4 Guesthouses in Zagori That Are Worth Visiting

Apeiros Chora

The constructing that homes Apeiros Chora is believed to have been constructed between the late seventeenth and early 18th centuries, however the precise date is unknown. What we do know is that the constructing was restored in 1861, as evidenced by the commemorative plaque on its exterior wall. Apeiros Chora, which was constructed with native slate rock, pine wooden, and fir wooden by expert craftsmen from the close by area of Mastorochoria, was based only some years in the past by George Kontouris, the constructing’s present proprietor (the constructing has been in his household for seven generations), and his spouse Athina Aslanidou.

The house has six rooms (Inexperienced, Pink, Blue, Yellow, Brown, and Khaki), a few of which have fireplaces, unfold throughout two ranges: the backyard stage and the bottom stage. Sure rooms have the capability to accommodate a 3rd or fourth mattress, or they are often related to kind a single, spacious room with a kitchen and separate entrance that’s perfect for households or giant teams. The Purple Suite is an alternative choice; it options two rooms, two loos, and furnishings for in-room breakfast.

Probably the most intriguing facet of Apeiros Chora, although, is the way it appears to be like extra like a house than a guesthouse because of its quite a few widespread areas, particularly the kitchen, which has all the time been the center of the constructing. The house additionally features a lounge space, separate dwelling rooms for the winter and summer time, an leisure space with board video games, a PlayStation console, a chess board, and a bridge desk (the world is soundproofed to permit friends to have enjoyable with out disturbing different friends), a therapeutic massage room, a spa with a jacuzzi and hammam, a cellar {that a} earlier era’s member of the family had sealed off with mud to maintain valuables hidden, and a bar the place you’ll be able to get pleasure from top-shelf labels like “Chrysi Vidra,” a regionally produced aged tsipouro by Domaine Glinavos. Through the summer time, friends may also get pleasure from the courtyard and backyard.

Each space of the guesthouse is completely different relying on its use, however there’s a constant fashion all through, with trendy and conventional components coexisting harmoniously. All the pieces from the show case containing the marriage crowns from successive generations of the household to the proudly displayed flintlock musket over an embrasure, the chest from an awesome grandmother’s dowry, and the fustanella of a distant relative who was instrumental in rescuing Ioannina from the Ottoman empire are priceless items that straddle the road between decorative items and historic artifacts, every with a singular story to inform.

Apeiros Chora is a trendy guesthouse with double-pane home windows that scale back warmth loss, energy-efficient LED mild bulbs, a pellet boiler range, and an outdated cistern from which George’s household used to gather chilly water from the snow – a apply they nonetheless perform right now. The guesthouse is gorgeous, purposeful, and filled with character, however there’s one other component that provides to a visitor’s expertise: the eye to element in all the things they do. Whether or not it’s an espresso, glass of wine, or shot of tsipouro, George and Athina are conscious that all the things has its time.

Monopatia Mountain Resort

With a single sentence, Paris Zografos, supervisor of Monopatia Mountain Resort, aptly describes the appear and feel of a one-of-a-kind guesthouse whose inside, regardless of its location on the slopes of Mount Tymfi, evokes one thing completely different, city, and barely international: “When you’re exterior the guesthouse, it appears to be like like you’re nonetheless in Zagori. Whenever you go inside, you’re not in Zagori anymore. The decor is out of conserving with the area’s typical design fashion.” 

The guesthouse is housed in stone-built buildings attribute of Zagori structure, true jewels of Ano Pedina (or Ano Soudena in Slavic, which suggests “chilly place”). “The primary constructing is a palatial home that, even by right now’s requirements, can be thought-about giant even for somebody who’s rich,” notes Paris of the principle constructing, which was constructed within the nineteenth century. The bottom ground serves as a breakfast space, whereas the higher stage hosts occasions corresponding to seminars, shows, conferences, and inventive workshops.

The fifteen rooms, eight of that are studios, are housed in neighboring buildings which have been restored. The outbuildings the place locals used to retailer their instruments have been transformed into lodging, and the threshing flooring at the moment are used for yoga lessons. Monopatia Mountain Resort is a dwelling instance of how a rural financial system might be reworked right into a vacationer financial system, in addition to how a mountain village can turn out to be a high vacation spot. 

At present, the guesthouse is run by Paris, who spent years as an govt in multinational companies earlier than beginning his personal logistics firm, and Chara, a cheerful one who enjoys conserving issues neat and orderly and has a ardour for ceramics and yoga. Xanthi, who has been employed on the guesthouse because it first opened, is crucial to the operation of Monopatia Mountain Resort. She is in command of making ready the friends’ breakfast and conserving the guesthouse clear. You’ll all the time discover her there, it doesn’t matter what the climate is like in Zagori, and she or he and her husband are an vital a part of the guesthouse employees.

Wanting on the resort, one sees a guesthouse that has been designed in such a means that it invitations you to remain indoors and luxuriate in a sizzling chocolate, espresso, or glass of wine or whiskey in entrance of the fireside. Paris, nonetheless, who’s a fan of sports activities, encourages his friends to discover the outside, find out about native tradition, and luxuriate in nature. Zagori’s distinctive ecosystem consists of the well-known Vikos gorge, stone-built arched bridges that mix into the pure setting, monasteries, watermills, trails, and steep, rugged rocks.

