ACROCORINTH CITADEL

Rising to an altitude of 575 m, this large fortified rock (Κάστρο Ακροκορίνθου/Kastro Akrokorinthos) offers splendid views over the Gulf of Corinth, the Saronic Gulf and the northern Peloponnese. It was the acropolis of the ancient city of Corinth and, in the Middle Ages, the largest citadel in Greece (25 ha). Endowed with springs that fed the city below, Acrocorinth managed to hold out against the Franks for five years, before the Byzantine garrison finally surrendered to Geoffroi ^I de Villehardouin in 1209. Today, it's an archaeological site that we recommend visiting with good shoes, water (there's none left!), a hat and, above all, in the morning, before the hottest hours. After all, it's a 2-hour walk with some steep climbs. If you don't have a car, a cab can take you there (rate and waiting time to be negotiated before departure). In all cases, you'll start from the parking lot at the foot of the citadel, 380 m above sea level.

Ramparts, mosque, ancient fountain... From the parking lot, you can enjoy a wide view of the western part of the ramparts: created by the Corinthians from the ^7th century BC onwards, then reworked over more than two millennia, they encircle the hill over a length of 2.5 km. A paved path leads through three beautiful fortified gates: the first was erected by the Franks in the ^14th century, the second was built from the ^9th century onwards and constantly modified, notably by the Ottomans until the ^19th century, and the third, framed by two powerful towers, retains its ^9th-12th century Byzantine architecture. After 320 m of ascent, you enter the acropolis: a vast sloping area covered with wild grasses, where here and there stand the remains of various periods: ^16th-century Ahmed-III mosque, the restored Agios Dimitrios church dating from the short Venetian period (1687-1715) and housing some frescoes, a large Byzantine cistern, a Frankish square tower... To the east, the highest point is occupied by the ruins of a Byzantine chapel erected on the site of a^5th-century BC temple to Aphrodite. J.-C. From here, you can finally enjoy a path that descends south to the recently restored Upper Pirene Fountain, dating from antiquity. Like the Pirene fountain in ancient Corinth, it owes its name to the Pirene myth: this daughter of the river god Asopos is said to have wept so much at the death of her son Cenchréis, accidentally killed by Artemis, that she turned into a fountain.