I wanted to go to the Peloponnese since this Lonely Planet article put it at the top of places to visit in Europe.

I chose to stay in Nafplio as it’s a beautiful town and there were other places to explore nearby.

NAFPLIO OLD TOWN

Nafplio is really cute and the Old Town is full of little streets and cute shops. There’s a nice pier with a promenade overlooking Bourtzi fortress in the sea, which is a lovely and scenic view.

PALAMIDI FORTRESS

Overlooking Nafplio and with great views over the Old Town, Palamidi (tickets 4€) is a fortress that provides the backdrop to Nafplio. You need to climb quite a few steps to get there, but the view and the fortress ruins are definitely worth the hike.

KARATHONA BEACH

Following a promenade that starts at the city centre of Nafplio, the path to Karathona beach is a lovely walk and a great spot for watching the sunset. You get to spot lots of fish swimming in the clear waters, kingfisher and other birds flying around and pretty local flora. There are also lots of little beaches along the way.

This is a scenic walk of a couple of miles by the beach, with plenty of benches to stop along the way and take in the scenery.

TOLO

A 20min bus ride away from Nafplio, Tolo is a cute and scenic port town with a beautiful beach. When we visited it was mostly empty, which made it really nice for a walk.

You can take the bus back to Nafplio but we decided to follow the walk suggested here and explore the Greek countryside instead. The walk goes through cultivated fields of olives and oranges, and you get great views of the land and the sea. Up the hill there’s a little monastery where you can sit and take in the landscape.

TYRINS

Only 4km away from Nafplio and easily reached by bus (but not walking, as there are no pedestrian paths) is Tyrins, a Unesco Heritage site (tickets 2€).

It is a large site built from 2,000 BC. The site itself is pretty big and there are lots of ruins, but they are not in a state that you can understand much (some artefacts found in Tyrins can be seen at the National Archaeological Museum in Athens).

FOOD AND DRINK

Nafplio Old Town has lots of cute bars and restaurants, with plenty of choice for a break. A favourite was popular Aiolos, which serves delicious Greek food. Lunch for two including drinks and tip for 25€.

Greek restaurants are famous for their hospitality, and you will often get free dessert and other bits as part of a meal.

STAY

We stayed at this Airbnb which was well-located and a great size for two people. Magda, the host, even cooked us a delicious dish of aubergine and potatoes which was just what we needed after a day of hiking.

GO

Nafplio is 2h10 by bus from Athens. You can buy tickets online here. The bus leaves from Kifisou station which is a bit far from the centre of Athens. Once there, look for the ‘Argolida’ signs to find the right platforms.

The same website also has timetables and routes for all buses around Nafplio.