Trekking Isola Greche
For some time now, Greece has not only attracted sea or history buffs, an activity that is also developing significantly is trekking. Wonderful paths are discovered and made available to walking lovers immersed in incredible nature, breathtaking panoramic points, fascinating remote beaches, villages frozen in time and almost forgotten archaeological sites.
Where you can have fun and also combine the fact of discovering unknown places but always in a completely natural context there are many both on the islands and on the mainland, you just need to want an alternative holiday without giving priority to sunbathing and decide in which placededicate yourself to a healthy walk but with the added value of doing it in one of the most beautiful lands in Europe.
You are spoiled for choice, you can make this decision based on many factors, proximity, curiosity perhaps born from a documentary seen or an article read, arm yourself with suitable equipment and set off.
Today we want to give you some ideas about the islands which are truly many where eco-sustainable tourism can satisfy every taste and where above all you can also indulge in healthy relaxation without giving up anything.
Ionian Islands
If you don't feel like long flights, the Ionian Islands are perfect. Specifically, the Paxos island, immersed in intact and wild vegetation, offers routes that lead to the discovery of immaculate cliffs, mysterious caves and ancient solitary homes. Among vineyards, olive trees, enchanted woods you reach the Tripitos Arch, a natural rock bridge that almost disappears into the sea passing by coves and rocky inlets. A guide is recommended as most of the routes are not marked so it's best to have someone who knows the area. Or take a wonderful opportunity to visit the Ypapandi church by climbing the bell tower for a stupendous view of the north of the island, discover the traditional villages that meet between Magazia and Lakka up to the Kastinida cliff sand then cool off in the crystal clear waters of Mesorachi beach and finally head into the hinterland along ancient paths, stopping to taste the local wine or enjoy traditional dishes.
A second almost unknown destination for walkers in the Ionian Islands s Meganisi. Near Lefkada you can also go there for a day passing through its small Spartochori village, Katomeri and Vathi where you can immerse yourself in the village culture among windmills, ancient churches and ending with a well-deserved stop in the transparent waters of its delightful coves.
The Dodecanese islands are located near the Turkish coast, we are at the gateway to the East and the influences can be felt in any context. Karpathos specifically in recent years has become a real magnet for trekking lovers as the morphology of its territory offers many places where you can go for walks immersed in nature, passing through archaeological sites and villages still frozen in time. Go to the Olympos village in the northern part of the island and reach the top of Profiti Ilias among green forests and cliffs overlooking the sea until you reach the chapel at 718 meters high where you can enjoy an incredible view. Or treat yourself to an excursion to Papa beach by going up and down the slopes among wheat fields, olive groves and maritime pines to the coast where you can rest while sunbathing or having fun snorkeling to discover the underwater world, and again from an ancient path reach Vroukounta with its 3500 year old ruins passing through the Avlona village where you can have lunch in a typical tavern and then go down to Vananta beach. Don't miss the Ancient Byzantine Pools carved into the rock overlooking the sea where the waves crash with all their majesty from a path that will take you into a wild and almost lunarlooking landscape.We end with the small Sharia island, once joined to Karpathos and separated by natural erosion, a hideout for Saracen pirates created by Poseidon according to mythology when he detached a piece of the island and threw it onto the Titan Ephiatle to bury it.
The small Cyclades areCave real treasures.To completey escape mass tourism and enjoy uncontaminated nature, choose the island of Donoussa. Between Naxos and Amorgos, according to the myth it takes its name from the God Dionysus, husband of Ariadne, daughter of King Minos where he found refuge from Theseus. Lose yourself among its characteristic Kalotaritissa, Mersini or Haravgi villages among paths scented with wild herbs and wild goats, or go to the hill of the Vathi Limenari bay to admire the ruins of the geometric period, treat yourself to a wonderful sunset from the Church of Timios Stavros, arriveto Mount Papas and then go down and stop on one of its splendid beaches for a refreshing swim.Another destination could be Iraklia island, the largest of the small Cyclades and the least inhabited.A single asphalt road that connects the only two villages and four beaches is what to expect from this small island.Here nature is intact enough to be part of the Natura 2000 project. You will encounter old paths to reach the Agios Ioannis Cave with its stalactites and stalagmites among a rare flora with a wonderful view of the sea, the chapel of Profiti Elia on the top of Pappas420 meters above sea level, the Merichas cliff with its sheer cliffs over one hundred meters high where rare wild birds nest.Walk in a plain full of olive trees up to the now abandoned settlement of Agios Athannasios where from the chapel you have an exceptional view, and why not end with a stop on one of the two small beaches passing by Vorini Spilia, an isolated bay which during the SecondWorld War II it was a great hiding place for ships
Great Cyclades
Calling them large is an understatement but being part of the Great Cyclades Archipelago we are obliged to identify them as such. Ideal for trekking is undoubtedly Kea island. Also called Tzia, it is a real paradise, not crowded and the closest to the mainland. With its slow rhythms and a typically rural territory made up of small ports, temples, ruins, ancient churches and dreamy beaches, you can explore it along paths that were once old mule tracks called caldarimnia going up and down a jagged and rocky coast that offerswild coves.It is well equipped for walking, the paths are well signposted and numbered with information signs along all the routes. Don't miss the Route Leon, the mysterious statue representing the Kea Lion, an identifying sign of the island where legend has it that Zeus sent the animal to protect women from the Nymphs and that it was carved as a warning not to let them return. Going forward you reach the Benjamin spring with its ultra centenary plane tree, all in a natural context of almond and oak trees.Continuing you arrive at the Otzias Bay passing by Profiti Elia where you can enjoy a relaxing bath. The Route Elixos trail instead starts outside the Ioulis village .Be careful here because legend has it that if you drink the water from the Roukounas spring you will marry a woman from Kea so unless you are looking for love think carefully. Continuing you come across the Aghios Konstantinos church where a cobblestone road that covers the ancient route of Ioulis Korissia begins to cross a valley with old mills and the most important water source on Flea Island.
