Hi Jojonana

Do you think that it would be too much to do:
Day 1 Olympia-Demitsana
Day 2 Demitsana-Gerolimenas
Day 3 Gerolimenas-Monemvassia
Day 4 Monemvassia-Mystra

We would only have 1 night in each place.

I already have a night booked in Mystra, so this will be a stop-over. I am just concerned about driving time around the Mani. We want to be able to experience the country some and not just see it whiz by through a window. I wonder if we need to omit either Momemvassia or Demitsena from the plan.

Thanks for getting back to me.

Can you not change your reservation in Mystras? Because you could visit it on the way to Gerolimenas like we did... I don't see much interest in staying in the village per say.

If you must keep the reservation, it IS in my opinion too much driving and not enough exploring the areas... We personnaly preferred the Mani, so I think that just one night there is not enough (especially since you'll have to leave pretty early to get to Monemvasia early enough to visit it). Plan an extra day to be able to drive around the peninsula, go to Cape Matapan, visit the Diros caves, etc.

To skip Demitsana or Monemvasia really depends on your preferences. For incredible hiking and a different Greek atmosphere (with a lot less tourists), the mountains and Lousios Gorge are your best bet.

To step back in time, Monemvasia is the place to go. Impressive, although not my favourite part of the trip (too many tourists in my taste).

Hope this helps!

:)

Hi Jojonana

You have answered my question regarding Monemvassia-I was having a hard time trying to fit it in, and I think that we enjoy the same type of travel experiences, so will spend the time in Mani instead. We are currently planning to drive to Olympia from Athens through Tripoli, so I hope that we will get to enjoy some of the mountain villages on the way through. The itinerary (so far) is thus:

Day 1 Athens-Olympia through Tripoli
Day 2 Olympia-someplace in Mani
Day 3 Mani
Day 4 Mani-Mystra
Day 5 Mystra-Nafplio
Day 6 Nafplio
Day 7 Nafplio-Athens-Santorini

I have a lovely inn booked in Mystra (can be found on yourgreece.com site) so plan to get there late on day 4, see site in am, then get on to Nafplio.

So, we still don't get to spend any amount of time in the mountains, but Olympia won out.

Hotel Kyrimai in Geroliminas looks like a great place. Do you think we could get all the way down there from Olympia in an afternoon? (Apparently it takes about 90 min -2 hrs to get to Kardamili from Olympia.) What I can't judge is the driving time from Kardamili to Geroliminas.

Thanks again ever so much.

If you found the Mystras inn with yourgreece, it will absolutely be fantastic!

We stayed at Kyrimai and it is stunning! Stark beautiful scenery, top-level service, really a luxury retreat! We took the two-level room and loved it.

For driving times, your best bet is to check out this site. I found it to be very accurate for driving times in Greece: http://www.viamichelin.com/viamichel...MaHomePage.htm

And you will get to experience the mountains by driving to Olympia from Athens. It will be a pretty long ride though, and a windy one at that (if you cut through at Tripoli)... Just so you can prepare yourselves! At least your last couple of days include less driving!

If you like, send me an e-mail, I can send you more pictures of Kyrimai, hotel in Nafplio, etc.

:)

Jojonana writes "We stayed at Kyrimai and it is stunning! ... "

I certainly agree. Also had what was perhaps my best Greek dinner there, a "nouvelle" Greek cuisine. Wasn't cheap (about 100 Euro for 2, w/ wine), but a lovely splurge.

Gerolimenas is off the beaten path, but makes a good base for touring the far south Mani ... plus the Kyrimai dinners at the end of the day ;)

I just found this, but I'm bookmarking it so I can find it tomorrow. We are planning on going to the Peloponnese next year.

Tracy

Hi
Well, yes, we will do a lot of driving, but I have left open the night after Olympia in the case that we don't feel like going too far that day. If possible we'll get down to Geroliminas for 2 nights instead of just 1. At any rate we still have 2 days in the Mani as we don't have to get to Mystra until late on the 3rd day after leaving Olympia. The hotel in Mystra we found is Pyrgos Mystra. It is newly opened and does look very nice. We will also have 6 days on Santorini to rest up after all this running around.

I will email you for more of your beautiful pictures. (Thanks) Seeing them is making me really look forward to leaving...in less than 2 weeks!

I will try to write a short report on return, as I found yours especially helpful with our planning, Jojonana. I know we'll have a great time.

Thanks Tom H-its good to look forward to that meal at Kyrimai. I am all about good food when travelling....

Just a note : When we ernt to Kyrimai at the beginning of October, the restaurant was closed due to low season. However, the tavernas in the village are mmmmmmmmmmmmm

We'll be at Kyrimai on Sept 23, and 24, so possibly we'll be at the taverna eating calamari too! (The photo was great!) It is so nice that you are so enthusiastic about the trip a year later, Jojonana.