Epirus: Zagori and the Vikos gorge
Forty-six stone villages linked by humpbacked Ottoman bridges, on the rim of a gorge ranked the world's deepest for its width: Zagori is the Greece nobody imagines.
Suggested stay — 3 nights
On the edge of Albania, Epirus hides Greece's finest mountain country: Zagori, forty-six villages of schist and slate (the Zagorochoria) clinging to the slopes of the Pindus, linked since Ottoman times by stone bridges with perfect arches — Kokkori, Plakidas — photographed with your feet in the gentians. Monodendri, Vitsa, Dilofo and the two Papigos, backed against the natural towers of Astraka, count among the country's most beautiful villages, and the near-total absence of concrete is protected by law.
The natural monument is the Vikos gorge: nearly 1,000 m deep for 1,100 m across, the world record for depth-to-width ratio. You contemplate it effortlessly from the Oxya viewpoint (a road from Monodendri) or Beloi opposite, or commit to the mythical Monodendri-Vikos-Papigo traverse (6-7 h, demanding). Below, the Voidomatis river, one of Europe's purest, runs turquoise beneath the plane trees — gentle rafting in spring, glacial swimming for the brave in summer.
Don't miss
- The Oxya viewpoint in late afternoon, when the sun enters the gorge
- The Ottoman bridges of Kokkori and Plakidas, between Kipi and Koukouli
- Megalo and Mikro Papigo beneath the Astraka towers, to sleep and explore from
- The Voidomatis river: family rafting or simply a nap under the plane trees at the Aristi bridge
Our tips on the ground
- The trail network is waymarked but distances deceive: for the Vikos traverse, start from Monodendri (descent first) and arrange a pick-up at Papigo — the guesthouses organise the shuttle for a few tens of euros.
- Fill the tank in Ioannina: Zagori's rare pumps close early and the terrain drinks fuel.
- Book spring and autumn weekends firmly: Zagori is the Athenians' favourite mountain escape, and the Papigo guesthouses fill up before the foreigners arrive.
Our flagship guide — €29
Guide available“Greece on Your Own”, the complete edition, is out
10 chapters: day-by-day itineraries, driving and transport, a costed budget and checklists — the same method as our Namibia guide.
The guide is currently written in French — an English edition is in the works.
Before you go
Readers' questions about Epirus: Zagori and the Vikos gorge
Do you need to be a hiker to enjoy Zagori?
No: the Oxya and Beloi viewpoints are a few hundred metres from the car, the villages and bridges are strolled rather than hiked, and the Aristi-Papigo road with its switchbacks above the Voidomatis is a destination in itself. Walkers add the Vikos traverse or the climb to the Astraka refuge, but Zagori rewards the contemplative too.
What is the best season for Vikos?
May-June for the flowers and the Voidomatis running high, September-October for the light and the turning forests — both with ideal walking temperatures. Summer stays very manageable here (altitude tempers it), making it an excellent heatwave refuge; in winter, snow closes some passes but turns Papigo into a storybook village.