Has anyone done a trip around the Peloponnese by public transit? Train or bus? I have read and re-read that a rental car is the best way to go, but unfortunately it just isn't an option for us. i would love to hear about anyones experiences who has done this area without a car. Any suggestions for a car-less itinerary?

Yes, the world's slowest train it seemed plies a circular loop around the Peloponnese, stopping at Olympia (actually a spur line off main line) and several other famous archaeological sites such as Corinth, Mycenae and Mistra - trains to all these places with links to Athens. Buses also serve all these towns. Train fares are dirt cheap - no passes needed. For schedules: www.bahn.de - the German rail web site that i've found is the easiest and best to use for schedules in all of Europe - haven't tried it much for Greece but assume it works fine just like it does for lots of European countries.

Hi saltymuffin,

I just travelled the southern Peloponnese by public bus, so it is doable for sure. Here are some thoughts:

The green intercity buses (KTEL buses) were in 98% of the towns very prompt, efficient and ran with decent schedules (watch for reduced service on Sundays). The worst city for bus service in my opinion was Pylos over in the far West - and then only because its routes were very long and so it increased the chance that the bus would be late (which it always was). Otherwise buses often leave early - so be sure you are at the stop 15min ahead of time for safe measure.

It is wise to choose a base that has reasonable day-trip options. For example. From Gythio I was able to daytrip to Mystras/Sparta, Aeropolis/Dirous Caves, Vathia (though I rented a scooter for this one). From Pylos I was able to day trip to Methoni, Gialova, Kalamata, Koroni etc.
Naphilo is also a good base.

No without a car it is not the most efficient, but it can be done. Just figure out the schedule as soon as you arrive in town and adapt appropriatly. Taxis are invaluable for travel between close towns - so dont be afraid of them either. Just settle on a price before you leave. I sort of enjoyed the bus in many ways - I could just sit back and watch Greece go by without any effort. I am lazy that way though. Do try to do the bus route between Sparta and Kalamata through the Langada Pass - stunning.

FYI: This is one logical route around the Peloponnese: Naphlio, Monemvasia, Gythio (Day trip to Sparta/Mystras from Gythio or it can be done from Nahplio), Kardamyli, Pylos you can then go up to Olympia and across to more central Peloponnese on your way back to Athens. Just an idea.

Cheers,

Murph

Wow, thank you both so much for the very quick replies. I did find a map showing the train route - Murphy89, did you find any good maps, or wesites to show the bus routes? A friend of a friend has an apartment in Gythio which we may be able to use, I am glad to hear that it is a base that works well.

Hello again,

No, I didn't find a route map but went off my guidebooks - Lonely Planet which is really good for logistical info and I brought a copy of Lets Go Greece too (which has stong point but I wouldn't use it alone). It is important to know how far apart towns are (LP is good for this) and how often the buses run in general - both guides are pretty good for this. As for schedules well, as nothing for the buses is computerized you can only find out the schedule for a city once you are there. For example, I travelled one day from Pylos to Nafpaktos via Kalamata and Patras - 3 bus changes (which wasn't as bad as it sounds). I couldn't tell how long the journey would take because from Pylos I could only find out the schedule to Kalamata. Once I got to Kalamata I got the schedule for Patras and then finally in Patras picked up the schedule for Nafpaktos. Some station agents are more informative than others but this kind of thing was pretty common.

Gythio is a good base for about 4-5 days then I would move on to a different base. It wont take a full day to see Gythio itself as its quite small and there isn't a great deal to do. But if you stay I would reserve for example 1. Travel day to Gythio/See Gythio
2. Aeropolis/Dirous Caves
3. Tour around Lakonian Mani Coast - Vathia etc - need car/scooter (car would be better - the Makis Moto scooter guy is nice though and wont rip you off if you are comfortable with scooters).
4. Ancient Mystras/Sparta

If you want any tips on using the bus let me know - its easy but a bit different culture wise and takes some getting used to.

