Pantazi Beach- Platsa

Route: Pantazi Beach – Kotroni – Platsa – Pigi – Pantazi Beach

Timing: approx. 2.5 hours

Difficulty: 3/5

Description: A 3-star rating as the first half is uphill all the way. A lot of the walk is on kaldarimia and the route passes through the villages of Platsa, where there is a kafenion for a break, and Pigi. Great views down to Agios Nikolaos and beyond.

1. The walk begins and ends at the beach- you will see green walkers signs indicating where it ends. From here the first part is very straight forward- follow the coast road until the Kotroni turning and head up and through the village (the last building you pass is the old priest’s house).
2. At the junction with the dirt road, turn left for a few metres and then right to continue on the path. At the second dirt road, the path continues directly opposite you.
3. As the path approaches Platsa it becomes walled-in on both sides and the first building you come to is a church on your right. Follow the map through the village.
4. After the house with black, iron gates turn right onto a stone path that will soon join a concrete road, dropping down into Pigi. The taverna is usually only open in the evenings. Once you have passed through Pigi, a path takes you down to a dirt track. Turn left and follow it until a wide kalderimi appears on your right.

It might seem as if this is a private road, leading to the nearby house- it isn’t, the path continues past the house. Half way down the kalderimi you pass a shrine, commemorating the death of a 26 year-old doctor. The route briefly joins a dirt road before continuing straight, all the way down to the river bed, where you turn left to reach the starting point.