My wife, Leashia, and I had our honeymoon in The Peloponnese on mainland Greece in 2013. A package holiday to Finikounda, a small, touristy but charming resort in the Messinia region. [If you think of The Peloponnese as a four fingered hand, this is near the bottom of the first finger on the West side]. Although we enjoyed our stay there, our holiday was enhanced hugely when we hired a car and travelled to Nafplio [Argolis], The Mani [southern finger of Messenia] and other amazing places such as Polilimnio in central Messenia, Lousios Gorge [Arcadia], Epidavros which is near Nafplio and many more.
| Scroll to the bottom of this page for LOADS of links to different places in the Peloponnese. If you want more pointers take a butchers at – GRUNTIE’S TOP 21 BESTEST THINGS TO SEE. |
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I would like to dedicate my pages on the Peloponnese to Andrew Bostock, the author of Greece: The Peloponnese [Bradt] who died in 2021.
His writing on the Peloponnese has been and still is an inspiration to me.
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Below is a slideshow of some of my favritist places in The Peloponnese-
Getting There
There’s several companies that offer package holidays to the Peloponnese, often with the focus on Stoupa or Tolo. We have used Thomas Cook and Olympic and Tui in the past but nowadays we taylor the holiday ourselves.
You will most likely fly to Kalamata, which is now linked by a superb motorway through the centre of The Peloponnese, past Tripoli and Corinth and all the way to Athens. It’s a toll road but is inexpensive and convenient if you want to get somewhere fast. If you use any other road it is likely to be slow, very slow. But what’s the rush? [Unless you need a wee].
In 2024 we drove to the Peloponnese from the south of England which was a wonderful experience. For more information on this click HERE.
We never tire of exploring the area. The terrain can be varied, often very mountainous, often bleak. [There are even ski resorts which may come as a bit of a surprise]. There are also a surprising number of rivers and greenery as well as hundreds of sleepy pretty villages that reap rewards if you get out of the car and have a mooch.
We generally base ourselves in Stoupa which is an area known as the Mani in the south of Messenia. It has good value accommodation, several beaches and a large choice of good quality and good value restaurants. It’s also a great base to head out into the deeper Mani [south] as well as the rest of The Peloponnese. Just a ten minute drive out of the town, the tourists disappear and you feel as if you have gone back in time.
The Peloponnese Quick Links:-
TIPS inc sections on : The Greek Language, Driving and car hire, Food and drink, Further inspiration and reading, Gruntie’s top 21 Bestest things to see
LACONIA inc sections on: Sparta , Langada Pass, Mystra, Geraki, Kastania Cave and area, Kyparissi, Monemvasia
THE MANI inc sections on: Areopoli, Diros Caves, Vathia, Stoupa, Agios Nikolaos, South of Stoupa to Itylo Bay, Kastania and the Taygetos Mountains, Kardamyli, Around Kardamyli, Gythio, Gerolimenas, Cape Tenaro
ARCADIA/ ELIS inc sections on: Temple of Apollo, Lousios Gorge, Ancient Olympia, Panagia Gorgoepikοos, Nestani
CORINTHIA inc sections on: Ancient Corinth, Ancient Nemea, Acrocorinth, Corinth Canal, Dervenakia Pass
ARGOLIS inc sections on: Nafplio, Around Nafplio, Methana, Ancient Mycenae, Epidavros, Caves and sinkholes
MESSINIA inc sections on: Kalamata, Nestor’s Palace, Navarino Bay and area, Ancient Messene, Methoni, Volcanou Monasteries, Koroni, Polilimnio, Finikounda
ACHAEA inc sections on: The North Coast, Kalavryta
Gruntie's Travels 