Holiday rental above Kalamitsi bay, Mani
A three-bedroom house in the Mani, in the southern Peloponnese, let directly by the people who own it. A 13-metre heated infinity pool and a west-facing view straight down the Messenian gulf. It sits above Kalamitsi, the bay immediately south of Kardamyli, in the green half of the peninsula.
The house
What is actually here
Lower level
Kitchen and dining room, and the master bedroom with its own bathroom.
Ground level
Sitting room, a television lounge and a study area.
Upper floor
Two further bedrooms and a bathroom.
427 metres from the Patrick Leigh Fermor house
Leigh Fermor built his house on this bay, lived in it for decades, and left it to the Benaki Museum. It is now open for scheduled visits, and the distance from here is 427m, measured from published coordinates.
The thing that catches people out: tickets are sold online only, there is no ticket office at the house, and the booking window opens at the beginning of the previous month. Turning up has never worked.
We book them for guests when the window opens. Tell us at the point of booking and it is handled, which removes the only genuinely difficult thing about the visit.
The Benaki sites block automated checking, so we could not read the current slot and price off the museum's own page. Third-party accounts disagree on both. What we could and could not verify.
Gallery
The house, photographed
Every photograph on this page is of this house. They are colour-corrected and cropped and nothing else: nothing here is generated, composited, or a picture of somewhere similar.
Around it
What is within reach
Kardamyli, about 10 minutes
A working village with a harbour, a pebble beach at Ritsa, and the fortified quarter of Old Kardamyli above it. Enough places to eat that one closure does not ruin the evening.
Stoupa, about 20 minutes
The best sand on this coast, in two calm bays. The family answer for a beach day.
The Viros gorge, from Kardamyli
The classic walk, on paths that were the only way between villages until roads arrived in the 1970s.
Agios Nikolaos, about 25 minutes
A working fishing harbour with tavernas on the quay, and the best lunch on this stretch.
The Diros caves, about an hour
A karst system toured partly by boat on an underground lake. Tickets on arrival only, so go early.
Cape Tainaron, about two and a half hours
The southernmost point of mainland Greece. Go for the end of the day, not the middle.
The region in full is in our Peloponnese guide, and the Mani has a book of its own. There is a copy in the house.
Booking
How to enquire
Use the enquiry form with your dates and how many of you there are, and you will get a real answer from a person. It goes to the owner, not to an agency.
Or email hello@travelblis.com if you would rather.
We do not publish a nightly rate here. Rates move by season and by length of stay, and a range on a page is worth less than a figure for your actual dates. Ask and you will be told.
Say at the point of booking if you want Leigh Fermor tickets and we will get them when the window opens.
FAQ
Questions
How many people does the house sleep?
Six, in three bedrooms with three bathrooms. The master is on the lower level with its own bathroom; two further bedrooms and a bathroom are on the upper floor.
Is the pool heated?
Yes, and cooled. It is 13 metres with an infinity edge. Heating is what makes April, May and October usable, which on this peninsula are the best months.
How far is the beach?
Kalamitsi bay is below the house and Ritsa at Kardamyli is about 10 minutes by car. Stoupa, which has the best sand on this coast, is about 20.
Do you need a car?
Yes. Everything in the Mani needs a car and you want a small one: the village streets were laid out for mules and the southern roads are single-track in places.
Can you visit the Leigh Fermor house?
It is 427m away and open for scheduled visits, but tickets are online only and the booking window opens at the beginning of the previous month. We book them for guests when it opens.
What is the view?
West, panoramic, over Kalamitsi bay and Kardamyli village and straight down the Messenian gulf. West-facing is why the evenings work.
Is this a holiday rental you can book in the Peloponnese?
Yes. It is a private holiday rental above Kalamitsi bay in the Mani, in the southern Peloponnese, let directly by the family who own it rather than through a booking platform. Enquiries come to us and we pass them on, so there is no platform fee between you and the owner.
When is the best time to rent a house in the Mani?
April to June and September to October. The house has a heat pump throughout, so it is comfortable in the shoulder months as well as in August, which is not true of most rentals on this coast. July and August are hot and the coast is busier, though the Mani is quiet compared with almost anywhere else in Greece.