beach
Voidokilia Beach
A near-perfect Omega-shaped sandy bay in Messinia, ringed by dunes and a ruined castle above.
7 km · about 10 min drive
Photo by Pivari.com
EuropeGreecePeloponnese
Pýlos
Peloponnese, Greece · Europe
About Pýlos
Pýlos is worth a stop: 20 minutes from Methóni, 11km from Methoni Castle.
Pýlos is in Peloponnese, Greece, with about 2,300 people. You drive on the right here. The nearest town is Methóni, about 10 km away.
Pylos (UK: , US: ; Greek: Πύλος), historically also known as Navarino, is a town and a former municipality in Messenia, Peloponnese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform, it has been part of the municipality Pylos-Nestoras, of which it is the seat and a municipal unit. It was the capital of the former PyliaRead more
Province. It is the main harbour on the Bay of Navarino. Nearby villages include Gialova, Pyla, Elaiofyto, Schinolakka, and Palaionero. The town of Pylos has 2,568 inhabitants, the municipal unit of Pylos 4,559 (2021). The municipal unit has an area of 143.911 km2.
Pylos has been inhabited since Neolithic times. It was a significant kingdom in Mycenaean Greece, with the remains of the so-called "Palace of Nestor" excavated nearby, named after Nestor, the king of Pylos in Homer's Iliad. In Classical times, the site was uninhabited, but became the site of the Battle of Pylos in 425 BC, during the Peloponnesian War. After that, Pylos is scarcely mentioned until the 13th century, when it became part of the Frankish Principality of Achaea. Increasingly known by its French name of Port-de-Jonc or its Italian name Navarino, in the 1280s the Franks built the Old Navarino castle on the site. Pylos came under the control of the Republic of Venice from 1417 until 1500, when it was conquered by the Ottoman Empire. The Ottomans used Pylos and its bay as a naval base, and built the New Navarino fortress there. The area remained under Ottoman control, with the exception of a brief period of renewed Venetian rule from 1685–1715 and a Russian occupation from 1770–71, until the outbreak of the Greek War of Independence in 1821. Ibrahim Pasha of Egypt recovered it for the Ottomans in 1825, but the defeat of the Turco-Egyptian fleet in the 1827 Battle of Navarino and the French military intervention of the 1828 Morea expedition forced Ibrahim to withdraw from the Peloponnese and confirmed Greek independence. The current city was built outside the fortress walls by the military engineers of the Morea expedition from 1829 and the name Pylos was revived by royal decree in 1833.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is there to see near Pýlos?
Within an hour or so of Pýlos: Voidokilia Beach (7 km), Methoni Castle (11 km), Polylimnio Waterfalls (16 km), Ancient Messene (35 km).
Are there any good drives near Pýlos?
The nearest famous roads are Langada Pass.
Where is Pýlos?
Pýlos is in Peloponnese, Greece, about 10 km from Methóni.
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Quick Information
- Population
- 2,345
- Continent
- Europe
- Country
- Greece
- Region
- Peloponnese
- Timezone
- Europe/Athens
- Coordinates
- 36.9130, 21.6965
Emergency & Services
Essential numbers in Greece
Tourist police (English-speaking): 171.
Full driving guide for GreeceTags
Worth the detour from Pýlos
5 notable places within an hour's drive.
castle
Methoni Castle
A sprawling Venetian sea-fortress juts into the water on a causeway at the Peloponnese's tip.
11 km · about 20 min drive
waterfall
Polylimnio Waterfalls
A hidden gorge in Messenia holding a chain of some 15 waterfalls and jade swimming lakes with names like Kadi and Mavrolimna, linked by ladders and footpaths. Park above Kalochori-Haravgi village and descend into the ravine.
16 km · about 20 min drive
ancient ruins
Ancient Messene
One of Greece's most complete and least-crowded ancient cities: a vast 4th-century-BC site with an intact stadium, theatre, agora and the massive Arcadian Gate, spread below the village of Mavromati.
35 km · about 40 min drive
mountain pass
Langada Pass
Legendary mountain road between Sparta and Kalamata, carving through the Langada Gorge over the Taygetus range: hairpins, sheer drops and some of the finest driving scenery in the Peloponnese.
58 km · about 65 min drive
Driving roads near Pýlos
- 58 kmLangada PassLegendary mountain road between Sparta and Kalamata, carving through the Langada Gorge over the Taygetus range: hairpins, sheer drops and some of the finest driving scenery in the Peloponnese.
Driving in Greece
- Drives on
- the right
- Petrol
- ~€1.88/litre
- Motorway tolls
- ~€7.00/100km
When to drive here
April to October
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