There will be guided walks on 5 days with one rest day midway through the week.  Each day you will be collected from your apartment after breakfast and will be driven to the start of that day's walk – most of the walks will be circular and the final itinerary will be designed around the ability of that week’s group. Depending on the group we will walk for anything between 3.5 and 6 hours a day.

A part of what makes the Mani so beautiful is its rugged limestone mountains that plunge into the crystalline blue sea. Given the terrain, some of the walks which we undertake will involve some degree of ascent and descent; it is therefore important that you arrive fit enough for the holiday – if you can walk 10km with some inclines included you are fit enough for the Mani!

We walk on old Kalderimi (centuries old paved donkey paths), dirt roads, paths and trails in varying degrees of upkeep. As well as being fit enough it is therefore important to also come properly equipped for the walks.  Please see your “must brings” in the FAQ's kit section.

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Whilst we think that the walking is the most important part of the week it seems to us that the food you'll enjoy follows a close second! A delicious lunch is provided on each walking day -  either in the form of a lovely picnic on the walk or a light meal stop in a taverna.

Arriving on the Saturday we'll gather in the early evening for a drink and a chance to meet your fellow walkers, discuss the week’s itinerary and familiarise yourselves with the local area. For those arriving earlier in the day there will be time to stroll around the village, have a dip or simply relax on your balcony or in a local bar/taverna with a glass of something cold in your hand.

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At the end of each day's walk we'll drop you back for a late afternoon and evening at your leisure.  Not before we nip in for a swim stop at a beautiful small cove or beach on the way home.

On one of the evenings we include some sunset drinks on a beautiful old “Aloni” (threshing floor) overlooking the Gulf of Messinia across to Koroni, followed by a slap up dinner in the historic village of Thalames at the renowned Platanos taverna run by our wonderful friends, Christina and Fotis.

Whilst the week is centered around walking there is also plenty of history for you to discover: from byzantine churches with surviving frescoes, to 13th Century hill top forts and castles.  We will visit a number of these during the week as we explore the Mani.  We will also enjoy a wide variety of flora and fauna along the way.

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We will be based in the picturesque fishing village of Aghios Nikolaos on the Western coast of the Mani a 75 minute drive from Kalamata airport. Aghios Nikolaos offers the perfect blend of low level tourism mixed with the local fisherman and others going about their day to day business.

The accommodation for the week will be typical Greek spacious, comfortable, family run apartments in Aghios Nikolaos centered around the small fishing harbour. There are more than half a dozen tavernas in the village providing plenty of variety for evening meals.

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The village comes to life at 9am every morning as the small local fishing fleet returns from a nights fishing and gather on the quayside to sell that nights catch, local restaurant owners are usually first in the queue snapping up the ultra fresh fish.

Aghios Nikolaos boasts a couple of wonderful places for an early morning or late afternoon swim – either at Gnospi – affectionately known as “the swimming pool” by the locals for its calmness and crystal clear water, or on the other side of the village where some steps or a diving board for the brave take you directly in to some more crystalline water. The lovely Pantazi beach is also only a 15 minute walk away.

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