 Messinia or Messinea Prefecture is a most gifted part of the Peloponnese. It is not exclusively tourism oriented and thus not crowded with flocks of rivals for a sunbathing stretch of sand. Those travelers who finally make their way here are profoundly rewarded by the beauty of the region and the wealth of cultural and natural sightseeing attractions. Come and visit this unknown land, one of the oldest cradles of Man. |
 Once in Messinia, one should not miss a tour to the following places.
Kyparissia sits as if wedged into the base of its fortress, its lower districts reaching as far as the sandy shore lapped by the Ionian Sea. Round about the castle is a plain planted with olive trees and grapevines. The sea opens into an infinite expanse of azure blue. It is said that the view of the sunset from the castle is one of the most splendid in the world. |
 Peristera is a place a little beyond the village of Raches (5 kilometers from Kiparissia), where three vaulted (beehive) tombs have been excavated. Filiatra is not far off. The whole district is dotted with churches, Byzantine and Frankish, of a venerable age. |
Gargaliani sits on a lush hillside. It's worth going up to the town to see the view below: a magical carpet of olive trees and vines that stretches to the sea, with Marathoupoli and the islet of Proti, the site of a ruined Mycenaean acropolis, in the background.
Hora is built on a hilltop. This village has preserved its old-fashioned appearance - stone houses with tiled roofs and narrow lanes. The finds from Nestor's Palace and Peristera are on display in the local museum. South of Hora, 4 kilometers from Englianos, lies the ruined palace of wise Nestor, who took part in the Trojan War and whose city was the second largest in the Mycenaean world. Built in the 13th century BC, the palace was destroyed by fire a century later.
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