Greece – Kalamata

We spent a few days in Kalamata with friends, using it as the perfect base to explore the southwest Peloponnese. Kalamata itself is one of Greece's most popular summer destinations, with long beaches, plenty of restaurants, and enough cafés to keep Greeks happily debating politics over coffee until sunset.

As nice as the town is, our real destination was the Mani Peninsula.

We took a road trip through the famous Diros Caves, one of the most impressive cave systems in Greece, where the tour takes place by boat through underground rivers and spectacular rock formations. It's one of those places that's impossible to appreciate until you're actually there.

From there, we continued through some of the beautiful stone villages scattered across southern Mani. Tiny streets, traditional tower houses, seaside tavernas, and the kind of scenery that reminds you why road trips are still the best way to discover Greece.

The rest of the holiday followed a very familiar Greek formula: beach, food, coffee, repeat.

The beaches were excellent (it is Greece after all), the seafood never disappointed, and every evening somehow ended a little later than planned.

Kalamata may not be the first place I'd recommend for someone visiting Greece for the first time, but as a base for exploring the southern Peloponnese, it's difficult to beat.

Besides, any holiday that combines caves, beaches, mountain villages and fresh grilled octopus is already off to a pretty good start.