activities ARACHOVA - PARNASSOS - Delphi
AREA DESCRIPTION
Arachova is undoubtedly the queen of Parnassos. It is built in an amphitheatric way and it spreads magnificently to the south hillsides of Parnassus, at an altitude of 960 meters, ending up at a cliff where Pleistos river flows. The wild beauty combined with its unaltered traditional character, its cosmopolitan face and the numerous activities the majestic mount Parnassos offers, place it rightfully at the top of the Greek winter tourism and at the list with the top destinations for the other seasons too.
EXPERIENCES IN THE REGION
If you really love to come in contact with nature, Arachova is the absolute destination for that. You can go hiking in the mountain, or walking in the village where the age-old plane trees, the stone-built central square, the tiled roofs of the houses, the panoramic view of Parnassos Mountain, the smell of burnt wood from the chimneys and the taste of the traditional “gliko tou koutaliou” (which means, sweet of the spoon) from the local taverns stimulate all the senses making you feel really alive! At Parnassos, there are also offered a lot of alternative activities, such as:
Wine Tasting
At the small village “Polydrosos” of Parnassos Mountain, the Argyriou family produces excellent wine at the winery “Argyriou”, which is also located at their own estate. There, at the specially designed cellar of the winery, visitors have the opportunity to enjoy and taste the superb award-winning wines “Argyriou”.
Horse Riding
Horse-riding is one of the top activities offered at mountain. If you dream to ride a beautiful horse staring at the snowy and fir-covered mountain slopes, the horse-riding at Parnassos is the ideal choice for you. At the village “Livadi of Arachova” there is space for equestrian activities. This location is perfect for horse-riding because it’s a quite large area, on a quiet dirt road far away from the crowds and with an unobstructed view at the fir forest and alpine Parnassos.
Walking with snow rackets
An amazing experience in winter is snowshoeing! It is considered one of the most pleasurable ways to enjoy the snowy landscape. Snow rackets have a large surface and they don’t sink in the snow. As a result, walking or hiking on snowy forest roads and trails becomes an easy affair!
Tours with ATV and Buggy
One of the best ways to know the wild nature of Parnassos Mountain is driving a four-wheel ATV! In this way, you will manage to traverse the nature through mud, snow, small creeks and small lakes. The only thing that is necessary for the tour with ATV is warm clothing and a scarf covering the whole face.
Snow mobile
If you visit Parnassos Mountain in winter, you can live the exciting experience of driving or riding in the snow using a snowmobile. One of the most beautiful places where you can find rentals of snowmobiles is at Dokano (the place which connects Livadi with Eptalophos).
SPORTS ACTIVITIES
If you are mountain lovers and hunters of intense experiences and emotions, Parnassos is the right place for you. There are countless activities you can enjoy and many destinations to visit and create fantastic experiences during your stay at the foot of Mount Parnassos. We have the pleasure to suggest you some of them, such as:
Mountain Biking
Mountain biking in mount Parnassos is an excellent experience that every visitor must give a try. Inside the enchanting environment of Parnassos National Park with the breathtaking sceneries, mountain bike experience doesn’t leave anyone untouched.
Skiing & Snowboard
Parnassos is famous for ski and snowboard. Parnassos Ski Center is the biggest ski resort in Greece. With the new state of the art releasable lifts at Kellaria and Fterolaka, Parnassos Ski Center is now in the list with the top ski resorts in the Balkans.
Skiing with sea view
From many parts of the ski area, you can see the Gulf of Corinth as well as the Euboean Gulf. The possibility of skiing while having the Greek seas as a view skyrockets the skiing experience. Apart from skiing at Parnassos Ski Center, Parnassos is one of the most popular mountains for ski mountaineering in Greece.
Climbing
Being one of the greatest mountains in Greece, Parnassos couldn’t fail to have climbing fields. Here, there are some of the most known climbing fields in the country, such as the one of Kouvelos.
Hiking
Mount Parnassos is full of sceneries that take your breath away. Alpine sceneries with a view to the sea, endless fir forests, ancient monuments and the oldest National Park in Greece are only some of them. Mount Parnassos offers you the opportunity to discover it from one edge to the other by hiking.
FOOD AND BEVERAGE
When you are in the area of Arachova, it is worth trying the local cuisine where all the dishes are made with love by the locals and pure raw materials of the area. What is certain is that, whatever your choice, the flavors of the region will fascinate you!
- Zachos
- Babis
- Ta Kopsidia
- To Agnantio
- To Tsoukali
- Christos
- Fterolakka
- Τhe Folks Restaurant
- Husky – All day bar
- Isidora Gallery Bar
- Bello Panini Bar
DELPHI SIGHSEEINGS
Delphi’s sights are numerous. The most important of them:
Archaeological Museum
Delphi, the Athenian Treasury, the Sacred Way, the Castalian Spring, the Tholos at the sanctuary of Athena Pronaia.
The Temple of Apollo
One of the most important monuments in Delphi is the Temple of Apollo which was located at a prominent and central position inside the Sanctuary. Before the temple took its current form from the ruins, we can see today it was destroyed twice. In the temple, rituals were carried out that were related to worship, the greatest of which was the preparation of the prophecy. At the deeper level of the temple, the adyton was located, where the prophecy procedure took place and where only the priests who would interpret Pythia’s words had access and today, we have very few evidences regarding its adornment.
Ancient Theatre of Delphi
The Ancient Theatre of Delphi is a World Heritage Site in Delphi, at the southern part of mount Parnassos. The Ancient Theatre is located at the northwest part of the temple of Apollo and at its courtyard. During the ancient years, the reputation of the theatre was the same with the ancient stadium in Olympia, as it housed vocal and instrumental music games that were carried out for the Pythian Games and other religious celebrations and ceremonials offering the monument a spiritual and artistic value.
Museum of Delphic Festival
Also, the Museum of Delphic Festival which is accommodated at the house of our great writer and poet Angelos Sikelianos. Sikelianos had envisioned the “Delphic Idea”, a global spiritual society based at Delphi. In 1927, with the contribution of his wife and many personalities of the era, the first Delphic Festivals were carried out, and they had a global appeal. In the museum, costumes and photographic material from the Delphic Festivals are exhibited, as well as handwritten texts by Angelos Sikelianos and his personal items, and his wife’s Eva broadlooms.
DELPHI ACTIVITIES
Hiking
Delphi is an independent destination for hikers, as it is very well known for its ancient worshipers’ trail from Kirra to Delphi, which is part of the E4 European long distance path.
Mountain Skiing
Skiing at Parnassos Ski Center, as well as mountain biking keep the interest of the “active” visitors.
Shopping
A walk at the shops and the alleys in Delphi is ideal after a day of adventure in Parnassos.
