Nestor’s Palace

On the road  to Chora, about 25 mins drive from Methoni (buses from Pylos),the unfortified citadel stands on a high plateau commanding magnificent views of ‘wise’ King Nestor’s lands.His city was the second largest in the world.From this vantage his family would have seen his ship returning from Troy quite a while before he got home. An ancient proto-greenie, whose farming methods shaped the way the landscape looks today, his palace is the most important discovery of all the Mycenaean sites, ironically because the fire which destroyed much of the palace preserved hundreds of linear b tablets ( an early form of Greek ) by baking them solid. The huge circular fireplace in the throne room and Nestor’s bath are much as they were in1300bc and enough of the richly-decorated frescoes and objects of daily life (in the museum in nearby Chora) remain to get a clear idea of what life at the palace was like.

Voidokilia Bay and freshwater lagoon

Approx. 25 mins drive/18km from Methoni is one of the most beautiful beaches in Europe. Voidokilia is a horseshoe shaped bay with a perfect amphitheatre of wide, white sandy beach and dunes behind. There’s no development at all here – not even a café nearby, so bring a picnic and beach umbrella and don’t tell too many people about it ! The crystal-clear warm water is perfect for swimming, especially after a long but worthwhile scramble from the castle above the bay and the caves where reputedly Nestor kept his cows. The views over the Ionian Sea, Voidokilia and Sphacteria are gorgeous.
In Autumn the natural lagoon behind is teeming with a huge variety of migrating birds; some stopping off on their way south, some staying for the Winter and is a bird-watchers paradise. Even flamingoes have been spotted here. Kingfishers are a daily sight.

Ancient Messini

About an hour’s drive from Methoni, parts of the huge circuit wall (9km long and 3metres wide),one of the finest examples of military architecture of the 3rd and 4th century bc are still standing and at the massive Arcadian gate the paving slabs still bear the traces of chariot wheels.The fortifications were built by the Theban general Epaminondas after he defeated the Spartans at the Battle Of Leuctra, freeing the Messinians from almost 350 years of Spartan enslavement.It’s a great experience to walk along the walls to one of the remaining 8 towers and survey the expanse of landscape. In your imagination the centuries just fall away.
The ongoing excavations of the city among the foothills of the sacred Mt. Ithome (mythical birthplace of Zeus) have so far unearthed temples, a theatre, stadium, fountain, agora and many houses.It’s an incredible site – and as with most places in Messinia pretty untouristed. The small museum has some unusual and incredibly well-preserved sculptures from the excavations.