Sheena and I spent 3 weeks climbing in Leonidio and Kyparissi, Greece in January and February 2020. I didn't know much about the area when we decided to go and I wasn't sure what to expect, but it was an amazing trip and definitely worth a return visit! Plentiful limestone climbing on unbelievable features in a beautiful coastal mountain setting!
Winter seemed like a perfect time to visit. During our trip we had amazing weather ranging from over 20°C on the hottest days to just under 10°C on the coldest days, making both sun and shade climbing possible. Apparently, it had been a particularly dry season and we were lucky with nearly everything in Leonidio being completely dry. However, we had actually planned to go the previous winter in 2019 but bailed after hearing about extreme wetness in the area.
We stayed in Leonidio and made the drive to Kyparissi a few times during our trip, but the sectors around Kyparissi, particularly Babala, had some wetness and likely do not get in season until spring and fall. I imagine spring and fall would also be great times to visit Leonidio.
We flew into Athens, rented a car for a 3.5 hour drive to Leonidio which involves about 10 Euro worth of highway tolls. We had a GPS for the trip which we relied on quite a bit for getting around. Leonidio is also accessible by bus. Knowing a little bit of the Greek language helps but most of the locals speak English with varying levels of proficiency.
Leonidio is a small town but has all the basic services as well as a few climbing shops all within easy walking distance. Walking is a great way to get around town, but having a vehicle opens up a lot more climbing options as most sectors are not within walking distance from Leonidio.
Upon arrival in Leonidio, it is perhaps more practical to use a scooter as the primary means of transportation as the streets in town are quite narrow and parking at many of the climbing sectors is quite limited. Inside Leonidio, the roads tend to only be large enough for a single vehicle but it is 2 way traffic consisting of pedestrians, bicycles, scooters, cars, and the occasional large truck. There is one larger road bordering the river and mostly we left our car parked there to avoid driving through town.
Our attempt at recreating the iconic shot on the cover of the guidebook.
Neromylos 8b+ at Watermill, Kyparissi. Photo by Sheena Hau.
We stayed in Leonidio and made the drive to Kyparissi a few times during our trip, but the sectors around Kyparissi, particularly Babala, had some wetness and likely do not get in season until spring and fall. I imagine spring and fall would also be great times to visit Leonidio.
Piranha Extension 8b+ at Hada. Photo Sheena Hau.
Leonidio is a small town but has all the basic services as well as a few climbing shops all within easy walking distance. Walking is a great way to get around town, but having a vehicle opens up a lot more climbing options as most sectors are not within walking distance from Leonidio.
The massive Kokkinovrachos with multipitch routes up to 250m towering over Leonidio.
Upon arrival in Leonidio, it is perhaps more practical to use a scooter as the primary means of transportation as the streets in town are quite narrow and parking at many of the climbing sectors is quite limited. Inside Leonidio, the roads tend to only be large enough for a single vehicle but it is 2 way traffic consisting of pedestrians, bicycles, scooters, cars, and the occasional large truck. There is one larger road bordering the river and mostly we left our car parked there to avoid driving through town.
Gaidura Dura 8b/+ at the tufa filled Twin Caves sector. Photo Sheena Hau.
The climbing itself was amazing! We were drawn to the climbs consisting of huge tufa columns and stalactite drips. We climbed 18 out of the 20 days we were there, climbing at Elona, Hada, Twin Caves, Mars, Watermill, and Babala sectors. We also visited Nifada, Limeri, and La Maison Des Chevres on rest days but did not climb. I climbed about 50 routes with at least one from every grade ranging from 6b+ to 8c and I enjoyed every single one of them. It was pretty easy for me to figure out which climbs I would enjoy due to the giant tufa features.
Climbing the stalactite blobs at Watermill Sector in Kyparissi. Photo Sheena Hau.
The easiest approach we had was Elona which was basically a 1 minute walk up the road from parking at a cliffside monastery. The longest approach was Babala which was a pleasant 45 minute uphill hike on a very nice path.
All the routes we tried were well bolted. We had an 80m rope which was overkill on most of the routes but necessary for a few routes which were definitely worth doing.
On top of the 60m long 8b Goliath at Elona. Photo Sheena Hau.
The food in Greece is amazing and fairly inexpensive so we chose to eat out every night. We tried a few restaurants in town and they were all great. It's definitely worth exploring the town as some of the less popular establishments are just as good as the popular ones. Our favorite ended up being a small cafe that had amazing gyro pitas!
Greek gyro post climbing fuel!
We went the Airbnb route for our trip but after arriving in town, there seemed to be many options for places to stay either in Leonidio or any of the nearby towns. Still a fairly new area, the rock is still sharp and unpolished, there is a lot of new active route development, and enormous potential for further development. Leonidio is certainly on its way to becoming a major climbing destination.
Evening view of Leonidio from Twin Caves sector.
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