Voidokilia or Voidokoilia (in Greek: Βοϊδοκοιλιά ) is a beautiful sandy beach in the southwestern coast of Peloponnese, near Pylos town. Its soft sand dunes, gently-slopping berm, and lack of commercial development make it one of the most attractive beaches of Greece.
Beach Description
- Overall Rating: 4/5
- Our Rating of What the Water Feels Like: 4/5
- Beach Berm: Sand
- Seafloor: Sand
- Access: Fair = Road comes close to the beach. Partially dirt road. Ample parking behind the dunes. Have to walk over sand dunes to reach the beach
- Amenities: None. Bring your own parasol, food, and water
- RV / Camper Accessibility: Ample space for parking. Camping explicitly forbidden
- Water Sports: None
- Snorkeling: Sandy sea floor
- Notes: Voidokilia beach is a delightful place to swim. It has warm waters, and a gently slopping seafloor that stays shallow for a long-long way. That makes it ideal for families with children. The waters stay calm and warm throughout the day.
Practicalities
Getting to Voidokilia
The road to Voidokilia beach gets a bit rough and turns into a dirt road toward the end, but it’s fairly easy to navigate with any kind of vehicle. The narrow sections can be a challenge only whenever two cars (we would hate to think of two RVs) attempt to cross paths from opposite directions.
The packed sand behind the beach dunes seems expansive, but it does get packed with cars during the summer days. Expect to find parking with ease, but be aware that you have to climb over the soft sand dunes to get to the beach.
Visitors with mobility problems might have trouble climbing over the sand dunes to get to the beach from the parking lot. If mobility is an issue, enter the beach as close to it’s northern end as possible.
Where to Stay
The nearby town of Pylos is an excellent choice for accommodations. You will find plenty of rooms, but make early reservations in the summer months.
We stayed at Hotel Karalis in Pylos, and we found it to be reasonably priced, at an excellent location that allows you easy access to the center of Pylos if you are on foot, as well as quick exit out of town for car excursions.
From Pylos it’s a twenty-minute drive to Voidokilia beach.
The nearby towns of Petrohori, Gianouleika, and Gialova are also good places to stay, and they are no more than a ten minute drive from Voidokilia.
Things to Do
Besides swimming, you can do a bit of light hiking if you are so inclined.
The beach is flanked by two hills that bear the marks of people hiking up to their tops.
The hill on the south is crowned by the ruins of an old Venetian castle called Paleokastro (meaning “old castle”), and the one on the north end has a Mycenaean tomb at the top.
The northern hill is much smaller and easier to climb casually, but the hill on the south would be a bigger challenge from the beach.
If you want to get to the Venetian castle, we recommend hiking through the southern end of the hill (not from Voidokilia beach). You have to drive on a dirt road and park at the base of the hill (coordinates for the parking spot: 36.95243, 21.66133).
The hike up to Paleokastro would take about 15-20 minutes. Beware that the site is not maintained, and there is a sign at the parking spot warning visitors not to approach the castle.
Map
Click here to see Voidokilia beach on the map and to get directions in a new window.