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Achaea or Achaia, sometimes transliterated from Greek as Akhaia, is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the region of Western Greece and is situated in the northwestern part of the Peloponnese peninsula. The capital is Patras which is the third largest city in Greece.

Kalavryta
Kalavryta is a town and a municipality in the mountainous east-central part of the regional unit of Achaea, Greece. The town is located on the right bank of the river Vouraikos, 24 kilometres (15 miles) south of Aigio, 40 km (25 miles) southeast of Patras and 62 km (39 miles) northwest of Tripoli. Notable mountains in the municipality are Mount Erymanthos in the west and Aroania or Chelmos in the southeast. Kalavryta is the southern terminus of the Diakopto-Kalavryta rack railway, built by Italian engineers between 1885 and 1895.

Kato Zachlorou Achaea
Kato Zachlorou is a village and a community in eastern Achaea, Greece. It is built on a mountain slope on the left bank of the river Vouraikos, which forms a narrow gorge. The community consists of the villages Kato Zachlorou and Ano Zachlorou, and the Mega Spilaio monastery. It is 11 km (7 miles) south of Diakopto, and 9 km (6 miles) northeast of Kalavryta. In 2011 Kato Zachlorou had a population of 38 for the village, and 53 for the community. The narrow gauge Diakofto–Kalavryta Railway runs through the village.

Planitero Achaea
Planitero is a mountain village in the municipal unit of Kleitoria, Achaea, Greece. It is situated in the southwestern part of the Chelmos (Aroania) mountains. Its population is 197 people (2011 census). Its elevation is 700 m. Planiteri is 1.5 km north of Armpounas, 6 km northeast of Kleitoria and 12 km southeast of Kalavryta. The source of the river Aroanios is near Planitero.

Rio
Rio is a town in the suburbs of Patras and a former municipality in Achaea, West Greece, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Patras, of which it is a municipal unit. The municipal unit has an area of 98.983 km2. The municipal unit had a population of 14,622 in 2011. The campus of the University of Patras and the Casino Rio is located in Rio. Rion is the northernmost municipal unit of the Peloponnese peninsula. It stretches along the southeastern coast of the Gulf of Patras, about 7 km northeast of Patras city centre. The nearby Strait of Rio, crossed by the Rio–Antirrio bridge, separates the Gulf of Patras from the Gulf of Corinth to the east. The town is dominated by the Panachaiko mountain to the southeast.

Kalogria beach & Sprofylia Natural Park
Kalogria beach is the name of a sandy and award-winning with Blue Flag beach that is located in the vicinity of the village Araxos, in Northwestern Peloponnese, Greece. The beach is beside the Sprofylia natural park, it has a length of ~9 Km and width 80m and is one of the longest sandy beaches of Greece. The area close to the beach has many sand dunes that are formed by sea sand that moves with the aid of the westerly winds and the Ionian Sea waves. The dunes occupy an area of 200 hectares and can reach heights of up to 10 metres and widths from 20 – 500 metres. At the north edge of the beach there is the largest sand dune in Peloponnese and one of the largest in Greece. The beach is a popular destination for many tourists and Greeks. At a close distance to the beach there are a couple of hotels and restaurants. The airport of Araxos is in a distance of 7 km.

Mount Erymanthos
Erymanthos is a municipality in the Achaea regional unit, Western Greece region, Greece. The seat of the municipality is the town Chalandritsa. The municipality has an area of 582.139 km2. It was named after Mount Erymanthos. Mount Erymanthos overall is an irregular massif of peaks connected by ridges embedded in the mountains located in the north of the Peloponnese, Greece. Erymanthos is on the west side. Its highest peak, Olenos or Olonos, Olenos original and preferred, elevation 2,224 m (7,297 ft), is often called Mount Erymanthus, and conversely, Mount Olenos can be used for the entire range, although the customary usage is Erymanthos for the range and Olenos for the peak.

Mega Spilaio (Great Cave)
Mega Spilaio, formally the Monastery of the Dormition of the Theotokos, is a Greek Orthodox monastery near Kalavryta, in the Peloponnese peninsula in southern Greece. The monastery is located in a large cave in a sheer cliff, where the western slopes of Mount Chelmos drop down to the gorge of the Vouraikos river, some 11 kilometres (6.8 mi) northwest of the town of Kalavryta. The cave was known in antiquity, and the geographer Pausanias reports that the daughters of Proetus found refuge there during their madness. In the first Christian centuries, Christian hermits occupied the cave.

