Diros Caves - Monemvasía

Route: Kalamata - Diros Caves - Monemvasía - Kalamata
Duration: 10 h
During our journey you will learn all those historical elements that make Mani a magical region. You will also hear stories about the independent and tough natured locals. We will not miss the opportunity to stop at two or three churches. Each and every one has great historical interest as they were built between the 11th and 12th century. Our perseverance with them has nothing to do with their deep religionists residents, but with the historical data that they can provide. The combination of colors, the wild beauty of the mountains and the turquoise waters of the bay create images that you will never forget! Located at the top of the Mani between the town of Pirgos Dirou and Areopolis the entrance of Diros’ Caves is a few meters above the sea level. When you enter the cave you willwalk down a stairway to an underground lake where boats waiting for as. You will be given a life-vest and then each boat gets a guide who uses poles to journey through the caverns and tunnels, which are eerily lit and adorned with stalactites and stalagmites, many with interesting names. You will pass through some sections just wide enough to allow your boat, where you have to duck your head and then enter into an enormous subterranean room where you can hear the voices of people on other boats in the distance. After visit to cave we will go to our last point of our tour - fortress Monemvasia. Monemvasia is one of the most important medieval fortress-cities of Greece. It is also one of the most beautiful castles in the world. Its area consists mostly of a large plateau some 100 metres above sea level, up to 300 m wide and 1 km long, the site of a powerful medieval fortress. The town walls and many Byzantine churches remain from the medieval period. The town and fortress were founded in 583, during the reign of the Byzantine Emperor Mauricius, by people seeking refuge from the Slavic and the Avaric invasion of Greece. A history of the invasion and occupation of the Peloponnese was recorded in the medieval Chronicle of Monemvasia. From the 10th century AD, the town developed into an important trade and maritime centre. The fortress withstood the Arab and Norman invasions in 1147; cornfields that fed up to 30 men were tilled inside the fortress. William II of Villehardouin took it in 1248, on honourable terms, after three years of siege; in 1259 William was captured by the Greeks after the Battle of Pelagonia and in 1262 it was retroceded to Michael VIII Palaiologos as part of William's ransom. And it was only start of it history... you will know all about history of the fortreess during our tour. After we will back to Kalamata.
Price: per person