Visit to Argos Ancient Greece with a Fort and Castle

Ancient is Greece, Greece is ancient! These words kept ringing in my mind and I wanted to see all things ancient. One of the main reasons why we planned this road trip through various UNESCO sites of Greece. This post is about my visit to Argos, the most ancient landmark of Greece, on the 10^th day of our 12 day road trip through Greece.

Argos, a city in Argolis, Peloponnese, Greece

How to reach Argos Greece?

Argos town is located in the north eastern part of the Peloponnese peninsula in Greece. It is located approximately 11 km inland from the Gulf of Argolis and is situated in the Argolic Plain, surrounded by mountains. Argos is located about 135 km southwest of Athens. Argos doesn’t have a airport of its own but is well connected by road and rail.

By plane: The nearest international airport is Athens International Airport “Eleftherios Venizelos” (ATH). From there, you can take a bus or taxi to Kifissos Bus Station in Athens and then take a bus to Argos.
By train: You can take a train from Athens to Corinth and then transfer to another train to Argos. The journey takes approximately 2-3 hours depending on the train schedule.
By car: If you have your own car or are renting one like us, take the Athens-Corinth National Road (E94) and then take the exit for Argos.
By bus: There are several bus companies that operate daily services from Athens to Argos. KTEL is the main bus company that runs services between Athens and Argos. The journey takes approximately 2-3 hours depending on traffic.

Road Trip Nafplio to Argos

We made a road trip to Argos from Nafplio. The entire stretch of EO Argous – Nafpliou had almost no traffic. We couldn’t guess then what lay in store for us. Argos Fort was visible from a distance. It was the New Year day of 2015 and we were super excited to visit a new, actually ancient place!

Argos Greece Map

Things to Do Argos Greece

Itinerary for Argos and list of Things to do in Argos checked and rechecked for the nth time. The popular and must see places in Argos are the following.

A traditional Greek Fort Market – This is open on Wednesdays and Saturdays. Sadly since we were visiting on Thursday we missed seeing this.

Monastery of Panagia – Nestled on the eastern slopes of Larissa Hill; the monastery looks elegant and pious! We had to be content with pictures from far. The old custom of Blessing of Oranges is held in Holy Monastery of Panagia.

Monastery of Panagia Argos Greece

Church of St. Peter – This church is dedicated to Saint Peter of Argos who is believed to have possessed supernatural healing powers. When we entered the church it was completely empty, not a single person in sight. After spending few quiet moments here we moved on.

Ancient theatre of Argos – this theatre is very different as it is carved into the rocky mountain. There are 81 rows of seats and can accommodate 20,000 visitors, even larger than the famous Theatre of Epidauros. During summers there are performances here just like the ones conducted in Theatre of Epidaurus.

Ancient Acropolis of Argos – also known by the name Larisa (not to be confused with the town with same name Larissa) is a popular tourist attraction of Argos Greece.

On a hill bordering the city of Argos there is the fortress we spotted from far. Existing since 5th century B.C., Argos Fort is the most ancient fort that I have ever seen! It was rebuilt several times by several rulers in several eras. Each ruler of Byzantines in 10th century, Latins in 13th century, Venetians in 15th century and Turks left their signature architectural elements in making of this fort.

Within these fort walls lie the ruins of Castle of Larissa.

Walls of Argos Fort

After our visit to Church of St. Peter we drove up the hill to the Argos fortress. Often we plan a lot and look forward eagerly with excitement to visit the destination, but fate plans something else. We arrived at the gates of the fort only to find it closed for modifications and repair. There was no mention of this in any of the websites we referred.

Stunning Views from Argos Fort – Slightly disappointed we looked around for a while. Wonderful scenic sights all around!  We virtually drank in the views of whole of Argos town below, Lake Lerna, Nafplio far away and the sea from where the invaders came in once.

Argos tourist attractions

History of Argos

We were standing at the same location where a castle, an acropolis and a fort was built in 3000BC! That is Neolithic period, just the thought gave me goose bumps! Argos has been inhabited ever since. In 1100BC the inhabitants were expelled by Dorians.

For next mention there is a time leap from 1100BC to 8BC when Argos was ruled by Doric ruler Pheidon. This was the most important region of the Peloponnese then. Records mention that under the rule of this king, Argos defeated its rival Sparta at the Battle of Hyssae, which took place in 668 BC.

Interestingly Sparta and Argos remained enemies for years on with no signs of peace. Argos always chose the side of the rivals of Sparta in their conflicts. In 404 BC, Argos suffered a major defeat against Sparta. Inner divisions in Argos eventually led to the political end of the state.

Lake Lerna visible from Argos Fort

In Greek mythology, Argus or Argos (Ancient Greek: Ἄργος Argos) refer to some historical characters – Argus Panoptes (Argus “All-Eyes”), a giant with a hundred eyes, Argus (king of Argos), son of Zeus (or Phoroneus) and Niobe (Argive)

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