Ktima Karageorgou is at a natural crossroad, where Messinian and Laconian Mani meet. It is ideally situated to host day trips and is a great starting point for getting to know the area. The relatively good road network means you can enjoy trips to many places of interest, some of which are quite close to Ktima Karageorgou, others further afield.
We are always here when help is needed and can supply the information you need and help you choose the most suitable day trip you. Plenty of maps, books and local publications will be at your disposal to give you a wider picture of the region.
A ten-minute drive from Areopolis takes you to the Diros caves, one of which is the largest wet cave in the world. The first part of the tour through the cave is by boat and covers a distance of approximately 1200 metres. There follows a two-hundred-metre walk along a dry path. The whole tour takes about one hour.
The Neolithic Museum is just a stone’s throw from the cave. It houses important archaeological finds that give a clear picture of what life was like for Neolithic people. Then you might succumb to temptation and go for a swim at nearby Diros beach. Follow the road back past Areopolis and another five-minute drive takes you to Limeni village, the town’s picturesque, historic harbour. There you can see Petrobey Mavromihalis’ palace and Vrettis monastery. If you like, you can walk on to Apidima where excavations have revealed important Palaeolithic finds.
You may choose to swim in the clear waters of Limeni and enjoy a meal at one of the picturesque fish taverns. New Itilo is the next village along and just one kilometre from Limeni. It is also a good place for a swim from a sandy beach and a meal at an equally good fish tavern. Homeric Itilos is located three kilometres further along the road in the direction of Kalamata. There you can stroll along the cobbled lanes and enjoy wonderful views of the sea, Kefalas castle and Spilaiotissa gorge. You can also see Dekoulou monastery. The drive back to Areopolis takes ten minutes.
A ten-minute drive further south brings you to Kyparissos. You might like to swim from the particularly beautiful beach near the footpaths and ruins of ancient Kainopolis.
As the road continues it takes you up to the well-known village of Vatheia with its many tower houses. Walk along the village lanes and sense the atmosphere of this typical Maniot village.
Another ten-minute drive along the same road brings you to Marmari and its two sandy beaches where you might like to have a swim or a picnic. Just two kilometres away is the quaint little fishing village of Porto Kagio, where you can buy fresh fish directly from local fishermen.
The road continues south and reaches its end at Kokinogia. There you can see the site of the ancient oracle and a Byzantine mosaic floor. You can go for a dip in the crystal clear sea. A footpath takes you on a forty-five-minute walk to Cape Tainaros, the southernmost point in mainland Europe. The drive back to Areopolis takes about 1 hour.
Two kilometres along the road south from Areopolis, take the left hand turn towards the eastern side of Mani, known as the sunny side. The first village along the way is Kavallos, known in ancient times as Pyrihos.
The route goes on to Kotronas, which is very close to ancient Teuthroni, known from the League of Free Laconian towns. You can walk to Skopa islet, a very pretty place and good for a swim.
The route back tracks two kilometres along the same road and then turns left to Flomohori with its four tall tower houses. Next come Nifi and lovely Alypa beach. A footpath leads from here to Kionia, where, according to Pausanias, the ancient town of Aigila was located and you can see the ruins of what was apparently a temple to Dimitra.
The next place along the route is Kokkalas where traditional coffee houses serve sea food morsels and you can swim by the little harbour. The route then veers away from the sea and climbs up to Lagia. Here there are lots of tower houses and many little Byzantine churches – every household had its own private one. This place was once the centre of activity for the whole area of Akrotainaros, where 2200 people lived.
This trip leads across Sangia peak, at the southern extremity of Mount Taygetus, where it slopes down to Cape Tainaros. The impressive village of Tsikalia is on the way. The huge number of terraces around this village bears witness to how the Maniot people struggled to survive in this harsh terrain. The next village along the way is Alika, and that is where the route turns right and back to Areopolis.
This trip leads away from Areopolis in the direction of Kalamata. It skirts the bay of New Itilo before climbing up to Itilos itself. It follows the main road through Elaiohori and Hotasia, the last villages of Laconian Mani, bordering Messinian Mani. Here the scenery changes. It is less stark, much greener and gentler…
Many villages line the route. There is Agios Nikonas, named after Holy Nikon the ‘Repent’. Then there is Langada, Thalames, the site of ancient Thalamae, Nomitsi and Platsa. This point of the route is fifteen minutes into Messinian Mani and this is where the road starts to wind down towards the sea and the particularly beautiful lacy coastline near Stoupa and Kardamili comes into view.
Ten minutes later the route approaches Agios Nikolaos, where it turns left towards a long stretch of clean sandy beach, a very good place for a swim. The road leads off to the left through beautiful wild scenery to the picturesque village of Trahilas, where visitors feel they have travelled back in time to the 1960s.
A U-turn here takes you back to the main road and an opportunity to see Agios Nikolaos, a lovely little seaside village, and swim from a sandy beach in busy little Stoupa, where the beaches, especially that at Kalogria, the last one, are pure delight. Another fifteen minutes brings you to beautiful little Kardamili.
A fifty-minute drive from Areopolis takes you to Sparti, the capital of the Prefecture of Laconia. This is the town that was the greatest military power in ancient Greece, the town that gave birth to brave warriors, the home of Leonidas. Sparti played a decisive role in the history of Greece. Five kilometres west of Sparti on the lower slopes of Mount Taygetus, we find the Byzantine city of Mystras, home of Constantinos Palaeologus, last emperor of Constantinople. Following the decision made by UNESCO, Mystras was declared a World Heritage site in 1989.
