Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
own taverna, plus 24hr hot showers and laundry facilities.
Full range of information on activities that include
kayaking, area hikes, spelunking, rock-climbing, horse-
riding, mountain-
bik
ing and
ish
ing. Some sites have sea
views. May-Sept.
€6
/person;
€3
/car.
Platanias
T
24230 71240,
W
hotelplatanias.com.
Located east of the river mouth, right on the waterfront,
this is the best and quietest option in Plataniás. Set in a
rambling complex, all rooms have a kitchenette and
balcony, and mostly mountain rather than sea views; there
are also family units suitable for four. They also hav
e the
ir
own sea-front
taverna (
To Steki
) on the ground floor.
€50
HÓRTO
Diplomats' Holidays
T
24230 65497,
W
diplomats
holidays.com.
A mock-traditional complex of white, red-
tile-roofed houses set amid garden greenery. Excellent
facilities include a pool, tennis court and private beach,
pebbly and small, but all yours. All accommodation is self-
cate
ring
and comes with a/c and private verandas. April-
Oct.
€65
MILÍNA
Accommodation
in this resort is largely self-catering,
and handled by tour companies. Check with the
Houses of
Pelion
agency (
T
24230 65471,
W
pelion.co.uk), which can
fix you up with one of their premises here.
Ì
O Sakis
T
24230 66078.
This seafront taverna is the
best in the area and has the most genuinely Greek feel. You
can assemble a tasty meal of seafood, two mezédhes and
local wine for €14 - or scaly fish for a bit more. Lots of meat
dishes, too.
Daily lunch & dinner.
Xenon Athina
T
24230 65473,
W
athina-pelion.com.
Located directly on the seafront, the fully self-catering
accommodation here is simple but clean and comfortable;
all rooms f
eatu
re a/c and balconies, some with sea view.
April-Oct.
€55
AYÍA KYRIAKÍ
Ì
Argo-Mythos
Mylos
T
24230 91032,
W
argomythos
.gr.
This beautiful, well-managed hilltop resort, just 4km
over the hill from Ayía Kyriakí, has it all: rooms and self-
catering apartments with a/c and balconies, a swimming
pool, a rest
aura
nt, and proximity to a cove with beach - plus
fine views.
€45
Mouragio
T
24210 45791.
This traditional taverna, one
of three lined up here, is the most likely to be open all year
and offers the usual Greek dishes, temptingly prepared and
at excellent prices (€10-15/person), with fresh catch-of-
the-day.
Daily lunch & dinner.
Paradhosiakós Xenónas
T
24230 91112 or 697 87 71
831.
This is one of the agents that coordinate room rentals
in buildings all over the village. Accommod
ation
is basic
but clean, and they usually include breakfast.
€40
3
PLATANIÁS
Camping Louisa
T
24230 71260,
W
camplouisa.com.
Located on the access road 600m inland, set amid forest
and flowers and a certified organic farm, you'll find this
rustic campsite. They offer full kitchen use as well as their
Lárissa and around
LÁRISSA
, approached across a prosperous but dull landscape of wheat and corn
fields, is a major transport hub, as well as both marketplace and major garrison:
army camps ring it, the airport remains monopolized by the Greek Air Force, and
the southwestern part of the city - with over 160,000 inhabitants - is dominated by
ranks of military housing. There's no real reason to stay here, unless your transport
scheduling requires it, and, if that happens, you'll find a city centre with an ancient
theatre and the remains of an acropolis with archeological layers dating 8000 years
back to Neolithic times. In the modern centre, life focuses around three main
squares and a park.
Travelling
north
from Lárissa, the motorway heads towards Thessaloníki via the
renowned
Vale of Témbi
, between mounts Olympus and Óssa, before emerging on the
coast.
West from Lárissa
, the road follows the River Piniós to
Tríkala
, a provincial
capital with a fairly attractive centre and important Byzantine monuments nearby.
ARRIVAL AND ACTIVITIES
LÁRISSA
By train
The train station (
T
24105 90143
)
is located
south of the city centre, at Oktourou Square.
Destinations
Athens (hourly; 3hr 15min-4hr 30min);
Thessaloníki
(hourly; 1hr 10min-2hr); Tríkala (2 daily; 1hr
15min); Vólos (hourly; 50min).
By bus
The main KTEL station (
T
24105 37777) is on
Yeoryiádhou at the far north end of Olýmbou, 200m east of
the acropolis, but all buses towards Tríkala leave from a
station on Iróön Polytekhníou southwest of the centre
(
T
24105 90143).
