Home / Travel Stories / Short road trip to a well-kept secret of Greece – Mani

Short road trip to a well-kept secret of Greece – Mani

We have heard that the Mani Peninsula is home to the descendants of Dorians and Spartans. A place where you can still feel a little bit of the old world.


We have heard that the Mani Peninsula is home to the descendants of Dorians and Spartans. A place where you can still feel a little bit of the old world. Perfectly preserved by the difficulty to navigate the terrain.

Until recently Mani villages were only reachable by sea. However, these days there is a narrow and winding road along the west coast from Kalamata to Akrotainaro (the pointed cape, which is the southernmost point of continental Greece). Before it turns north toward Gytheio has been built allowing the tiny bits of the old world to slowly trickle away.

More info: palmtree.life | Instagram | Instagram


Village of Kardamyli

Kardamyli

Those who decide to hike the E4 trail from Diakopto will end up here 240km later. We did half of it!


Village of Stoupa

Stoupa

Great place for the family vacation. 30km gate to the past is. Few dare to keep on going!


Village of Lumeni

Lumeni

A perfect place for the idyllic holidays or write the next best-selling novel.


Village of Areopoli

The last tourist destination – an ancient fortified village. From here on, if you keep on going you will be lucky to find any other traveler on the road. But the best part starts from here.

Areopoli

Caves of Diros

One of the longest caves in the world. Here you can still find the underworld ferrymen to take you on a boat across the caves. However as in the stories so it is here you have to bring enough coins to pay for the passage to the other side.


Village of Vathia

Vathia

Ruins of a very beautiful fortified village on the hills overlooking the sea.


Wild beach of Marmari

Marmari

Cape Tenaro

Where the Aegean sea separates from the Ionian Sea. Where the entrance to Hades is hidden where the temple of Poseidon is in. It is a spot through which Hercules dragged the three-headed dog Cerberus as one of his 12 tasks. It is a place that has a feeling where the world truly ends. A half-hour walk takes you to the lighthouse at the cape itself. This is the southernmost tip of mainland eastern Europe; directly south lie the sands of Libya.


Temple of Poseidon

Somewhere around here are the gates to Hades.


Porto Kagio

Porto Kagio