Acronafplia

Acronafplia Review

The Turks called this imposing hilltop of ruined fortifications "Its Kalé" (Inner Citadel). The heights are crowned with a series of castles: a Frankish one on the eastern end of the hill, a Byzantine one on the west, and a massive Castello del Torrione (or Toro for short), also at the eastern end, built by the Venetians around 1480. During the second Venetian occupation, the gates were strengthened and the huge Grimani bastion was added (1706) below the Toro. The Acronafplia is accessible from the west side via the elevator next to the Nafplia Palace hotel, which sits on the ruins of the Frankish fort, and from the east via Potamianou street, whose flights of steps ascend the hillside from St. Spyridon Square. Most of the remains of fortifications can be explored free of charge on overgrown paths that provide stupendous views over Nafplion and the sea.