Areopoli old town

What it is

Areopoli is the capital of inner Mani and its largest village. It is near the west coast of the peninsula, above its port, Limeni, and 20 km south-west of Gytheio. Until 1912 it was called Tsimova; that year it took the name Areopoli, “city of Ares”, the god of war. It chose it for what happened here: on 17 March 1821, Petros Mavromichalis, the last bey of Mani, raised the first flag of the Greek War of Independence in its square.

Walking through its old town is the best introduction to Mani: cobbled streets, tower houses of fieldstone, churches and almost no whitewash and blue. It is free and takes an hour or two.

What to see, step by step

1. Taxiarchon Square. The heart of the old town and the place of the 1821 uprising. The flag was raised here and here are the monument to the revolution and the church of the Taxiarchs, the archangels who give the square its name.

2. The tower houses. From the square, lose yourself in the lanes. The towers, tall and narrow, built of fieldstone, were the home and defence of the Mani clans, who lived in feuds between families. Some have been restored as accommodation.

3. The pedestrian street. It links the old town with the new part of the village, which grew eastwards along the road, where the market formed. At dusk it fills with terraces.

4. The Saturday market. Every Saturday there is an open-air market in the main square, with many local producers.

A little history

In June 1826 Ibrahim Pasha landed near Areopoli and was repelled after a battle at Diros. In 1829 290 families lived here, and during the 19th century and the first half of the 20th the population fluctuated between 1,100 and 2,000 inhabitants. After the war the village lost people and trade, but it remained the largest in Mani. It is the cradle of the Mavromichalis family, the same one whose members assassinated Kapodistrias in Nafplio in 1831.

Getting there and parking

By car, from Gytheio it is 27 km and about 35 minutes over the pass crossing the peninsula; from Kalamata, about 80 km and nearly 2 hours along the coast through Kardamyli, Stoupa and Itylo. The old town is pedestrian: leave the car in the new part, beside the road, and walk in.

Without a car, the Areopoli KTEL stop has KTEL Laconia buses towards Gytheio and Sparta, few a day and fewer in winter.

If you are going on south, fill up here: at the Areopoli petrol stations, at the entrance to the village. There are very few to the south.

When to go

All year, although in winter many businesses close. In summer, stroll first thing or at dusk: at midday the stone streets burn and there is hardly any shade. The afternoon is the best time: golden light on the towers and then dinner on the pedestrian street.

With children

The old town is small and pedestrian, a good walk with children. The cobbles are uneven: you can get through with a pushchair, but it bumps.

Eating, sleeping and combining

For eating, O Barba Petros, a family taverna open since 1926 on the pedestrian street, with a rooftop terrace. To sleep with the village beside you, the Limeni Village, in towers above Limeni bay.

Areopoli is the natural base for a morning at the Diros caves, to the south, a swim at Limeni and the starting point of the inner Mani loop.