Getting There -- By Car -- This is a long trip but not as tedious as the ride by the bus, which makes many stops. Take the National Road Athens-Corinth-Tripolis, and then head south to Githio (Gythion) and Areopoli via Sparta.
By Bus -- It's possible to travel from Athens to the Sparta bus station (tel. 27310/26-441), and from Sparta to the Githio bus station (tel. 27330/22-228) or the Areopoli bus station (tel. 27330/51-229), but this is a full-day trip. For schedule information, call tel. 210/512-9233, 210/512-9410, or the numbers above for the bus stations in Sparta, Githio, and Areopoli. For general information on Athens-Peloponnese schedules, try tel. 210/512-4910 or www.ktel.org.
By Ship -- Githio is served by hydrofoil (Flying Dolphin) from Piraeus and intermediate stops (tel. 210/419-9000 or 210/419-9200; www.hellenicseaways.gr). Sailings also depart from Githio to the islands of Kythera and Crete. The Rozakis Ship Brokers & Travel Agency, 5 Vas. Pavlou (the harborfront; tel. 27330/22-650; fax 27330/22-229; rosakigy@otenet.gr), has information on sailings (including the Patras-Ancona Super Ferry service). The agency can make reservations and issue tickets. Rozakis also rents cars from minis to vans at 40€ ($52) to 75€ ($98) per day.
Getting Around -- Longtime visitors to Greece wax nostalgic about the days when they had to hoof it around the Mani. You can get around today by local bus, but by car is the most efficient way.
Fast Facts -- Githio and Areopoli both have banks with ATMs. Don't count on finding banks elsewhere in the Mani. In Areopoli, most services are on or just off the main square: the bank (usually Mon-Fri 9am-noon), the post office, the OTE, the bus station, several restaurants, and an excellent small bookstore called Mani (tel. 27330/53-670). At the bookstore you can pick up Patrick Leigh Fermor's enduring classic, Mani, and Bob Barrow and Mat Dean's Inside the Mani. The police (tel. 27330/51-209) are signposted on the main square in Areopoli.
