Peloponnese

With so many people victims of islomania (the obsession of discovering islands), the Greek mainland is often overlooked. Yet the Peloponnese offers everything you look for in a Greek holiday; stretches of coastline dotted with tavernas and history that is quite literally the stuff of legends. The region offers a network of paths, old and new, leading you to ancient beaches, through coastal towns and in the midst of ancient remains. In the east lies the island of Spetses where wealthy Athenians escape the heat of the summer and in the west the horse shoe iconic Voidokilia beach.

One of the area’s most dramatic sites is that of Mystras, a ruined Byzantine city hugging the slopes of the Taïyetos mountains. Wind your way past haunting houses, palaces and churches with evocative faded frescoes. Venture further south to Mani, its tower houses and churches scattered around the jagged coastline and in between the mountains.