Gythio

The capital of the Mani is the small port town of Gythio which is situated near the top of the Laconian Gulf. Restaurants, bars and boutiques line the harbour and it is a pleasant place to stay for a night or two.

If you wander into the town behind the main square [Plateia Panagiotarou Venetsavaki] you will discover a couple of attractive churches. Sadly there are also many empty buildings falling into disrepair.

Ancient Theatre

The Roman Theatre is north of the square a few minutes away from the Folklore Museum. It’s not on the same scale as Epidavros but is worth seeking out.

Marathonisi Island

You can walk to this island which is just to the south of the harbour as it is joined to the mainland by a causeway. It’s ancient name was Kranae and is where Paris and Helen of Troy ran away together for a night of rumpy pumpy. When I visited in 2023 the island had been sadly neglected for some time, the cafe and restaurant were closed or abandoned and the Historical Museum was shut too, a real shame. However it’s still a pleasant place for a stroll past the small Church of Agios Petros to the lighthouse and you can see the wreckage of the Dimitrios across the bay.

Eating, drinking and accommodation.

We have stayed at the Aktaion Hotel on the main harbour road a couple of times. The rooms are pleasant and the breakfast acceptable and inexpensive. Patrick Fermor stayed here in the late ’50’s and I am surprised there is no commemorative plaque! On our first visit we loved our room, not just because it was large, it was two rooms in fact, but it had a double balcony and Leashia enjoyed sitting on it, looking down at the other smaller balconies and feeling like a princess surveying her estate. On our second visit we had just the basic room, single balcony-gah!

There are several bars dotted around Gythio, some in the square, some on the road by the sea- they all look tempting, take your pick! There are also plenty of inviting restaurants in and around the main square. Several specialize in fishy dishes. We had an excellent lunch away from the square at Barba Sideris which was eccentrically decorated inside, but also has seating outside. I can also recommend Treis Laloun & Dio Chorevoun [which translates as Three are singing, two are dancing] to the right hand side of the square.