Hope that helps,

Murph

Thanks again -

I am beginning to think about a route, which excludes Githio (just a bit tight on time) and uses Napflio as a base instead.

My thoughts are:

Athens for a couple for days
bus to Delphi - 2 nights
Bus to Olympia - 2 nights
Bus or train to Nafplio - 4 nights with side trips
Ferry to Hydra - 2 nights
Ferry back to Athens then a flight to an island or two for 5 nights or so.

All of these seem doable by transit, but I am not sure about the Delphi to Olympia - is there a bus, or combination of bus and train for this route? I have been to the www.ktel.org website, but can't make the darn thing pull up a schedule for me. It seems that you need to know the bus routes before it will search for one for you!

Hello,

lol - yes that KTEL website is not user friendly - I gave up on it altogether. Yes, you could get to Olympia via Delphi, but that will be a full travel day as they are not close and a few bus transfers will likely be required. There isn't a train between Delphi and the western side of the Peloponnese - but you can bus this area no problem. When travelling by public bus it is best to keep your distances somewhat sort or accept that you will sacrifice a whole day on such a distance. You could for example bus from Delphi to Nafpaktos then switch and bus to the Peloponnese from there - there are buses running from Nafpaktos across the bridge frequently. I believe it is Nafpaktos to Patras where you can switch again (but I need my map).

Delphi doesn't require 2 nights. You can easily bus there in the am from Athens, drop off your bags and head to the site - just leave early. That will give you an extra night....Olympia is really out of your way you might make better use of your time staying on the eastern side of the Peloponnese or perhaps use that night from Delphi to flesh out that area a bit - stay somewhere in between etc. I skipped over Olympia though so hopefully someone else can give you more details about the site and surround. I basically passed the area on the bus and made for Nafpaktos (an attractive town) for 2 nights (one would have been fine) before busing to Delphi the next day (about 3 hours if memory serves).
I would personally give Athens 3 days, that was plenty for me.

A side thought - It would be nice to give all 5 of those last days to one island instead of breaking into two - you may get more from it that way. With a short itinerary, consider carefully how many days you want to give over to travel and assume you will have problems, things will be late ect. Then if all goes smooothly - great. If not, its ok you planned for the worst. You may also want to consider doing Athens last or an island first so that should you encounter ferry problems you wont miss your flight home.

I should mention I haven't been to Nafplio yet - I am leaving Corfu tomorrow morning and will bus to Nafplio for my last 4 nights before going home (sniff) I will let you know what I think - my research indicates it should be an excellent base for the surrounding sites.

Cheers,

Murphy

Thanks Again Murphy, I found your thread where you are answering questions and got some useful info from there. It sounds like you are having a great time!

I was beginning to think that Olympia didn't make sense in my itinerary. It is quite a distance from my other stops and isn't on my "must see" list. I am interested in ruins and archiological sites, but also want to see towns and other aspects of modern day of Greece.

A circle route Athens - Delphi - Nafpaktos- Diakofto (for the cog railway to Kalavrita) - Napflio - Hydra - Athens is a more compact route before our trip to an island (good suggestion to stick with one), and sounds like straight forward transit connections.

Can you tell me a bit about Nafpaktos - I haven't heard much about it. It sounds like a good location for a stop - or maybe we'd be better off going straight from Delphi to Diakofto - if possible.

I don't mind spending the better part of a day travelling - you still get to see a lot from the bus or train. That is why I left myself some extra time and nights in certian places on the earlier itinerary. With a bit more research, I'll be able to get a better grasp on how many nights in each place and really get this down!

Hello from Naphilon,

That second itinerary looks awesome - I would have love to get to Diakofto - Xenia on this forum can likely tell you more about it. Nafpaktos is a large town with quite a bit of green space - tree lined boulavards etc, it was a fortified city/town and still has a crowning fortress, and its harbour walls intact. There are two long beaches in town - rough sand if memory serves. It was a nice stop - I thought one night would have done the trick though. All the shops were completely closed the days I was there by 2:00 on Sat and all day Sun, which was a bummer. I saw some great sunsets here and I think the town is best appreciated by wandering around in its narrow upper streets and by people watching at one of its many trendy cafes. One complaint - food options - its like Nafpaktos's residents only drink coffee, not a large range of tavernas but one from my guide was good.....O Stavros (?) I think that was it - on the waterfront.

