Product Description

Sunflower guides have been available in Europe for years and they have a dedicated following. Now Hunter is bringing them to the States. In handy pocket-size format, Sunflower guides offer a unique combination of walks and driving tours for the vacationer. Guide includes: - dozens of unforgettable walks for all ages and abilities, with highly detailed walking maps in full color - the most rewarding driving tours of the region - large color fold-out maps - color photos that show what you will see on every walk and tour - timetables for buses, trains, ferries - information on the local foods, customs, wildlife, historic sites - a free update service on the Web, www.sunflowerbooks.co.uk, will keep you abreast of all changes since publication

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #487219 in Books
• Published on: 2003-04-30
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 136 pages

Synopsis
A car-touring and walking guide to the southern Peloponnese. It presents advice on different walks, along with topographical walking maps and a fold-out touring map. Many short walks for motorists are suggested, along with recommendations of areas for picnics.

About the Author
Michael was born in Athens to British parents. After gaining degree in modern languages at Cambridge, he returned to Greece and set up his own programme of walking holidays for an Athens tour operator. He then moved to the Alternative Travel Group (an up-market UK walking holiday specialist) and created tours for them in various parts of Europe. He still freelances for ATG and runs a travel website, but spends much of the year in Greece, especially the Peloponnese.

Customer Reviews

Exploring the secrets of the Peloponnese
We did six walks from the book. All of them were shortened versions of the original longer walk.
The book is extremely helpful on arranging the logistics of how to reach the stating point and returning from a walk.
Most walks are very clear and precise, but sometimes the times are not accurate so one should walk carefully and pay attention.
To summarize, if you want a taste of the natural splendor of Peleponnese, this book is a must. (Walks 23 is very confusing so one should start early and have patience for the "barely-used trail through bush hillsides")

a guide for all seasons
As someone who has enjoyed trekking in Greece with Michael, I can tell you that this book is almost as good as having him by your side. His directions are full of his characteristic wit and humor and he shares his deep knowledge of Greek culture effortlessly, providing nuggets of history, botany and such miscellany as how to deal with fierce sheepdogs. Reading his descriptions may whet your appetite for taking every single walk, but he also tells you where you might not want to go if your legs are a bit weak or you have no head for heights. But you don't have to have stout calves and hiking boots to enjoy this book. It also includes five possible car itineraries that take in suggestions for picnic spots, short walks and local landmarks. You'll find places in here that you won't find in any guidebooks, because Michael has been exploring the Greek mountains since childhood and worked on this guide for 10 years. If you think Greece is just islands and beaches, this book will introduce you to its other side, one that most visitors barely suspect exists. You couldn't be in better hands.

A fascinating insight into a little-known region
I bought this on a whim and found it invaluable for unlocking the secrets of the Mani and Neapoli pensinsulas in the Peloponnese.

We did several of the walks and were amazed by the beauty and the sheer tranquility of it all - barely a soul in sight except the occasional shepherd. The directions were excellent and the maps very helpful, which is just as well as most of the routes we did were not waymarked on the ground. Interesting insights into the flora, fauna and history of the area, like the medicinal uses of a local herb. And useful practical tips, like where to find the key to open a neglected Byzantine chapel. The hardest bit is finding your way around the Greek roads, which are very poorly signed and have clearly suffered from heavy winter-spring rainfalls in early 2003.

Certainly this is a fascinating insight into a little-known region of Greece - though that might change after the 2004 Olympics, I suppose.