10 independent reviews for Messinia cycling holiday in Greece

Hello Nicola, Thank you once again for taking the time to share your feedback with us. We genuinely value all comments, as they help us improve our services and better understand our guests' experiences. Regarding the first hotel, even though there are hotels located close to the center of Kalamata, we selected this property because of its excellent beachfront location and its convenient walking distance to local restaurants and amenities. We were sad to hear that it did not fully meet your expectations, particularly as it is a hotel we have been using successfully for many years on both our cycling and hiking tours, and we have generally received positive feedback from our guests. As for the two-night stay in Petalidi, this was a deliberate choice in the design of the itinerary. Petalidi is an authentic coastal village in Messinia, retaining much of its traditional character and offering visitors the opportunity to experience everyday local life away from the more developed tourist resorts. We have found that many of our guests particularly enjoy this aspect of the tour, as it allows them to connect more closely with the region and its people. The location also serves as an excellent base for one of the most scenic cycling days of the trip, including access to the beautiful Polylimnio area. Petalidi is the only location where we could offer our guests to do this roundtrip to Polylimnio, and this trip in general doesn’t offer many chances for roundtrips or 2-night stays for our guests to relax a bit more at the same hotel. Regarding the last hotel, this is another property that we have worked with for a long time and that has consistently met the expectations of our guests. Its beachfront setting and proximity to the charming village of Kalo Nero, just a short walk away, have always been appreciated by travelers. Finally, the route is designed primarily around paved roads, with only limited sections of gravel or dirt tracks. The most notable unpaved stretch occurs on the first day, where the route follows the coastline to provide a more scenic riding experience and access to areas that would not be possible using only the main roads. The quieter rural roads that we have selected throughout the itinerary occasionally include uneven surfaces or potholes, largely because we prioritize low-traffic roads over busier main roads. While these roads may not always be maintained to the same standard as major routes, they generally offer a more enjoyable and safer cycling experience. For your tour, road bikes were provided, which is a bicycle type that has been successfully used on this itinerary by many previous guests over the years. Based on our experience, road bikes are well suited to the predominantly asphalt nature of the route. Nevertheless, we appreciate your perspective and understand that some cyclists may prefer a different style of bicycle depending on their riding preferences and comfort level. The idea of having mountain bikes for this tour, which is an option that we can offer to guess upon request, would be okay for the first day of the trip but for the rest days it wouldn’t work so well, because the guests are stack with a much heavier and slower bike with wider tires for the rest of the whole trip. We hope that, despite these points, you were able to enjoy many of the beautiful landscapes, villages, and experiences that the Peloponnese has to offer. Thank you again for choosing to travel with us and we hope to welcome you again to our beautiful country.