Firstly I must say we have not been to Parga, but we have travelled extensively around the Peloponnese including a 2 week stay in Stoupa. Although many places of interest do involve a drive through Kalamata (not a problem) there are plenty of interesting and unique places that do not. The caves at Dirou, further down the Mani are an absolute maze and without the guide paddling the boat you could be lost forever. There are some great beaches off the road to Gythio which appear to be unknown to Brits. You also have Monemvasia an amazing town linked to the mainland by a causeway. Elafonnissos Island is only a 10 minute ferry crossing, take the car, with white sand beaches and little development, just one small town with great waterfront tavernas and a desert island atmosphere. There are good walks in the foothills of Mt. Tagetos just behind Stoupa but a car is necessary to explore further afield because the Peloponnese is a such a large area.Places like the Corinth Canal or Olympia involve 6/8 hours driving as day trips

KEEP it clean now boys no fighting

KEEP it clean now boys no fighting

WHO is fighting ?

rdv is stating that he hasn't been to Parga so he can't compare Stoupa with Parga, he then goes on to say what can be done in the vicinity of Stoupa.

Of course maybe I have missed something

Graham,
If you want to know anything about Stoupa try http://www.zorbas.de/webcam/camboard/.

I have visited both Stoupa and Parga and loved them both. As others have said you are out on a limb to some extent at Stoupa but we visited the Diros caves, the ancient city of Mystras, and Githeo. We also had a drive back through Kalamata and down the next peninsula to Petalidi and Chrani. This is not too difficult if you take note of where you are going when you are transferred from the airport to Stoupa - you just do it in reverse.

The beaches are fantastic in Stoupa (look at the webcam)and there are some great tavernas. I suppose there were a fair few British people there but also French and scandinavian. In Parga we found there were a lot of Italians, I suppose because the ferry is so easy.

In Stoupa we stayed at George's (Manos) which was fine but we felt overpriced and full of repeat visitors (Brits) who did nothing but lay on the same sunbeds for a fortnight and no-one else stood a chance.

Sorry can't help re the walking - we hire a car. No, seriously we are not into walking.

Yiamass, Jean

Hi Graham. Stoupa is very nice and we enjoyed our week there but I have to say I prefer Parga (it has more of a buzz). Places of interest, in Parga, we thought, were more accessible. Although the drive back through the mountains to Kalamata before you start your journey to 'places of interest' might not be a problem to adults, try persuading a 13 year old to sit in the car for hours . I have to confess we didn't get to the caves (we should have) but the weather was so hot it was easier to sit around a pool (we used the one at Aelos Apartments) or go on the beach. We found a couple of nice bars on the front (Patrikos, To Steki and the bar next door to To Steki (yellow umbrellas). I have been to Stoupa in August and it didn't bear any resemblance to last week. There were hardly any people around in the evening. Don't know if this is something to do with the cut back in flights to Kalamata or the euro :que. I think there are plenty of walks but the only walking we did was to next resort (Ag Nicoulas). You can do this in about 45 minutes but there is a nice bar about 3/4 of the way where you can have a nice cold beer/snack and a has a pool so can have a dip . Ag Nic was lovely,working village. Definitely worth the walk or you can catch the bus which runs every hour or so. To sum up, my hubby said Stoupa 'grew on him' and he could understand what people rave about but not sure if we would return (especially early in the season). BTW we stayed at the Marcos Studios and Apartments which were about a 15/20 minute walk into Stoupa. Property was accessed via a dirt track from the quite busy main road. Apartment was very well equipped (probably one of the best we have stayed in for Greece) and had a small pool.

Hi Graham. Have you decided for or against Stoupa?

Two differences stand out between Parga and Stoupa. First, Parga has been a resort for much longer, and is therefore more tourist oriented and busier with tourists. Second, it has also evolved a range of late bars and 'clubs' which entertain the 18 - 30 group. Stoupa really doesn't cater for the younger element, and is relatively lightly marked by tourists (although it has grown purely to provide for them!)

Incidental differences are, although Parga is a bigger and older town, it has plenty of beach space, whereas smaller Stoupa is rather limited in beach space - pretty crowded when the town is full.

I've made lots of comparisons between different resorts and islands on my web site, so you'll find some of this on it. Just Google 'jimb greece' to find it. You'll also find lots of useful hints on travelling to the Messinia (Kalamata) area if you're doing DIY travel.

Hi there Jim. I thought Stoupa was predominantly a 'holiday resort'? Correct me if I'm wrong but I don't think many people live there all year round. Although we enjoyed our week in Stoupa, for us, it didn't have the 'buzz' that Parga has. Also, when in Parga you don't have to travel too far to get to places of interest. BTW we thought Ag Nik, the village next to Stoupa, was lovely and well worth a visit.

Yes, Parga is a much bigger town with an off season population of aout 1500; Stoupa is about 300 off season. Both populations multiply by about 10 in season, so Parga is a much bigger (and older) place. Most Parga visitors are package holiday makers, and the stores, clothing shops and knick knack shops cater for them, givcing a strong 'we look after package holiday makers' overlay. Stoupa is about 50% package holidays, and about 50% holiday home owners from both Greece and N Europe. This overlay of services oriented towards package holidays is therefore much more muted, even though the village has only grown recently, and only to support visitors..

I visited Stoupa about 10 years ago, has it changed much? I realy enjoyed it when I went (and i'm nowhere near 55 yet!!).

I'm looking for something quite Greek as opposed to really touristy - not everything catered towards Britsh holiday makers kind of thing. Do you think Stoupa is still like that ?? We will be going with 2 young children.

I am also wondering whether Greece is actually a good place to go as my husband is Turkish and I know the two countries are not always so friendly.

Thanks
Kedi