Warning: There are TWO bus stations in Nafpaktos. Coming from Delphi you will hit one and will likely leave Nafpaktos from the other so be sure to ask!

FYI - am in Nafplio today and its awesome. Really nice - one of the nicest towns I've been to in Greece actually. This will be an excellent base. I am sorry I don't have one more night (4 instead of my originally planned 5) - oh well, you can only do so much.

Cheers,

Murphy

Here is what I am thinking for my 18 day Peloponnese itinerary:

Day 1 - Arrive Athens (4 nights)
Day 2-4 - three full days seeing Athens (many people say 2 days is enough, but jet lag hits me hard, so I really need one more night here).
Day 5 - Travel by bus to Delphi (2 nights)
Day 6 - See Delphi and Area
Day 7 - Travel Delphi to Diakofto (two nights) by bus, stopping for the afternoon in Nafpaktos.
Day 8 - Take the cog railway to Kalavrita and back.
Day 9 - Travel by train to Nafplio (4 nights)
Day 10-13 - Four full days doing day trips and seeing Nafplio
Day 14 - By ferry to Hydra (2 nights)
Day 15 - Hydra
Day 16 - Ferry back to Athens for flight to Island (3 nights).
Day 17-18 Island fun
Day 19 - fly back to Athens and home

I am thinking of maybe cutting Hydra off the end and heading straight to the Island (still haven't decided which one) for a few more nights, OR adding Olympia back into the mix and adding one more night to Hydra, making it our island stop. I am kind of leaning towards option 2, which means leaving the Greek Islands for next time. Thoughts?

Is there a better place than Diakofto to stay for two nights between Delphi and Napflio that would still allow me to take the cog railway trip to Kalavrita?

Your itinerary looks great to me (both options). I didn't travel between Diakofto and Nafplio nor have I visited Hydra, so I really can't advise you there - maybe post that question seperatly to see if we can catch someone elses attention.....

I think 3 full days in Athens is good (not more for me, but 3 was perfect). 4 nights in Nafplio should do the trick - if you have time you may want to check out the Fortess of Larissa in Argo, which has some interesting features still intact. The Palamidi fortress in Nafplio is a joy - wonderful and after all those stairs you could consider a swim at the small local pebble beach - nice water for swimming and snorkelling. Mycenae and Tiryns can easily be done in a day not a great deal to see but historically significant. Napflio is a great stop for 4-5 nights. I think an afternoon in Nafpaktos will be perfect. 2 nights in Delphi will be fine if you are interested in doing some hiking in the area. There is plenty to do on mainland without ever stepping foot on an island.

Cheers,

Murph

Thanks again Murphy, I actually made an error on my itinerary, it is 5 nights that we would be in Nafplio - 4 full days.

I don't really like 1 night stops, which is why I put two nights in Delphi. If we don't hike, are there other places worth seeing nearby, and easy to get to?

I noticed on another thread that you are a Canadian girl - me too! Thanks again for all the advise, I will tweak the itinerary and then repost on another thread for advise about the areas you haven't been.

One more thought for a fellow countryman....

If you are travelling by public bus, what are you going to do with you bags during an afternoon stop in Nafpaktos? I have yet to observe any bus stop/station with luggage storage in Greece outside of Syndagma and Athens Airport. Just be aware.

Don't be too afraid of a one night stop. They maybe aren't ideal but are also, I now feel, better than wasting unnessecary time. I was worried about one night stops too and turned then all into 2-3 night stays - but really I stayed too long in some places and regret not just moving on when satisfied. Food for thought.

Thanks Murphy,

You make two very good points about overstaying in a place and the lack of lockers. Maybe I would be better off with 1 night in delphi and 1 in Nafpaktos. . .