Mainland Greece, less developed and less visited than the islands, is a walker’s paradise.
Criss-crossed by ancient cobbled mule paths - the main highways of a bygone age - Mount Pelion looks out over the Pagasitic Gulf to the high Pindos mountains beyond.
A huge network of forest trails make for superb mountain biking, taking you high onto the mountain, or even coast to coast across the peninsula from the Pagasitic Gulf to the Aegean Sea.
High mountains remain snow-capped late into the summer; thick forests of beech and chestnut are home to wild boar, martens, nightingales and jet black squirrels.
Eagles nest on the high cliffs and goats balancing on inaccessible crags, fill the valleys with the tinkling of bells as they graze.
Pine trees, interspersed with pencil-thin cypresses; sunny clearings crowded with brightly-painted bee hives;grumpy tortoises stomping their way noisily through the undergrowth await the walker who ventures off the beaten track.
Explore the mountain villages with their majestic mansions and marble fountains. Walk coast to coast on cobbled paths, past tumbling waterfalls and over ancient pack horse bridges encountering only the occasional farmer on a mule.
Come to the flower festival
If you think of the Mediterranean as sun-baked and parched should just see it in the spring!
Almond blossom opens the performance on the coast in early January, welcomed in many villages by Almond Blossom Festivals.
Then follow peach, pistachio, apples and quince, and sweet scented orange blossom.
Heavily-scented paperwhite narcissi come out just after Christmas, followed by wild crocus and anemones, pink then blood red.
A veritable crescendo of colour follows through March, April and May as the warmth of the sun moves from sea level up the mountain until the last of the spring flowers are coaxed out from under the melting snow on the highest crags in early June.
Autumn brings a new flowering of the hillside, as the weather changes from baking to pleasantly warm. Free-range pigs grunt their way through the undergrowth, feasting on the chestnuts for which the area is famous, and the skies fill with migratory birds, making their way south from an already chilly northen Europe.
Self guided walks
We provide a series of GPS-compatible self-guided walks, from gentle strolls taking under half an hour, to full-day hikes, all of which can be done from the house. These are graded from “A Piece of Cake” to “Tough”, enabling you to choose something that fits your mood and energy levels. Choose which walk you fancy doing from the photographic guide and then follow the fully described walk plan, with inset map, GPS references and photos of difficult bits.
Pony trekking
Pony trekking is available a short distance away. Trips can range from a quick dash round the hill to longer hikes. (We don't do this ourselves - we just know a man who does!)