Greece - Korina Miller [164]
There is no tourist office. The National Bank of Greece and ATE Bank (with ATM) are on the square.
Internet P@ndigit@l (Episkopou 17; per hr €2.50; 8am-2pm & 5-9pm Mon-Sat) Cutting-edge services.
Police station ( 27230 23733/2316) On the central square.
Post office (Nileos; 7.30am-2pm Mon-Fri)
Sights & Activities
CASTLES
There are castles on each side of Navarino Bay. The more accessible of them is the Neo Kastro ( 27230 22010; adult/concession €3/2; 8.30am-3pm Tue-Sun), on the hill top at the southern edge of town, off the road to Methoni. It was built by the Turks in 1573 and later used as a launching pad for the invasion of Crete. It remains in good condition, especially the formidable surrounding walls. Within its walls are a citadel, a mosque converted into a church and a courtyard surrounded by dungeons (used as a prison until the 1900s). The site’s museum exhibits a collection of pictures of the Battle of Navarino, donated by René Puaux (1878–1937). He bequeathed his collection of porcelain, engravings and lithographs on condition that it be exhibited at Pylos, near the battle’s location. The road to Methoni from the central square goes past the castle. Allow a couple of hours for relaxed exploration.
For coverage of the ancient Paleokastro, the other castle that is 6km north of Pylos, Click here.
BOAT TOURS
Club Boats ( 27230 23155, 6972263565) in the kiosk on the quay runs boat tours around the Bay of Navarino and to Sfaktiria Islet. The price depends on the number of passengers, but reckon on about €10 per person (minimum €70 for the tour). On the trip around the island, stops can be made at memorials to admirals of the Allied ships. Napoleon’s nephew and British casualties are also buried here. If conditions are still, boats pause to see silt-covered wrecks of sunken Turkish ships, still discernible in the clear waters.
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BIRDWATCHING & THE GIAVOLA LAGOON
The best – and most accessible – birdwatching site in the Peloponnese is the Gialova Lagoon. Between September and March the lagoon is home to up to 20,000 assorted waterbirds, while many others pause here on their spring migration between Africa and Eastern Europe.
The Hellenic Ornithological Society has recorded 265 of around 400 species found in Greece, including 10 species of duck and eight types of heron. Waders descend in their thousands, along with flamingos and glossy ibis. Birds of prey include the internationally threatened species, the imperial eagle, plus osprey, peregrine falcon and harriers.
The lagoon and associated wetlands cover 700 hectares at the northern end of Navarino Bay, separated from the bay by a narrow spit of land leading out to Koryphasion Hill. They are fed by two freshwater streams that flow into the reed beds on the northern and eastern flanks of the lagoon and empty into Navarino Bay, below Koryphasion Hill.
The wetlands and surrounding coastal habitats were declared a protected area in 1997. The old pump house, former nerve centre of an ill-considered drainage scheme, has been converted into an information centre and is the starting point for two walking trails that guide visitors through a range of habitats.
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Sleeping
Rooms to Rent Stavroula Milona ( 27230 22724; d without bathroom €30) This creaky place (with wobbly floors) is charming. The small, basic rooms are clean and comfortable. There’s a communal kitchen and TV lounge. It’s on the seafront, south of Hotel Miramare, above Café-Bar En Plo (the bar’s nightly music may bother some).
Hotel Nilefs ( 27230 22518; fax 27230 22575; Rene Pyot, s/d/tr incl breakfast €45/65/78; Apr-Oct; ) This good-value place run by a pleasant woman (no English spoken) offers a spic ’n’ span experience. The neat rooms have balconies. It’s just back from the seafront on the castle side of the square.
Hotel Karalís ( 27230 22970; hotel_karalis@yahoo.gr; Paralia, s/d incl breakfast €110/120) It’s hard not to like this hotel for the setting alone – under the castle walls,