Xylokastro. Xylokastro is a modern town in the north of Peloponnese next to the Corinthian bay in Greece. Xylokastro is located thirty-four kilometres from Corinth, a hundred kilometres from Patras and hundred and twenty kilometres from Athens. It is a nice town with a beautiful marina. On the quay at the sea, are many restaurants and cafeterias. Besides Xylokastro, on the east side, there is a long forest; Pefkias. This pine forest is between the town and the coastal village of Sykia, right next to the beautiful long pebble beach. In the forest you can enjoy hiking and cycling, there is in fact a bike path built. Cars cannot come here, it's very quiet.
Xylokastro literally means "Castle of wood." When the Venetians were still here in the Middle Ages, they had built a wooden lookout tower on a higher point, hence the name. From here, the Venetians were able to keep a close eye on what was happening in the Corinthian bay.
Formerly the whole area around Xylokastro was wooded. From the 18th century one started to chop trees in order to cultivate the land with mainly grape groves. The only forest that one has left alone was the forest Pefkias, because the ground consisted of pure sand.
We have visited Xylokastro and found it a nice place in a beautiful setting. It is a lovely, restful place for holidays. Also for active holidays; byking, hiking, mountain biking, horseback riding or sailing you've come to the right place. Xylokastro is not far from cultural attractions such as Ancient Corinth, Ancient Sykonia, Epidaurus, Mycenae, Nafplion, Delphi and Olympia. All of these sites are within a distance that are doable within a day. We made pictures in Xylokastro which you can view below.
Text: Yorgos and Wendy Nikolidakis - Revised by Maxine van Hoften Gee