Beautiful Nafplio was once the capital of Greece. Today it is a great base for exploring the Peloponnese

Driving into Nafplio my first impression is that this can't be the place. I read that Nafplio was a charming city with a spectacular waterfront, small streets and historic buildings crowned by a fortress that looks over another fort in the middle of the harbor.

But driving into Nafplio is like entering a suburb of Athens, with congested traffic, apartment buildings and a feeling of disorder as if the city was not planned but allowed to spring up wherever anyone wanted to place a building.

Ok. I was not in the best of moods. I had driven down from Pelion on back roads, cutting across the Gulf of Corinth on a small ferry that went back and forth between Agios Nikolaos and Egion, and then driving the coastal road that hugs the northern shores of the Peloponessos to the rush hour traffic of Corinth.

I had a great little Honda Civic that my friend Elias at Swift Car rental had given me because some other tourist had totaled the brand new Hyundai Accent I should have been driving. The Honda was a great car, in fact it saved my life a couple of times along the way by responding when I had to get out of a tight situation, once on the National Road (near head on collision) and another in Evia (almost rear ended).

But as quick and maneuverable as the Honda was, it lacked a critical element for me and my less tolerant family. It had no air-conditioning and this was the middle of a heat wave in Argos, one of the hottest regions in Greece. The only relief was the movement of the hot air through the open windows, though this had to be fought for since my family (my wife and daughter) would rather sweat than have their hair messed with by hot wind. A swim and late lunch east of Egion helped us gather our strength and enabled us to continue all the way to Nafplio, arriving at sunset, but this first glimpse of the city did not make me want to spend any more time than it took to find an air-conditioned hotel with satellite television.

Luckily for me there was more to Nafplio than the modern commercial neighborhood we had to drive through to reach the old city, the true center of the town and the reason many people include it on their itineraries. By following the signs to the port we found what was the biggest parking lot I had ever seen in Greece, hugging the waterfront between the sunset colored sea and the beautiful historic buildings of the old city. Once we parked the car, located the Byron Hotel and then drove the car close enough to unload the baggage before driving down to re-park it and then walk back up to the hotel, I knew that if I did not turn the AC as high as it could go and take the best shower of my life, that I would write a scathing review of Naphlion and nobody would ever want to go there again.


But whichever ancient Gods look over the city were smiling on her that day and by the time I got back to our incredibly luxurious room, Andrea and Amarandi had it cooled down, and while my computer downloaded five days of e-mail (for some reason the phones in Pelion were not AOL software friendly), I did actually take the best shower of my life in a bathroom suitable for royalty, made of marble and bronze. From then on the city was ours.


Nafplio is like a bigger version of the Plaka in Athens, only more beautiful. The main platia called Syntagma (Constitution) Square, is paved in marble and is on a much grander scale than anything you will find in the Plaka and surrounded by historical buildings including a Turkish mosque, cafes, shops, a bank and a hotel.

The streets approaching it are well lit, closed to automobile traffic and filled with people casually strolling, looking at the jewelry shops, bakeries, tourist shops and the many bars and restaurants. Of particular interest is the shop which makes bouzoukis and other stringed instruments. If you are in the market for an aoud, baglama, guitar, bouzouki or even a hand-made flute, then this is where the pros go.

The big square at the waterfront and the sidewalk that follows the harbor is a place where people watch the sunset, walk off their evening meals or just enjoy the air, though I am sorry to say the lack of wind the night we were there made the harbor smell a little seweresque. Even so it was very festive with vendors selling hot nuts, roast corn and even cotton candy. I was dying for an ouzo but by the time we had gotten our act together and my family found me it was time for dinner.

The Palamidi Fortress, which sits above and dominates the city, is actually three separate fortresses walled together. It was built by the Venetian in 1714 and then taken by the Turks the following year and held until they surrendered it to Kolokotronis after a 15 month siege during the War of Independence. There are 999 steps leading up to the fortress but you can take a taxi for about a thousand drachma. The Palamidi is open from 8:30 am to 2:45 pm.

During the summer go early in the day if you wish to survive the trip. This is one of the greatest attractions in Greece, right up there with the Acropolis so don't miss it.


The Akronapflia is the oldest part of the city, in fact up until the Venetians and the Franks arrived in the 13th Century, it was the city. Now, unbelievably there are 2 sixties style concrete hotels on it, built by the Greek government. Behind Acronafplia is a mountain covered entirely by cactus and a view of the coast that is pretty spectacular. Below Acronafplia is the Psaromahalas or fisherman's district.The streets of the city are generally small and steep, some of them actually stairs rather than streets

Nafplio is a timeless city. Streets that are barely if ever used by automobiles, shops, restaurants and cafes selling the same things they have been selling all century (with the exception of the tourist shops) and people who have a simple elegance. Nafplio is a sophisticated little city that will certainly remind you of a more romantic age than the one we are in now.



The fortress in the middle of the harbor is called the Bourtzi and is reached by small boat during the summer. It has at various periods been a hotel and is currently a musical venue for the Nafplio Folk Music Festival which is held in May and June and features Greek and international performers. There is also the Maritime festival which is a week long and is celebrated every two years beginning the last Sunday in June. It is open as a snack bar in the evening. In the 19th century this is where the executioners for the prison at the Palamidi fortess lived since it was bad luck to have them live in the city itself.

The best time to walk around the old city is in the morning until about 11 and then in the early evening when everyone else does and it has the feeling of a county fair in July.

Nafplio is hot in the summer. In the day, people go to the beaches.

There is a beach in town just around the other side of the Akronaphlia where you pay to get in, but it has changing rooms, a bar and watersports. There is another further around the point. Two miles east of here is a beach at Karathona, and five miles further the town of Tolon with a sandy beach and many hotels, bars and restaurants.

Buses leave from Syngrou Station, every half hour from 7am to 7 pm. After that you can take a taxi. It's about a 20 minute trip.

There are enough interesting archaeology sites in the area to make Naphlion a good place to base yourself from, though if you are the type who likes to take an early morning or evening swim you may want to stay in one of the other smaller towns along the coast.

Astros is a great option, with more of a Greek island feel to it as is Tolon. From any of these places the entire Argolis peninsula, Myceneae, Epidavros, Argos and Corinth is accessable by local transportation, tours or rental car. The Argolis itself is agricultural and known for its citrus fruits.

Nafplio is a great place to visit especially in the off season when it is cool enough to explore, and you want to do nothing but shop, eat, drink and watch life in this small city, the first capital of modern Greece.

Used with permission from Matt Barrett's Greece Travel Guide