“Within the airplane forest, close to the Voidomati river, is a beautiful monastery referred to as Spiliotissa. A grassy clearing close by means that you can sit and hearken to the river because it flows previous. In case you’re fortunate and there’s a breeze, you’ll be able to hear the leaves of the airplane timber, and for those who’re actually fortunate, you’ll be able to hear birds.” The guesthouse’s staff organizes yoga retreats, which Chara and lots of the friends get pleasure from. Paris’ favourite train, however, is silent strolling, which is right for coping with right now’s nervousness. As a substitute of everybody strolling in single file, he leads teams of hikers to a spot within the forest the place there’s sufficient room to stroll freely and take a look at the timber. He asks them to show off their telephones and stroll quietly. “After I hear somebody say, ‘I’m bored,’ I do know we’re heading in the right direction as a result of it means they’ve disconnected from their every day life, emails, and obligations. Maybe they didn’t know what to consider, which explains why they had been bored. However they took step one, so they’re within the current second, noticing what’s round them and connecting with nature.”

Dias

Kostas Tsoumanis bought a 150-year-old home and a dilapidated outbuilding in Mikro Papigo in early 1990, earlier than Zagorochoria grew to become a preferred vacationer vacation spot. “The buildings belonged to a household who owned a second home in Megalo Papigo. Everyone thought I used to be loopy. They’d ask me, ‘What are you going to do there?’. On the time, Mikro Papigo was not very fashionable.”

Kostas constructed his guesthouse at an altitude of 1,000 meters, in a ravishing location, beneath the towering Astraka rock formations, and named it after a nickname he obtained as a baby. “They used to name me Dias (Zeus) as a result of I used to be good with a bow and arrow.” Kostas runs the guesthouse together with his brother Tasos and the remainder of the household. Dias is a well-liked vacation spot for trekkers, who had been among the many first to help him and proceed to take action right now. Those that want to go to the Drakolimni alpine lakes or hike as much as the peaks of Gamila (2,497 meters) and Astraka (2,432 meters) of Mount Tymfi should first cross by means of Mikro Papigo. From April to October, vacationers from everywhere in the world go to this distant area of Greece, together with Austrians, Germans, Swiss, Individuals, Canadians, and Australians.

Eleven double and triple rooms, every with a fire, picket door and window frames, and classic lamps, are tastefully embellished in a heat, minimalistic fashion. In different phrases, they make friends really feel at house and welcome. The inside design, the rigorously chosen furnishings, the colours, the supplies, and the way in which the rooms are organized all adhere to the basics of hospitality. Nothing extra; nothing much less.

Dias gives its friends extra than simply rooms with beds; it additionally gives them with the nice and cozy ambiance of an intimate lodge. The guesthouse and restaurant are open year-round.

Though Mikro Papigo is considerably distant compared to different Zagori villages, with extra rabbits on the street than automobiles at instances, it’s accessible through the winter. Except for trekking and climbing, guests can get pleasure from quite a lot of outside actions, together with horseback using, canyoning, and foraging for wild truffles and mushrooms through the spring months. Rafting, however, is a well-liked exercise for each rookies and specialists alike. The route begins on the Papigo Bridge and ends on the Kleidonia Stone Bridge, lasting little over an hour. Some corporations, corresponding to Papigo Adrenaline, set up numerous actions alongside the Voidomatis River, stopping midway at a spring with an outdated mill to serve guests mountain tea, biscuits, and rakomelo (an alcoholic drink made with raki and honey).

Anemi is situated in Kato Pedina, one of many villages of Zagori. Anemi, with its small dimension and comfy ambiance, has received the hearts of its friends through the years as one of many area’s greatest guesthouses. Pavlos Sakkas and Lila Tsatsi based Anemi after falling in love with Zagori lengthy earlier than it grew to become a preferred vacationer vacation spot. In reality, Pavlos, who’s initially from Athens, has been visiting the area and trekking Mount Tymfi for the reason that Eighties.

“There was an outdated home that had been deserted for a number of years. We bought it, together with the household’s outdated cookhouse, a small constructing with an oven inside that now serves because the guesthouse’s kitchen. Anemi first opened its doorways in 2014, and this yr marks its 10-year anniversary. The guesthouse has solely seven rooms with names like Rodani (Spinning Wheel), Tylichtra (Reel), Adrachti (Spindle), and Saita (Shuttle), which present a ardour for conventional weaving. A few of the rooms characteristic principally wooden or stone, whereas others have been painted in shades of yellow, inexperienced and darkish blue. “After we purchased the home, we determined to maintain the colourful rooms, which is typical characteristic of Zagori,” notes Pavlos. Flokati rugs, floral-patterned pillows, low couches, and picket door and window frames spherical out Anemi’s fashion.

Unquestionably, the guesthouse’s most interesting and welcoming room is the outdated cookhouse with its two ranges – the kitchen on the higher stage and the sitting room on the decrease stage. Unquestionably, essentially the most interesting and welcoming room within the guesthouse is the outdated cookhouse, which has two ranges: the kitchen on the higher stage and the sitting room on the decrease stage. You possibly can get pleasure from a scrumptious breakfast on the giant picket desk, loosen up after a protracted day of rafting on the Voidomatis River or climbing alongside Zagori’s trails, and chat with the opposite friends.

Breakfast at Anemi is unforgettable, with no set menu however quite a lot of interchangeable flavors. The day we stayed, they served eggs sunny aspect up with tomato sauce and toasted bread, caramelized onions, mushrooms, galotyri (a mushy and creamy sheep’s milk cheese), olives, and greens, in addition to a candy plate of pancakes with powdered sugar and orange slices.

This winter, Anemi launched a brand new menu that features a completely different soup each time, a chilly dish with native Epirus sausages, fondue made with native cheeses, native tsipouro, and a white Debina wine, burgers with Ano Pedina meat, and selfmade sauces corresponding to ketchup, mayonnaise, and a barbeque sauce, complemented by a tsipouro-based cocktail – the one we ordered was made with aged tsipouro, mountain tea, a slice of orange, and black sugar.