Central Greece Hotels Greece

Central Greece is the mainland region above Athens and the island to the north-east of Athens. It covers an area of nearly 15,000 km2. It is a mountainous area. That said, it takes two to three hours to get from Athens to Delphi in Central Greece. Central Greece is a mountainous area with only two towns with a population of 50,000, these being Lamia and Chalkis.

Visitor attractions in Central Greece No visit to Central Greece is complete without a visit to the ruins of Delphi, set on a tranquil mountainside with scenic views. It’s best to obtain the services of a guide to understand what you’re seeing. The Delphi Museum contains some stunning artefacts, mostly offerings to the Delphi Oracle.

Classicists won’t want to miss the mountain pass and memorial at Thermopylae. The pass runs between Mount Kallidromos and the Gulf of Maliakos. In 480 B.

, in the time of the Spartan King Leonidas at the Battle of Thermopylae, where native Greeks took on the vast Persian army, the pass was a mere 12 metres wide. Due to sedimentation from the River Sperchios, it is now 1.

5 km wide. It’s possible to explore the leafy high-altitude terrain of Mount Kallidromos, with forests of oak and cedar, a mountain lake on the Soulava Plateaus and pastures with medicinal plants. The time to be in Arachova (with views of the Parnassos Mountain) is Easter and 23rd April, the Festival of St.

George (Agios Georgios). This features a unique combined celebration of the saint and of the triumph over the Ottoman Turks. It last three days when the streets of Arachova are covered in flags.

The celebration kicks off with cannon shots and a procession of the silver icon of Agios Georgios. Don’t be surprised to see some pagan elements where some of the icons processed are adorned with grain and other fertility symbols! Then the old men of Arachova, dressed in costume and carrying the original weapons from the 1820s conflict, race up 365 steps to the Saint George Church, where the historic battle actually took place. Not far from Delphi and Arachova, on a hillside near Distomo, is the Osios Lukas Monastery, a World Heritage Site.

It is a complex of churches with excellent mosaics. There is also a brightly painted crypt. There is a shop where you can buy icons.

At Lamia, you can visit the see the great castle hillside city wall dating back to 5 centuries B. and its archaeological museum.

The castle offers superb views of Maliakos Bay, the Sperchios River and the surrounding hills. Further to the south-east, just off the National Road and just north of Kamena Vourla, if you like fish and don’t want to pay the prices you find in tourist areas, try the quiet village of Kenourgio. It’s on a leafy, sandy promontory in Maliakos Bay.

There are delightful restaurants and bars. Take a 15-minute boat-ride from Kamena Vourla the islands of Lichadonissia, set in crystal azure waters often compared to the Seychelles. Again, the local seafood is excellent.

There is a range of hotels and bed and breakfasts convenient for visiting the main sites. In Lamia the Athina Hotel bed and breakfast is friendly, clean and comfortable. In Delphi the Pitho Rooms offer a family-run bed and breakfast which is very close to the archaeological site.

Also close is the modest Hotel Varonos, with clean rooms and good views. A completely ‘no-frills’ but centrally-located option in Delphi is the Sybilla Hotel. If you choose to stop in Arachova there is the four-star Anemolia Resort and Conference Hotel or the two-star Arachova Inn.

At Kamina Vourla there is the three-star Violetta Hotel, with sea views.