Τhe menalontrail

A great way to get to know an outstandingly beautiful side of Greece is to take the Menalon trail -a 75 km network of signposted paths that connect 9 mountain villages. Of course, the route is split into 8 sections, so you don’t have to walk the whole 75 kilometres at once and you can pick and choose whichever of the 8 trails you fancy. The "Menalon Trail" is the first Greek hiking route to receive a technical sufficiency and safety certification from the European Ramblers Association (ERA).

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The Menalo range covers the heartlands of the Peloponnese and a large part of Arcadia. It is one of the largest mountain ranges in Greece, with more than 50 peaks over 1,500m. Part of its beauty is that it includes so many different landscapes, and when you’re exploring its rivers, gorges, woods, mountain meadows and caves, you’ll find it easy to agree that this is where Pan, the god of the wild, once lived.

When it comes to nature, the mountain has a rich plant life, with Abies cephalonica or Greek firs being the most common trees. The mountain is also home to a wide variety of birds, amphibians and mammals. Finally, it is dotted with traditional settlements, archaeological sites, medieval castles, temples, monasteries, stone bridges, water mills and old pathways. 

A great way to get to know this outstandingly beautiful side of Greece is the Menalon trail - a 75 km network of signposted paths that connect 9 mountain villages, Stemnitsa, Dimitsana, Zygovisti, Elati, Vytina, Nymfasia, Magouliana, Valtesiniko and Lagadia. The route has a minimum altitude of 420m and a maximum of 1,550m and it takes at least 5 days to walk in its entirety. The trail takes in parts of the Lousios ravine and the Mylaonta gorge, and also some forest paths. Some parts of the trail are suitable for families with small children.

The "Menalon Trail" is the first Greek hiking route to receive a technical sufficiency and safety certification from the European Ramblers Association (ERA). It passed a strict evaluation where 41 different parameters were measured and it received certification as one of the Leading Quality Trails -Best of Europe.

All the hard work that has been recognised by these awards was carried out by a group of locals and volunteers who managed to bring the old paths back to life. Up until the 1950s these were used by the natives to go from one village to another. 

Read about the 8 sections of the trail in detail at https://menalontrail.eu/en

Location

Find the destination on the interactive map below.