Another stop in the great Cyclades suitable for trekking is Folegandros. Now almost an elite island, it offers its visitors an atmosphere suited to those who like walking.The routes are well highlighted and cross a barren land lashed by the Meltemi, cliffs overlooking a sea of crazy colours, the capital which seems suspended on the rock and a plain where agriculture together with fishing has been one of the most important means ofsustenance. Folegandros is wonderful to walk around, you will be captivated by the scents and views, undoubtedly satisfying your sense of smell and sight.Let's start with the Agios Giorgos beach reachable by a white paved path among the olive trees where you can see the Sifnos island and the Serifos island in the distance in some places. Move on to the Agi Anárgiri chapel with its beautiful view of the beach and lighthouse, or the Chora with its wonderful panoramic views down to the Agios bay
Saronic Islands
We decree the Aegin island the best area of the Saronic Islands for walking routes. Little known to tourists but very dear to the Greeks, especially the Athenians given its proximity to the metropolis, it is known above all for its fantastic pistachios and for being the Plato homeland. Routes for all tastes among centuries old olive trees to reach the mountains where temples and views are breathtaking. Mount Elliano, the highest where the Zeus altar Elliano is located, which today is the Prophet Elia churchs, is certainly a stop to include during your holidays in Aegina. A special natural beauty among ancient agricultural settlements up to the top where you can enjoy boundless views of the Pepolonnese and the sea.To the north you can take a cobblestone path passing between two chapels up to the large Aloni (the Aloni is practically a circular stone threshing floor where the wheat was threshed with horses) to get to the Souvala, also instone that collected rainwater to water animals and for domestic uses. And again the Saint Dionigi church going down towards the stream which leads to an area of rich biodiversity where you can find wild lavender and wild asparagus, then reaching the Eliaonas valley with its centuries old olive trees dating back up to 2000 years.From here you can go down to Marathonas beach with the Kakoperato hill on the left from which the black stone used for the construction of the famous millstones of Aegina was extracted.
Sporades Islands
It is difficult which is the most beautiful or the most suitable for trekking given that the Sporades are considered the greenest islands in Greece with fairy pine forests and woods where you have the impression of being able to meet a gnome at any moment.Having to decide which one to recommend for trekking, we would like to point out the Skopelos island. A lush nature that passes through idyllic panoramas, a fauna as rich and varied as its wonderful native butterflies, marked and unmarked paths, where you can get lost and enjoy an area rich in monasteries and villages suspended in time as well as fantastic bays with postcard coves. Take a tour of the Monasteries, visiting that of Metamorphosis Sotiros, Agia Varvara, Prodomos and the Evangelistria Monastery with its ancient Catholic and fortress walls, mystical places where the weight of religion is strong and pressing through paths that pass through the foreststill intact. Arrive at the top of Mount Delphi and then reach Sentiukia on Mount Karya with its four ancient tombs from the Roman and early Christian periods where you will have a crazy view o Alonissos, Evia, Skiathos and Mount Pelion in Thessaly between the Pegasus Gulf and theAegean. And finally Stafylos beach with its cliffs dotted with conifers where you can stop for a swim and a moment of relaxation, or the old village of Palio Klima where you can experience an unforgettable sunset.
Crete Island
We end our trekking tour with one of the queens of Greece, the Crete island. There would be plenty to write about here, probably a lifetime wouldn't be enough given its size and the magnificent places that this iconic island manages to offer its visitors. Even if discovered it is impossible not to mention the famous Samaria Gorges. We find them in the Chania region and are considered among the most beautiful in all of Europe. Seventeen kilometers of walking between the Lefka Ori mountain range through a Mediterranean scrub made of pine and cypress forests, sources of drinking water, abandoned villages and small churches. A continuous change of landscape with inlets one hundred and fifty meters wide until the end from the gorge towards the Libyan Sea where they narrow to four meters rising to three hundred meters to reach the Iron Gates where the cliffs seem to touch the sky.We start from Xyloskalo to get to the Agia Roumeli village where the boat will take you to Sfakia passing through the enchanting Loutre village where we recommend you stop at least one night. The Kourtaliotiko Gorge is located in the northwest area of Rethymno. Kourtaliotiko means castanet and the name takes it from the river that crosses the gorge which, according to popular rumors, emits a sound which, propagating through the gully with the complicity of the wind, emits this curious hiss. A route that is not difficult but which offers an intense landscape between the crack created by the erosion of the river over the centuries in the midst of the imposing mountain peaks.You can visit the Agios Nikolaos church and a beautiful waterfall and then continue to reach the exotic Preveli beach. We conclude with the Zakros Gorge also called the Gorge of the Dead. We find it in the Lasithi region in the extreme eastern part of the Crete island. The name of Gorge of the Dead is not for a macabre reason, it was simply the place where the dead were buried by the Monoics in the caves above who considered it a place of honor and where according to archaeological finds one of the palaces of the time existed.It is part of the Sitia Geopark, therefore a protected area where rare biotypes of flora and fauna can be found. The route starts from the Ano Zakros village and is approximately three kilometers long. A walk that is not difficult, but not to be done during the rainy season as the water level can become dangerous.
These are a few examples of trekking routes to do in Greece, in theory you could talk about them for hours but start to get an idea and perhaps plan your holidays in Greece 2024 taking into account that there is more to do besides the beach.