Greece - Korina Miller [193]
The shady village of nearby Loutra Ipatis, is home to a summer sulphur spa. With your own transport, either village makes a good base for exploring the region. Try the immaculate Hotel Alexakis ( 22310 59380; alexakishotel@yahoo.com; Loutra Ipatis; s/d incl breakfast €35/40; ), and for reliable dinner fare and mezedhes, the modest Ouzerie Eleni Karyampa ( 22310 98335; Ipati; mains €4-7).
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AGIOS KONSTANTINOS
ΑΓΙΟΣ ΚΩΝΣΤΑΝΤΙΝΟΣ
pop 2660
Agios Konstantinos, on the main Athens–Thessaloniki route, is one of the three mainland ports (along with Volos and Thessaloniki) that serve the islands of Skiathos, Skopelos and Alonnisos, which make up the northern Sporades.
With judicious use of buses between Athens and the port, you will not need to stay overnight before catching a Sporades-bound ferry or hydrofoil. However, if you get stranded, try the well-managed Hotel Amfitryon ( 22350 31702; fax 22350 32604; Eivoilou 10; s/d incl breakfast €45/65; ) between the port and central square. Several tavernas keep company with the ferry ticket offices, including the reliable Taverna Kaltsas ( 22350 33323; mains €5-9.50).
Getting There & Away
BOAT
Agios Konstantinos is a gateway to the northern Sporades isles of Skiathos, Skopelos and Alonnisos. For details Island Hopping.
BUS
From the bus station ( 22350 32223), next to the Galaxias supermarket about 200m south of the ferry landing, there are buses to Athens’ Terminal B bus station (€14.20, 2½ hours, hourly), and buses to Lamia (€4.30, one hour, hourly), Thessaloniki (€27.50, four hours, two daily) and Patra (€20.50, 3½ hours, once daily).
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THEOLOGOS ΘΕΟΛΟΓΟΣ
Halfway between Agios Konstantinos and Thiva, and roughly 125km north of Athens, this picturesque fishing village and Athenian beach getaway is home to a rare excavated example of an ancient Neolithic town, complete with detailed and colourful display boards. For information, visit the Cornell Halai and East Lokris Project (halai.arts.cornell.edu) website or contact the on-site archaeologist, Cornell University’s John Coleman ( 69723 59601), or the site guard, English-speaking Vlasis Charakliannis ( 69484 61817), both of whom conduct impromptu tours for visitors. There are several tavernas, cafe-bars and domatia nearby.
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THESSALY ΘΕΣΣΑΛIΑ
The region of Thessaly occupies much of east-central Greece between the Pindos Mountains and the Aegean Sea. The fertile and river-fed Thessalian plain supported one of the earliest Neolithic settlements on the continent. Today, it boasts two of Greece’s most extraordinary natural phenomena: the lofty monastery-capped rock pinnacles of Meteora, and the lush Pelion Peninsula, home to restored pensions, cobblestone trails and sheltered bays. The mountains and alpine meadows around Elati and Pertouli, west of Trikala, are destinations for hikers, skiers and river rafters. And Volos, once ancient Iolkos, was the mythic home of Jason and his band of Argonauts.
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LARISA ΛAΡΙΣΑ
pop 140,820
Larisa is a major transport, military and service hub for the vast agricultural plain of Thessaly. Despite its workaday feel, it is a vibrant university town, as the bustling cafeterias around Plateia Makariou testify. Larisa has been inhabited for nearly 10,000 years, and its layered Byzantine and Ottoman past continues to unfold along its ancient riverside.
Perhaps because Larisa can heat up in the summertime, as any Greek will tell you, a ‘Beach of Larisa’ sign on the outskirts points toward Agiokampos, a mere 40km away.
Orientation
Larisa occupies the east bank of the Pinios River, which eventually flows through the Vale of Tembi to the Thermaikos Gulf. The train station is on the southern side of town and the main bus station is on the northern side.
A trio of squares (Laou, Ethnarhou Makariou, and Mihail Sapka) anchor the city