'Old Town' is in a beautifully restored building that once housed an incense maker followed by a cigarette workshop. These days the aromas and flavours are equally diverse, thanks to the eclectic selection of modern Greek dishes: salted pork salad, Mani spaghetti (local noodles), and more traditional vegetable concoctions. There's an atmospheric stone-vaulted dining area and lovely rear courtyard.
I Palaiopolis
The Mani
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
28.16 MILES
Spread over a steep mountainside and surrounded by verdant olive and orange trees, this former Byzantine capital and fortified city is the single most…
Museum of the Olive & Greek Olive Oil
28.02 MILES
This beautifully designed museum initiates you into the mysteries of the olive from its initial appearance in the Mediterranean in 60,000 BC to the…
1.9 MILES
These extraordinary flooded caves, inhabited since Neolithic times, lie 11km south of Areopoli and are signposted near the village of Pyrgos Dirou. The…
20.12 MILES
From the car park at the end of the road in Kokinogia, at the south of the Mani peninsula, it's a beautiful 2km walk along an uneven rocky path to one of…
Archaeological Museum of Messenia
29.96 MILES
This partially interactive, child-friendly museum focuses on treasures found in four regions – Kalamata, Pylia, Messini and Trifylia. Exhibits include…
28.74 MILES
Though few buildings are standing that date back to the height of Sparta's greatness, it's an atmospheric stroll around this hillside, where the acropolis…
28.61 MILES
The King Leonidas statue stands belligerently in front of a football stadium. When the Persians attacked at Thermopylae and told the Spartans and their…
16.63 MILES
Larger-than-life Patrick Leigh Fermor (1915–2011), a Hellenophile and marvellously engaging writer, lived just outside Kardamyli for much of his later…
Nearby The Mani attractions
0.08 MILES
On the southern side of Plateia 17 Martiou is this 18th-century church. Its picturesque five-storey bell tower marks it as the most important of Areopoli…
0.09 MILES
The Church of Agios Ioannis, built by the Mavromichalis family on a tiny square west of the main square, contains a series of well-preserved frescoes…
3. Pikoulakis Tower House Museum
0.1 MILES
Housed in a restored tower, this museum displays exquisite Byzantine pieces from Mani churches. These include a 12th-century marble templon (chancel…
1.9 MILES
These extraordinary flooded caves, inhabited since Neolithic times, lie 11km south of Areopoli and are signposted near the village of Pyrgos Dirou. The…
8.5 MILES
This spectacular peninsula juts out of the Mani coast like an upside-down saucepan and, indeed, its Greek name means 'frying pan'. The high point of…
12.13 MILES
It may be compact, but this museum does a wonderful job of bringing to life the past residents of Gythio and the surrounding Mani. Themed rooms exhibit…
12.13 MILES
This beautiful little studio-museum-shop is run by personable local artist Giorgos Hassanakos. The small upstairs gallery pays homage to traditional…
12.32 MILES
According to mythology, tranquil, pine-shaded Marathonisi, connected to Gythio by a thin causeway, is ancient Cranae, where Paris (prince of Troy) and…