Greece Travel
Galaxidi

by Amarandi Barrett

I had never heard of Galaxidi but on a roadtrip from Athens up through mainland Greece I ended up stopping there on my way from Nafpaktos to Delphi. Galaxidi is a town on the Itea Gulf, just southwest of Delphi and about three hours from Athens. I was blown away by the little double-harbored town, once a successful and bustling 19th century ship-building port with a large merchant marine fleet. The town has a rich history— Galaxidi was built on the site of the ancient city of Haleion, was destroyed in a raid by Bulgarians in the 10th century, was rebuilt and destroyed again by the Normans 100 years later, and was captured by the Franks and then the Ottomans. Under the Ottomans the port became important for maritime trade and during and after Greek independence Galaxidi was a successful commercial center and was second only to Syros in its production of ships and seamen. Although Galaxidi has since lost its maritime importance, the remnants of this history are visible all over the town in the beautiful and well preserved neoclassical mansions and Captains’ houses that line the small back streets.

WHERE TO STAY IN GALAXIDI

Hotel Gianamede is a small family owned hotel in a 19th century mansion in the center of the town. The rooms are lovely, renovated and modern but still classic. The mansion was built in 1890 and is one of the Captains houses that Galaxidi is famous for. The hotel has won several awards for its breakfasts which feature fresh squeezed orange juice, hot coffee, nectarines and apples drizzled with cinnamon and honey, orange custard cake, feta omelette, and fried eggs with tomato and local bread.

For more hotels, see Matt Barrett’s Hotels of Greece Delphi page.

WHERE TO EAT IN GALAXIDI

For dinner or lunch head to the port where there are a line of seafood restaurants, some traditional and some a bit more upscale. Ab oVo is one of the upscale spots and serves modern takes on Greek food, pastas and fish carpaccio and has a large bottled wine selection. Skeletovrachos is another upscale spot on the waterfront. I call these types of restaurants “Greek restaurants but with carpaccio” and as a carpaccio nut, I love them. They are becoming more and more common as younger people revamp old family owned restaurants. I don’t know if that is the story with these two spots in Galaxidi but its comforting to know that you’re never too far away from a 18 euro plate of raw fish. For something more classic, try Fish Tavern Tasos. This is a traditional family owned restaurant with simple and straightforward fish dishes like marinated anchovies, fried squid and whole grilled fresh seabass. If you are in the mood for meat and a cozier vibe, head a couple blocks west, back in the direction of Hotel Ganimede, to O Bebelis for slow cooked pork, stuffed onions and dolmades with avgolemono.

WHAT TO DO IN GALAXIDI

Have some coffee at Cafe Melydron in the port and then walk around the backstreets of the town and check out the neoclassical mansions that were built during the hayday of Galaxidi’s maritime importance. Next, head to the Maritime Museum of Galaxidi to learn about five thousand years of Galaxidi history, from its prehistoric settlement in 3000BC to contemporary times. The museum was originally opened in 1928 as a public photo gallery for the community but has since grown to house a larger and more varied collection and was extensively renovated in the early 2000s. It is the largest maritime museum in the country.

Walk to the second, smaller harbor of Galaxidi, where there will probably be several small boats beached on the land and in various state of repairs. Walk around to the far side of the large port and visit the duck house and its resident ducks, and then continue on to the 2.5 kilometer walk on Pera Panta, the pine tree covered headland that sits opposite of Galaxidi’s main harbor and offers beautiful views of the town. Visit the historic church of Agia Paraskevi and see the zodiac calendar carved into the floor.

HOW TO GET TO GALAXIDI

Up until 1963, Galaxidi was only accessible by boat. Now there is no public boat and unless you hire your own sailboat or yacht, the town is accessible only by vehicle. You can rent a car in Athens and drive either through the northern Peloponnesus via the Corinth canal, toward Patras and then over the Charilaos Trikoupis bridge and through Nafpaktos, or from Athens northwest, toward Arachova via Livadia. Either of these routes takes about three hours. You can also take a public KTEL bus, which leaves from Liossion station, costs around twenty euros and takes four to six hours depending on the drivers need for cigarettes. Another option is to hire George the Famous Taxi Driver for an overnight trip, stay in Galaxidi for a night, explore the town in the morning and then visit Delphi and Arachova before returning to Athens. If this all seems too daunthing to you then contact Fantasy Travel in Athens and they can assist you with hotels, transportation or whatever you need.

For more information on visiting Delphi visit Matt's Delphi Page