ancient ruins
Mystras
A spectacular fortified Byzantine ghost city on a steep hillside near Sparta, with churches containing precious medieval frescoes.
6 km · about 10 min drive
Peloponnese, Greece · Europe
Sparta is worth a stop: 10 minutes from Mystrás, 49km from Diros Caves.
Sparta is a town located in Peloponnese, Greece. With a population of 16,239, it is an important destination in Europe.
On a road trip, Sparta sits in Greece, where you drive on the right. It's in the Europe/Athens time zone. Below you'll find where to stay, things to do nearby, and everything you need to add Sparta to your route.
Sparta was a prominent city-state in Laconia in ancient Greece. In antiquity (pre-800 BC), the state was known as Lacedaemon (Λακεδαίμων, Lakedaímōn), while Sparta referred to its capital, a group of villages in the valley of the Evrotas River in Laconia, in southeastern Peloponnese. Around 650 BC, it rose to becomeRead more
one of the major military powers in Greece, a status it retained until 371 BC.
Sparta was recognised as the leading force of the unified Greek military during the Greco-Persian Wars, in an alliance with the competing and rising naval power of Athens. The Spartan army was crucial in the battles of Thermopylae and Plataea under the leadership of Leonidas and Pausanias respectively.
Sparta led the Peloponnesian League against the Athenian empire during the Peloponnesian War (431–404 BC), from which it emerged victorious after Lysander's victory at the naval Battle of Aegospotami. A short period of Spartan hegemony followed, when Spartan armies led by Agesilaus II even invaded the western Anatolian satrapies of the Achaemenid empire.
However, Thebes's victory over Sparta at the Battle of Leuctra in 371 BC ended Spartan hegemony and freed Messenia from Spartan rule; the loss of the slave labour this region provided sent the city into terminal decline as a military power, though it retained its independence until its forcible integration into the Achaean League in 192 BC.
The city recovered some autonomy after the Roman conquest of Greece in 146 BC and became a tourist destination during the Roman era, restoring some measure of prosperity. However, Sparta was sacked in 396 AD by the Visigothic king Alaric, and underwent a long period of decline into the medieval period, when much of its population relocated to Mystras. Modern Sparta is a provincial town and the seat of the Laconia regional administration.
Sparta was unique in ancient Greece for its social system and constitution, which were supposedly introduced by the semi-mythical lawgiver Lycurgus. Spartan society was exceptionally militarised, focusing the entire attention of the Spartiate class on military training and physical development to the point of legally barring them from productive economic activity. The inhabitants of Sparta were rigidly stratified into Spartiates (citizens with full rights), mothakes and perioikoi (free non-citizens), and helots (state-owned enslaved non-Spartan locals), with helots making up the vast majority of the population; social mobility was nearly nonexistent. Spartiate men underwent the harsh agoge training regimen, and Spartan phalanx units were widely considered to be among the best in battle, though this was as much a matter of propaganda as battlefield prowess. Free Spartiate women enjoyed somewhat greater legal rights than elsewhere in classical antiquity, though helots suffered exceptionally harsh treatment at the hands of the Spartiates (particularly the Crypteia), causing repeated revolts. Sparta was a subject of fascination in its own day, as well as in later Western culture following the revival of classical learning. The admiration of Sparta is known as Laconophilia.
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Sparta offers many attractions including tourist sites, museums, parks, and local restaurants. Explore famous landmarks, scenic roads, and natural wonders on our interactive map and plan your visit.
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Sparta is located in Peloponnese, Greece, Europe. The coordinates are 37.0745 latitude, 22.4301 longitude.
Sparta has a population of approximately 16,239 people, making it a town in Greece.
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Essential numbers in Greece
Tourist police (English-speaking): 171.
Full driving guide for Greece7 notable places within an hour's drive.
ancient ruins
A spectacular fortified Byzantine ghost city on a steep hillside near Sparta, with churches containing precious medieval frescoes.
6 km · about 10 min drive
mountain 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.
12 km · about 20 min drive
landmark
A wild, remote region of the southern Peloponnese with tower houses, Byzantine churches, and the mythical entrance to Hades at Cape Tainaron.
32 km · about 35 min drive
photogenic
The old harbour of Areopoli: a handful of stone houses and tavernas set directly on water so clear the fishing boats appear to float in air. Sea turtles cruise the shallows; the Mavromichalis clan tower still guards the bay.
44 km · about 50 min drive
ancient ruins
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.
47 km · about 55 min drive
natural wonder
Glide by boat through a flooded subterranean river of stalactites deep in the wild Mani.
49 km · about 55 min drive
waterfall
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.
52 km · about 60 min drive
April to October
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