Take in local history and breathtaking sights with a full day walking tour of the captivating Navarino Bay. Justly famous as the stage of the most pivotal naval battle of the Greek War for Independence, the Battle of Navarino in October of 1827 marked a decisive turning point in the fortunes of the upstart Greek nation as the combined French, British and Russian allied fleets handed a crushing defeat to their Otto-Egyptian counterparts, effectively crippling their ability to wage war at sea. Though it would take another five years for Greece to be formally recognized as an independent state with the Treaty of Constantinople in 1832, the Battle of Navarino clearly signaled the beginning of the end of Ottoman rule in the Peloponnese and the dawning of a new era of freedom for people of Greece.
On this tour, your guides will take you on a circular path of the Navarino Castle hill that winds through the outer edge of the Gialova lagoon. The lagoon is a stopover point of great significance for migratory birds during their annual spring and autumn migrations and is a designated Important Bird Area (IBA). The path then leads up the hill to meet the old Navarino Castle at the top before returning back down to your starting point at the dunes of Divari beach. The site of the castle is far more ancient than the remains of the 13th century Frankish castle would suggest, as the castle sits on top of the old acropolis of Pylos that was part of the kingdom of the Homeric king Nestor himself. Indeed, evidence suggests that during the construction of the fortress castle by the Franks some of the materials used were repurposed parts of the old acropolis. With a complete view of the Navarino Bay, the castle offers the perfect spot to take in the local landscape and perhaps ponder the lives and thoughts of the ancient people that looked across the horizon over these very walls. After taking in the sights, your guides will take you to a local Greek restaurant to enjoy a nice dinner.
More Information
Provider: Climb Up
Tel: +30 6973342282
E-mail: info@climbup.gr