Diakopto: what to see, where to stay and how to get around

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Diakopto exists for one reason: it is the bottom of the line that climbs the Vouraikos gorge to Kalavryta. The narrow-gauge train squeezes between rock walls, through tunnels and over the river, gripping a toothed rail on the steepest stretches. The ride up takes about an hour, with a stop halfway for the cliff monastery. Sit on the right going up for the river, and leave the car at the station.

A short history of Diakopto

Diakopto is a small village on the north coast of the Peloponnese, by the Gulf of Corinth. It is known for the rack railway that climbs from here to Kalavryta, built between 1889 and 1896. The line is about 22 kilometres long and narrow-gauge, and on the steep sections it has a rack rail that the locomotive grips. It runs along the Vouraikos gorge, through tunnels and over narrow bridges above the river. In December 1943 the Germans executed most of the men of Kalavryta, and their memory accompanies the journey to this day.

The ten best sights in Diakopto

1
Mega Spilaio Monastery
A monastery built into a cliff face over the gorge; modest dress
2
Agia Lavra Monastery
Where Greeks mark the start of the 1821 revolution; 6 km past Kalavryta
3
Kalavryta Holocaust Museum
The story of 13 December 1943, told in the town's old school; give it an hour
4
Place of Sacrifice memorial
The hillside above town where the men were shot; a quiet, heavy place
5
Archaeological Museum of Aigio
Finds from the Achaean coast, 12 km west; a short visit on the way to Patras
6
Panagia Trypiti
A church set in a cleft of the Aigio cliff, reached by a long stair
7
Vouraikos Gorge
The rail line follows the river through the gorge; walkers use the track, so listen for trains
8
Cave of the Lakes
Walkways over stepped underground lakes, about an hour beyond Kalavryta by road
9
Kalavryta Ski Centre
Skiing on Mount Helmos in winter, mountain views in summer
10
Lake Tsivlou
A green mountain lake among firs, up a winding road from Akrata

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Tours in Diakopto →

A guide in your headphones: open the walk on our site, walk from stop to stop, and at each one your phone tells its story. No guide, no group, and free. This is the first walk in Diakopto:

Free walking tours in Diakopto

Up the rack railway

Diakopto Square · The village grew around the railway: before the line opened in 1896 it was little more than a coastal halt, and the station is still its centre. The square is where drivers and walkers gather before the first train.
Diakopto rack-railway station · The line runs 22 km on a 750 mm gauge, climbing from the sea to about 700 m at Kalavryta. On the steepest sections a cog under the train engages a toothed rack between the rails, which is what 'Odontotos', its Greek name, means.
Vouraikos Gorge · The gorge is so narrow in places that the river and the track share the floor between vertical walls. Building the line took seven years, from 1889 to 1896, much of it cutting tunnels and ledges by hand.
Mega Spilaio stop (Zachlorou) · Zachlorou is a hamlet of a few houses that lives off the halfway stop, and the gradient eases here into a green valley. Walkers often get off and climb to the monastery, then catch a later train on up.
Mega Spilaio Monastery · By tradition it was founded in the 4th century, after a shepherdess found an icon of the Virgin in the cave, an icon believed to be made of wax and mastic. The building you see is largely new: a fire in 1934 destroyed the old monastery, and it was rebuilt against the same cliff.
Kalavryta station · Kalavryta sits on a plateau at the foot of Mount Helmos, and the railway was built so the mountain town could reach the coast in an hour instead of a day on mule tracks. From the station the whole town is walkable.

Kalavryta: 1821 and 1943

Two dates are carved into this mountain town. In March 1821 the Greek War of Independence is traditionally said to have begun at a monastery just outside it, and in December 1943 German troops destroyed it in one of the worst reprisals of the occupation. This route takes both seriously, then climbs into the mountain for air. Half a day by car from the station; the cave needs its own hour.

Kalavryta Holocaust Museum · On 13 December 1943 the women and children of Kalavryta were locked in this school while the town burned, and broke out as the fire reached it. The museum is in the same building.
Place of Sacrifice memorial · The men and boys of the town were marched to this slope and shot by machine guns, in reprisal for the killing of German prisoners by Greek partisans. Around 500 died. A large white cross now stands on the spot, seen from everywhere in the town below.
Agia Lavra Monastery · Greek tradition holds that on 25 March 1821 Bishop Germanos of Patras raised the banner of revolt here, and 25 March is now Greece's national day. The faded banner itself is kept at the monastery.
Kalavryta station · From the station the main street leads up to the cathedral, whose clock has been left stopped at 2:34, the time the shooting began on 13 December 1943. Almost every house in the town was burned that day and rebuilt afterwards.
Cave of the Lakes · It is a river cave in which water, dripping over thousands of years, has built stone dams that hold a staircase of small lakes one above another. Visitors walk on a raised path between them.
Kalavryta Ski Centre · The slopes are on Mount Helmos, where a waterfall on the far face is identified with the ancient river Styx, the river of the underworld whose water was said to kill whoever drank it.

