what we wanted to eat. No sea views from this taverna, since it was a short distance away from the seafront in a small street, but this place was absolutely delicious. 

In the early hours of the morning – at around 4 am – we stepped outside to watch the Moon Eclipse. We had set the alarm to wake us up, something we don’t particularly enjoy, but we were both keen to see this natural phenomenon from our little beach. It was quite a chilly morning, but a few warm cups of coffee and a few layers of clothing just about kept us from freezing. Apart from the local cat that came over to watch it with us, we were alone on the beach. We used the GoPro to film a time lapse and I also tried to capture a few photos with my camera. 

We were both glad to have done it, but we did feel very tired the next day. Luckily we did not have far to travel to our next destination, the gorgeous town of Koroni.

Koroni

No sea views for us at Campsite Koroni (GPS 36.7997;21.9509), but we loved this place. Situated up on the hill from the town it did have gorgeous views from the swimming pool. We ended up staying for 3 nights here, paying 18 Euros per night, including electricity and a spacious, secluded pitch. 

The town of Koroni was very charming with lots of great restaurants, cafes and bars. There was also another fascinating Castle/Fortress looking over the town. Everything was within easy walking distance from the campsite. 

We thoroughly enjoyed having a good nose around and Brian even tried his luck at doing some fishing at the harbour, but unfortunately the large bass fish he could see swimming around on the crystal clear water were not interested on his lures. 

For the first time since we arrived in the Peloponnese we spotted a British van at our campsite. It turned out that the van belonged to the lovely couple from Leeds, called Sue and David. If you have read part one of this trip you will remember that we have met them at the Camper Stop in San Marino a few days ago. It was a lovely coincidence to meet them here and we spend sometime having a chat with them and catching up.

From San Marino they caught the ferry from Ancona a day after us and landed at Igoumenitsa, a Greek port before Patras. From there they drove through Greece and went over into Albania for some exploring before returning into Greece to explore Meteora and now the Peloponnese. They are currently travelling with another couple, but will soon be heading in different directions. Little did we know then that we would meet them again- by chance- in our travels, but for now we said our good byes and wished them well. 

On our departing day the rain has arrived and although we were sad to leave lovely Koroni, after 3 nights here it was time to move on. We filled up with diesel and some food supplies at the local supermarket before heading inland to Ancient Messini. 

Ancient Messene or Messini

This large archeological site situated on a hillside below the village of Mavroti is impressive. The site was founded in 371 BC after General Epaminondas defeated the Sparta army at the Battle of Leuctra, freeing the local Messinians from centuries of Spartan rule. The ancient site is still undergoing excavation with apparently lots more to be uncovered. There is a large outdoors Amphitheatre, a large Ancient Greek stadium, the Sanctuary of Asclepius, a public bathhouse and various temples. 

Brian was worried about leaving Big Bill alone in the car park, apparently there have been cases of recent break-ins and so he stayed guarding our home-on-wheels whilst I went out to explore. I thoroughly enjoyed having a look around, it took me about 1 hour and a half to explore it at leisure.

There were very few other tourists around, I wonder if it is because at this time of the year tourism has not really got going, but I also suspect a lot of tourists visit nearby Olympia and other Ancient sites in preference and miss out on this fantastic ancient site. We thought about staying overnight here in the free car park, but after some discussions we decided to head over to Mystras which is just about an hour and half from here. 

There are a couple of routes from Ancient Messini to Mystras, one of the routes would take us over the spectacular Langada pass. But it is a challenging route with many hairpin bends and mountain views. It was already getting late, therefore we opted instead to drive the less challenging coastal route via a recently built motorway signposted to Kalamata (see map above) paying the 2 tolls of 3.15 Euros and 7.35 Euros driving towards Sparta and Mystras. 

Mystras

Arriving in Mystras later in the afternoon we parked in the free carpark just below the site (GPS 37.0766; 22.3692) leaving our exploring for the following morning. We cooked dinner and relaxed with a glass of Greek wine for the rest of the evening. 

I explored Mystras alone next day, since Brian was again worried about leaving Big Bill in the parking area quite early in the morning. Therefore he was happy to stay and relax whilst I went uphill to explore. I thoroughly enjoyed going there early and being the first person on the site. The sunny, fresh morning was perfect for a hike uphill, I started my exploring from the lower-entrance. People often park at the top of the hill and then explore the site going downhill, therefore I did not encounter anyone until I was at least half way up and had already visited many of the impressive buildings and churches. 

The fortified town of Mystras is truly spectacular, one of the best preserved Byzantine cities in the world. Situated on Mt. Taygetos the archaeological site stands above the modern village of Mystras and Sparti, the hill top location offers stunning views of the valley bellow. 

Mystras has been protected by UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1989, the only inhabitants today are a group of nuns who reside in the Pantanassa Monastery. 

Many of the important Byzantine churches are still standing such as the Cathedral of Agios Dimitrios, where Konstantinos Paleologos, the last Byzantine Emperor was crowned, the gorgeous Hagia Sophia, the Palace of Despots and the Monastery of Peribletos. All the churches and monastery interiors are beautiful and many have well preserved frescoes. 

The walk up to the imposing Castle/Fortress on the top of the hill was most definitely worth the effort, just to get the extraordinary views over this mountainous landscape. At this point I had gained 621m of elevation and my legs were feeling it, but it was absolutely gorgeous. 

Mystras is an extraordinary place, and I spent the whole morning exploring it. Starting early was a very good idea, since it was very quiet and also a lot cooler. The Lonely Planet guide book has a really good map of the site and good advice on tackling Mystras. For people who have travelled here by car and are keen to minimise walking they can park in the lower carpark to explore the lower town first and then drive up to the upper car park to explore the Fortress. The same ticket can be used for both entrances. 

After some reflecting time admiring the views at the the top I made my way back down from the Castle/Fortress towards the lower car park where Brian was waiting for me. The car park was getting increasingly full and busy, therefore it was time to move on. Travelling South again towards the Mani Peninsula and the next leg of our journey. 

This first few days of travelling around the Peloponnese have given us a good taste of what this peninsula is all about, we had been travelling for about 11 days already by the time we reached Mystras and we were absolutely loving the Peloponnese. We didn’t want this trip to end, everyday was full of wonderful places to explore, delicious Greek food, great hospitality and fabulous sunny weather. Luckily for us our trip did not end here. For my next blog post I will be writing about the treasures we have found on the South of the Peninsula with plenty more to tell you about the incredible landscapes, food and history we encountered along this beautiful region of mainland Greece. 

For anyone interested on seeing a video of our motorhome tour in mainland Greece head over to our YouTube channel called “Traveller Interrupted” and check it out. We have been getting a really good response from our videos, with the one about our journey down from the UK already having more than 4.7K views – not bad for beginners – therefore we hope to continue doing more videos on future trips.