Visit Sykia and Lakonia Region
Sykia
At an altitude of 160m resting on a hilltop, Sykia village oversees the Molai and Asopos plain. It has about 1,000 inhabitants engaged mainly in agriculture. It has all the needed facilities (supermarket, bakery, pharmacy, butcher, cafes, taverns …).
It is worth to visit KASELL cooperative to buy good quality local extra virgin olive oil.
A wine festival is organized last weekend of July where guests can enjoy plenty of local wine and music.
Greek flavours
Regional gastronomy is rich and offers top quality local agricultural products such as olives and olive oil, wine, citrus or figs. In inland villages, one can find local meat, sausages and cheese while fresh fish and sea food are found in all the fishing villages along the coast. Home-made traditional cakes from marzipan or honey are available in all local bakeries.
What to see
Monemvasia Rock: 15 minutes’ drive from Sykia, this medieval fortress town is known as the Gibraltar of the East. The old town has been carved on the slope of the rock while the castle ruins lie on its top.
Mystras, the last byzantine capital city. The archaeological site and museum will transport you in the time of the last Byzantine Emperors. It includes well-preserved Byzantine churches with beautiful frescoes, remains of fortifications, palaces, mansions as well as constructions related to water supply and drainage and to commercial and craft-based activities.
Elafonisos Island: reached by ferry from Pounta, the island is mainly visited for its white sand beaches and turquoise waters.
Sparta: if not much is left from Ancient Sparta, modern Sparta offers 2 museums worth seeing, the Archaeological Museum and the Museum of the Olive and Greek Olive Oil.
Kastania cave: the cave’s surface is 1,500 m2 separated in 2 levels, visitors are guided along a 500-meter route. After the visit, enjoy the secluded Panagia beach with crystal clear waters.
More unusual
The fossilized palm forest: visit the Geopark in Agios Nikolaos and the beach of Agia Marina or hike the trail from the small seaside village Profitis Ilias to discover petrified roots nodes, trunks, shells and many others.
Pavlopetri underwater city: snorkel a 5,000 years old submerged city, located between Pavlopetri islet and the coast of Pounta.
Beaches
The region south of Sykia offers many sandy beaches with crystal clear waters.
The closest one from the Villas is Plytra Beach, an organised beach well protected from the sea breezes.
Others famed beaches are Charakia beach located in the bay of Archangelos, Maganos beach located in the south of Agios Georgios, Pounta beach and, last but not least, the famous beach of Simos in Elafonisos.