The Achaean coast

Below the mountains runs a strip of coast where the twelve cities of ancient Achaea once stood, some of them now lost. One, Helike, was swallowed by an earthquake and wave so complete that its site was argued over for two thousand years. This drive runs west to Aigio and then east to Akrata and up to a mountain lake. A relaxed day with a swim; the coast road is slow but short.

Nikolaika Beach · In 373 BC an earthquake and sea wave destroyed Helike, the leading city of Achaea, somewhere in the plain behind this beach. Its remains were finally located on land, buried under river silt, by an archaeological project at the start of the 2000s.
Archaeological Museum of Aigio · The museum is housed in Aigio's old covered market, designed by the architect Ernst Ziller at the end of the 19th century. Aigio itself was the meeting place of the Achaean League, the federation of the region's cities.
Panagia Trypiti · 'Trypiti' means 'pierced' — the church is built into a hollow in the cliff that drops from Aigio to the harbour. Pilgrims come especially in the week after Easter, when the church holds its feast.
Diakopto rack-railway station · Until a new main line was built inland, the old metre-gauge coastal railway from Corinth to Patras ran through Diakopto, and passengers changed here for the mountain train. The rack line is now one of the few narrow-gauge railways still working in Greece.
Akrata Beach · The river here is the Krathis, and Herodotus tells that Greek colonists from Achaea named the Crati in southern Italy after it. Their colony there was Sybaris, so rich that its name became a word for luxury.
Lake Tsivlou · The lake is young: it formed in 1913, when a landslide blocked a mountain stream and buried the village that stood in the valley. Firs now grow down to its shore.

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Getting to Diakopto and getting around

Diakopto rack-railway station · The little train up the gorge leaves from here; buy tickets ahead in summer and on holidays
Mega Spilaio stop (Zachlorou) · The halfway stop in a tiny village; the monastery path climbs from here
Kalavryta station · End of the line, in the middle of the mountain town; check the last train down

Cheap eats in Diakopto

Diakopto is a village, and quick food means a few cafés and a bakery around the station square. Greek counter food is the pie: cheese tiropita and spinach spanakopita, eaten from paper in the hand, with a frappé or a freddo espresso. Up in Kalavryta the mountain adds trahanas soup, grilled meat and the local cheeses. Buy something before the train — there is nothing to eat on board.

Artofino bakery · Tiropita or spanakopita about €2-3
box - streetfood & coffee · Next to the station; wraps and coffee to go, about €3-6
Agora Cafe Snack Bar · Toasts and coffee facing the platform, about €3-6
BLENDS · Freddo espresso for the ride, about €2-3
the diakopto place · Coffee and a sweet on the square, about €3-5

Museums in Diakopto

Kalavryta Holocaust Museum · In the town centre; allow an hour
Archaeological Museum of Aigio · Achaean finds in a 19th-century market hall
Agia Lavra Monastery · The 1821 banner; modest dress
Mega Spilaio Monastery · Icon, manuscripts and a view straight down the gorge

Nature and day trips near Diakopto

Vouraikos Gorge · Walk up beside the track from Diakopto to Zachlorou, about 4 hours
Cave of the Lakes · Underground lakes on stone terraces; cool inside all year
Lake Tsivlou · Fir forest and a lakeside path
Kalavryta Ski Centre · Mount Helmos; snow in winter, walks in summer
Akrata Beach · Pebbles and clear water at the river mouth

Things to do in Diakopto with kids

Diakopto rack-railway station · Tunnels, bridges and a river — the ride itself is the attraction
Cave of the Lakes · Easy boardwalk, good for school-age children
Nikolaika Beach · Long beach with space to run
Diakopto Square · A fountain and shade while waiting for the train

Where to eat in Diakopto

Kostas · Village taverna: grills, salads and house wine
Kochyli · By the sea, fish and meze in the evening
Ouranoessa · Seafront tables for a long dinner
Plaisir Kitchen & Bar · On the old national road; modern plates and drinks

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Frequently asked questions about Diakopto

What is there to see in Diakopto?

The top sights in Diakopto are Mega Spilaio Monastery, Agia Lavra Monastery and Kalavryta Holocaust Museum. The full list on this page has 10 sights, each with a photo and a short note.

How many days do you need in Diakopto?

Three to four days are enough to see the best of Diakopto without rushing, including at least one walking tour.

Is there a free walking tour in Diakopto?

Yes. sleepntrip has 3 free audio walks in Diakopto, with no guide and no group: your phone tells the story at every stop. The first one: Up the rack railway.

How do you get to Diakopto and get around?

The main ways are Diakopto rack-railway station, Mega Spilaio stop (Zachlorou) and Kalavryta station. Full details are in the transport section on this page.

Where to stay in Diakopto, and for how much?

sleepntrip shows only rooms in Diakopto that meet nine conditions: a good location, high guest scores, cleanliness, and a price of up to $80 a night for two. Pick your dates and see what is free.

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