Kelly and Emma’s Peloponnese Road Trip

We started our trip in Athens where we did a brilliant ‘Escape Tour’, seeing many spectacular sites around the ancient city. We also did a cycling food tour where we stopped off at three eateries and tried some local delicacies. We visited more of the city’s sights with our brilliant tour guide who is from Athens – this really gave us some fantastic insights into its rich and colourful past.

During our road trip we visited lots of historical monuments, including six ruins in Athens, Aegina, Sparta, Monemvasia and Nafplion. They all have incredible stories behind them. We also stopped off at the Diros Caves near Itilo and found many gorgeous beaches, all with the most incredibly blue sea we’ve ever seen.

During our travels we spotted a shipwreck right on the beach, so we immediately stopped all our plans and headed down to take a look. We easily parked up and headed off across the sand. It’s still partially submerged but you can walk right up to it and see all the damage done by the sea inside. It was amazing.

The rest of the time was spent with lots of walking, sightseeing and finding lovely places to eat. The food is delicious and you will definitely come back wanting more Greek salad, Gyros, bucket loads of tzatziki and don’t forget the Fava beans!

There was so much to see and do, you could never be bored on a Peloponnese road trip.

Car hire

We picked our hire car up from the middle of Athens. I’d say if you’re nervous about driving in Greece, but make it out of Athens alive, then you’ve mastered it already. Seriously though, the car hire was great and I would definitely recommend it. Emma and I shared the driving and we opted for an automatic. Even though we both drive manuals in the UK, it was a lot easier while navigating a new place. All you have to think about is the steering and driving on the right hand side of the road.

The main roads are in good condition with lots of space, not busy at all. Some of the tolls were open, so you could just drive straight through. If you have to pay it’s only a couple of Euros. Filling up was easy as they do it for you at the petrol station and we even experienced a flat tyre so had to figure out how to get that changed. After a very comical scene involving Emma and a jet wash, we were well on our way again.

Ferry crossings

When boarding a ferry only the driver can stay in the car, everyone else has to go on as foot passengers. Now comes the hairy bit… you have to reverse onto the ferry one by one (with everyone watching). However, you do have guides (shouting at you in Greek) guiding you on and into a space so close that a piece of paper could just fit in between your car and the one next to you. But once you’ve done one ferry you can do them all 😉.

The ferries are really comfortable with cafes on board to grab a coffee or something to eat and there’s plenty of places to sit. We recommend going to the top deck first so you can get a great photo of the ferry pulling away from the mainland and then go find a seat.

During our trip we stayed at seven different hotels, all of them offering something a little different. These were our three favourites:

Number three on the list, was our city hotel in Athens (not in the Peloponnese area of Greece, but where we started our trip). It was in a fantastic location, we could easily walk to the starting point for all of our tours, and there were plenty of bars, restaurants and shops nearby. We were close to all the main sights too.

Next at number two, was in Oitylo. We were on top of a hillside staying in a traditional stone house, overlooking the most beautiful bay with the bluest of seas. Every room has a balcony or terrace that looks out to sea, so you won’t miss out on those stunning views. If you want to splurge, there is also a jacuzzi balcony suite for the ultimate indulgence. A definite to include in your Peloponnese road trip.

Then coming in at number one is our stay in Monemvasia. A huge rock was cut off from the land due to an earthquake and now lies 200 metres away via a causeway across the sea. On the side of the rock is a hidden medieval castle and this was where we got to stay. It has such incredible views and really is a one in a lifetime spot to stay in. There were narrow cobbled streets with boutique shops and incredible restaurants to choose from, but the best part was a 20 minute hike up to the ruins on top of the rock that offered stunning views.