Travelling to Pilion

We don’t know much about holidays and flights from the UK to Pelion. All useful tips are welcome. 

Charlotte Dawson, who lives in Ano Gatzea, wrote us: "There are various package companies that offer "flight only" deals to Volos. This year I know about Airflights.co.uk and Flight heros but there may be others. Ryanair, dreadful as they are, now also do London, Stanstead to Thessaloniki but I have used them only once and never again.
 
There is another way of doing this, which is to get a flight only on a package to Skiathos and get the ferry to Volos (tour companies call this a "Mediterranean Cruise" and charge a fortune for it!) If the flight isn't full, it is sometimes possible to stay on the plane at Skiathos and get off if it stops at at Volos to refuel
 
Having said that, we generally suggest our guests come via Thessaloniki, which is served both by British Airways and by Easyjet. It's usually a lot cheaper than "flight only" on a package".

Gwyn Wake adds: "There are summer flights from UK Manchester and London Gatwick to Volos operated by Monarch Airlines".

If you have arrived in Athens or Thessaloniki by air, you can take a bus or train to Volos. KTEL is the bus company for long-distance travelling in Greece. Every day there are various buses from Athens and Thessaloniki to Volos. Buses from Volos into Pilion can be found at www.ktelvolou.gr. Www.ose.gr gives some information about trains. You can also rent a car in Athens or Thessaloniki and drive to Pilion.  

We prefer to travel to Greece by car, through Italy. From Ancona we take the ferry boat. Minoan Lines (www.minoan.gr) and Anek Lines (www.anek.gr) are companies with whom you can make this crossing.

 Information about Pilion

www.peliontravel.com and www.aroundpelion.com provide a lot of information about accomodation, transport and other practical tips. There are also a few campsites on Pilion: www.campinghellas.gr, www.camping-sikia.gr and www.camplouisa.com/index_en.

www.volos-city.gr/Default.aspx?id=13752&nt=18&lang=2 is the page of the tourist information centre in Volos.

www.kalanera.info is a portal with a lot of information about Kala Nera. 

www.lostunicorn.com is the website of a hotel in Tsagarada. The owners have made a map with walks in the area which they sell for 5 euros.

Places to stay

We would like to recommend a few addresses where we have stayed ourselves, or which have been recommended by others. In Afissos: Maria Kouvlaki, Rena and Vasso Galanea. In Ano Gatzea: the Old Bakery. In Platanias: Villa Platania and The Olive Store. In Horto: Pelion Pikilia.

Good food

We love good food and we enjoy discovering places to eat that offer something extra compared with the numerous regular tavernas and restaurants. Here you find our first recommendations.

Recommendations by others:

* Zandra McGillivray says Galini's in Kalamos is a good place to eat: "Vangelis's wife is a superb cook". October 2010.

* Wilbert Pot writes: "A really good restaurant is taverna Eleni in Affilianes, between Palatania en Kastri. Beautifully situated on a hill with views on Skiathos, original dishes with vegetabels and fruit from their own garden!" December 2010.

Miscellaneous

Anavasi maps and the Cdrom for walkers with a GPS can be ordered at www.anavasi.gr/en.

For German translations www.linguardor.com