Greece · Peloponnese
Yacht Charter Gythio
The port of ancient Sparta, and the islet where Paris and Helen are said to have spent their first night.
ΛΕΩΝ ΙΙ · CC BY-SA 4.0
Gythio was the harbour of Sparta, which had no coast of its own worth the name, and it made its money on murex — the shellfish that gave the purple dye Rome reserved for emperors. The town climbs from the quay in tiers of pastel neoclassical houses, and off the end of it a causeway runs out to the islet of Cranae, where Homer puts the first night Paris and Helen spent after leaving Sparta.
The town and Cranae
The quay curves round the bay with the houses stacked behind it in ochre, rose and pale green, four and five storeys, built when this was the shipping port for the whole of Laconia. The ancient theatre is still there at the top of the town, cut into the hill and small.
Cranae is a few hundred metres out on its causeway, with a lighthouse at the far end and the Tzanetakis tower in the middle — a Maniot tower house, now the museum of the Mani. It takes ten minutes to walk out and it is the best place to be at sunset.
The Mani behind
Gythio is the gate to the Mani, the middle prong of the Peloponnese, where the tower houses stand in villages that fought each other by feud into the nineteenth century and the stone runs out into Cape Tainaron — which the ancients held to be one of the entrances to the underworld.
The coast south of the town has the beaches and the coves; Monemvasia is round the corner to the east, and Kythira lies off the southern tip.
Practical notes
- Gythio was the port of ancient Sparta and a centre of the murex purple trade
- Cranae is joined to the town by a causeway, with a lighthouse and a Maniot tower house on it
- The ancient theatre is at the top of the town, cut into the hill
- It is the gate to the Mani; Monemvasia is east and Kythira lies off the southern tip
Reached from: Monemvasia, Kythira and the southern Peloponnese
Where to dine
A table by the water
Saga
WaterfrontOn the quay under the houses, with the tables almost on the water and the fish off the boats in front.
Kozia
MavrovouniSouth of the town above the long beach, and the kitchen most worth the short drive.
Barba Stathis
WaterfrontSmall, plain, and doing the Laconian dishes the tavernas on the square have stopped bothering with.
What to do
Anchorages & excursions
Cranae
An islet on a causeway with a lighthouse and a Maniot tower house, where Homer places Paris and Helen's first night.
The waterfront
Four and five storeys of pastel neoclassical houses stacked above the quay.
The ancient theatre
Cut into the hill at the top of the town, and small enough to have survived.
The Mani
Stone tower houses in feuding villages behind the town, running down to Cape Tainaron.
The fleet
Yachts available for Gythio
Vessels that operate here, from flagship motor yachts to smaller crewed boats. Every rate is quoted on enquiry.
Good to know
Questions we are asked about Gythio
- What is Cranae?
- An islet joined to the town by a causeway, with a lighthouse and a Maniot tower house that now holds the museum of the Mani. Homer places the first night of Paris and Helen there.
- What is the Mani?
- The middle prong of the Peloponnese behind Gythio: stone tower houses in villages that carried on feuds into the nineteenth century, running down to Cape Tainaron, which the ancients took for an entrance to the underworld.
- What does a yacht charter in Gythio cost?
- It depends on the yacht, the season and the crew, so we quote on enquiry rather than publish a figure that would be wrong for most weeks.
Destinations
Nearby destinations
Charter here
Enquire about a charter in Gythio
Tell us your dates and how many of you there are, and we will come back with the right yacht and a full quotation.