Port
Gythion (Sparta), Greece
Activity Level
Moderate
Excursion Type
All
Wheelchair Accessible
No
Starting At
$109.95
Minimum Age
Information Not Currently Available
Duration
Approximately 4½ Hours
Meals Included
Meals not included
Mani, the southernmost peninsula of the Peloponnese in southern Greece, is a treasure trove of Byzantine and post-Byzantine churches, Frankish castles, and stunning scenery. The isolated aspect of this beautiful area, combined with the independent nature of its inhabitants, meant that some traditions developed separately from the rest of the Peloponnese and Greece. To this day, the architecture of the area features tower houses and fortified family dwellings from the Ottoman period.
Start your tour with a visit to picturesque Gerolimenas -- a small coastal village at the southern end of the Mani Peninsula.
Continuing to the beautiful village of Vatheia, this abandoned cluster of stone houses overlooking the coastline is truly a sight not to be missed. Vatheia stands proudly atop a hill, full of impressive two- and three-story towers that are a priceless architectural treasure for Greece. This genuine fortress town was mainly built during the 18th and 19th centuries, enjoying its heyday in the 19th century. Urban drift caused it to be abandoned by 1980.
To round out your tour, visit Cape Tainaron, where the ship that could have saved many from Titanic (but didn't), the SS Californian, was later torpedoed and sunk by German forces in 1915. The 1941 Naval Battle of Cape Matapan took place off the coastline here, between the Royal Navy and the Italian Regia Marina. The British emerged victorious.
Take some photos of this beautiful shoreline before returning to Gythion.