Kyrimai Hotel
Frontier fortress
The mysterious Mani
If you’re ever wanted by Interpol and need to get away (we don’t need to know specifics), Kyrimai Hotel would do nicely. The simple life – sun, sea, souvlaki – awaits you at this rustic 19th century fortress turned delightful boutique hotel at the end of the wild Mani peninsula, encircled by cerulean sea and scrubby countryside. You could happily live out your outlaw days dining on the deliciously authentic Maniot cuisine, swimming languid laps in the bay-gazing pool and befriending the local fishermen. Just send us a cryptic postcard once in a while.
Facilities
Rooms
22, including four suites.
Checkout
Check-in is from 2pm and check-out is at noon. Both can be flexible, depending on availability.
More Details
Rates generally include the hotel’s traditional Greek breakfast. The menu changes almost daily to showcase different flavours and delicacies, but you’ll always find fresh-squeezed juices, homemade pies and eggs made to order.
Also
Due to the steep steps and rocky surroundings, the hotel is unsuitable for wheelchair users.
Free Internet Access
Laundry
Room Service
At the Hotel
Beach, pool, free WiFi throughout. In rooms: Smart TV, air-conditioning, plug adaptors, beach bags, free bottled water, tea-making facilities, Aptivia bath products.
Our Favourite Rooms
The historic hotel is in a listed building that dates back to the 1870s, so the rooms can be a little idiosyncratic (they vary a lot in size and vantage point). Though they’re all comfortable and delightfully furnished, it’s worth choosing a room with a sea view and, ideally, a terrace for lots of light and those bright bay views. Who wouldn’t want to be lulled to sleep by the sound of gentle waves?
Poolside
The outdoor pool is unheated and family-friendly. It’s nestled on the water’s edge, with supremely comfortable sunloungers and plenty of umbrellas, which also run down the stone jetty that leads out to sea.
Packing Tips
It can get nippy at night on the sea-blown terrace, so pack a silky scarf or jaunty jacket.
Also
The hotel is also home to a diminutive museum which details the town’s mercantile history.
Children
Over-12s welcome, but this restful and romantic hotel is best suited to older children and couples.
Gallery
Food & Drink
Top Table
Seclusion-seeking couples can have supper on the jetty – just ask the hotel to set up a table and chairs for you.
Dress Code
Don’t stand on ceremony here – it’s a let-your-hair-down affair, so sandals, shorts and swimsuit coverups will do by day. In the winter, you’ll be cosied up by the fire while the waves spray the windows, so bring your snuggliest sweater.
Hotel Restaurant
Though the Mani may feel like its own world, word has definitely spread about the restaurant at Kyrimai and the awards keep on coming – you won’t eat better in the Peloponnese. Or find a better view – you’re right on the edge of the water and, instead of walls, there’s only a sturdy ship rope. There’s no set menu (dishes change according to the fisherman’s catch and the hunter’s fortunes) but you can be sure of the freshest seafood, pizzas from the wood-burning oven and, in the right season, quail, the Mani’s famous culinary export (if you order quail in a très chic French restaurant, chances are it’s from the Mani). Adventurous oenophiles will appreciate the eclectic wine list, which features lots of lesser-known Greek grapes.
Hotel Bar
In the winter months, gather around the bar in the lobby for creative cocktails made with Mastic liquor, Athens vermouth and prickly pear juice, a local specialty. In summer, you’ll want to savour your sundowner outside on the terrace.
Last Orders
Breakfast is served every day 8.30–11am; lunch is 1–4pm and the bar closes at 1am.
Room Service
The full restaurant menu is available as room service during opening hours.
Planes
The closest airport is Kalamata, two and a half hours’ drive from the hotel. Outside of the summer season (May to October), you’ll need to fly into Athens, a four-hour drive away. The hotel can organise transfers – it’s €150 each way from Kalamata and €300 each way from Athens – but we recommend renting your own set of wheels so you’re free to roam.
Automobiles
The drive from Kalamata airport snakes through the hills, with the dramatic coastline on one side and the craggy countryside on the other, past fortress towns like Kardamyli and Areopolis. The traffic will start to thin when you pass the Caves of Diros – many tourists don’t go further than this – but your reward lies just a bit further down the peninsula. Once you're there, there's free parking a few minutes down the road.
Worth Getting Out of Bed For
Use your first day at Kyrimai to get adjusted to fishing-town time (hint: be cool as a calamari), moving from refreshing swims in the deep blue Maniot sea to a prone position on the stone jetty, then roll right on to a tsipouro-fueled lunch. To work up an appetite for dinner, Pilates, yoga and other fitness classes are available on request or, if you prefer to get more hands on, go backstage at the hotel’s award-winning restaurant and learn to make Hellenic hero dishes during an afternoon cooking class. The next day, up the tempo a touch with a guided hike or horseback riding in the countryside. Water babies can rent a boat to explore the coastline (boats are available for hire during July, August and September).
Next, it’s time to rev up the rental car and go a-venturin’. Cruise back up the coast to find the Caves of Diros, an enormous complex with staggering stalactites, best explored by boat with a tour guide (don’t forget to spout the tedious tidbit that ‘speleology’ is the correct term for the study of caves). Visit the abandoned village of Vatheia to see the typical Mani tower houses or the considerably more lively town of Areopoli where the restaurants specialise in suckling pig (the best is Barba Petros, owned by the same family since 1917 and just off the main square).
If you’re searching for a sandy beach – the ones around Gerolimenas are stone and shingle – the best is Marmari, a twenty minute drive from the hotel. Make time for lunch at Marmari Paradise, a traditional taverna with pasta, seafood and sea views.
Earn or Redeem Points with World of Hyatt
This Mr & Mrs Smith hotel participates in the World of Hyatt loyalty program. As a member, you can earn and redeem points and enjoy exclusive benefits for qualifying nights. .
