Gythio Introduction
Gythio is a small coastal town on the Gulf of Laconia known as
Cranae in antiquity, the port of Sparta. This was the first
refuge of lovers Paris and Helen; they eloped here over the
Taygetos Mountains from her home in Sparta and set off by ship to
Troy. Today, Gythio is the capital of the Mani, the isolated
southern fringe of the Peloponnese named after Maina Castle,
built by William de Villehardouin in the 13th century, the same
gentlemen who gave us the castles at Monembassia and Mystra.
Gythio is noteworthy only as a driving point
between Sparta and Monembassia or Areopolis. Tall old houses
along the seafront of Gythio overlook a lighthouse on the tiny
island of Marathonissi, now connected by a roadway to the
mainland. Several faded tavernas , rooms to let, and tourist-worn
shops line the seafront to Perivolaki Square, all catering to
those who await the ferries to Kythira or Crete. However, Gythio
is the octopus capital of Greece, and most seaside cafes serve
this tasty denizen of the Gulf of Gythio..
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