Agia Lavra (“Holy Lavra”)
Agia Lavra (“Holy Lavra”) is a monastery near Kalavryta, Achaea, Greece. It was built in 961 AD, on Chelmos Mountain, at an altitude of 961 meters, and can be described as the symbolic birthplace of modern Greece. It stands as one of the oldest monasteries in the Peloponnese.

It was burnt to the ground in 1585 by the Turks. It was rebuilt in 1600 while the frescoes by Anthimos were completed in 1645. It was burnt again in 1715 and in 1826 by the armies of Ibrahim Pasha of Egypt. In 1850 after the rebirth of modern Greece, the building was completely rebuilt. The monastery was burned down by German forces in 1943.

Lake Tsivlos
Tsivlos is a small mountain village in the municipality of Akrata, Achaea, Greece. It is part of the community Platanos. In 2011, it had a population of 9. It is built on the slopes of Mount Chelmos (Aroania), above the river Krathis, at about 750 m elevation. Lake Tsivlos, north of the village, was formed by a landslide in 1912. Tsivlos is located 12 km southwest of Akrata, 12 km northeast of Kalavryta and 11 km south of Platanos.

Panachaiko

The Panachaiko, also known as Vodias mainly at the Middle Ages, is a mountain range in Achaea, Peloponnese, Greece. It spans about 20 km in length from north to south, and 15–20 km from east to west. It is the northernmost mountain range in the Peloponnese. The highest point, named Pyrgos Palavou (Πύργος Παλαβού), is 1,926 metres (6,319 ft).

The mountain is home to two shelters, Greece’s largest wind farm with 40 generators, which opened in 2006, and two communications stations. Snow is common in areas over 1,000 m in the winter. Paragliding is common in areas under 1,100 m. Due to overgrazing, frequent forest fires, and the appropriation of land for housing, the mountain’s ecology and soil have suffered greatly, to the extent that much of the soil is now barren or can only support herbaceous vegetation. The range is sparsely forested, mainly on its western and southern slopes, while the most fertile areas lie on the eastern and western slopes.

Elis or Ilia is a historic region in the western part of the Peloponnese peninsula of Greece. It is administered as a regional unit of the modern region of Western Greece. Its capital is Pyrgos. Until 2011 it was Elis Prefecture, covering the same territory.

The modern regional unit is nearly coterminous with the ancient Elis of the classical period. Here lie the ancient ruins of cities of Elis, Epitalion and Olympia, known for the ancient Olympic Games which started in 776 BC.

Pyrgos
Pyrgos is a city in the northwestern Peloponnese, Greece, capital of the regional unit of Elis and the seat of the Municipality of Pyrgos. The city is located in the middle of a plain, 4 kilometres (2 miles) from the Ionian Sea. The river Alfeios flows into sea about 7 km (4 mi) south of Pyrgos. The population of the town Pyrgos is 25,180, and of the municipality 47,995 (2011). Pyrgos is 16 km (10 mi) west of Olympia, 16 km (10 mi) southeast of Amaliada, 70 km (43 mi) southwest of Patras and 85 km (53 mi) west of Tripoli.

Amaliada
Amaliada is a town and a former municipality in northwestern Elis, West Greece, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Ilida, of which it is the seat and a municipal unit. The municipal unit has an area of 251.945 km2. In 2011, the municipal unit had 28,520 inhabitants, of whom 16,763 lived in the town of Amaliada. It is near the archaeological site of Elis, the city-state whose territory was the site of the ancient Olympic Games. It is situated in the plains of Elis, 6 km from the Ionian Sea. It is 10 km southeast of Gastouni, 16 km northwest of Pyrgos and 60 km southwest of Patras. It features a city square with pine trees and a fountain. Amaliada has a public sports stadium (mainly used for soccer). Amaliada has a train station on the line from Patras to Pyrgos. Kourouta and Palouki are the beaches of Amaliada, about 6 km southwest of the town centre.

Zacharo
Zacharo is a town and municipality in western Peloponnese, Greece. Administratively, it belongs to the regional unit of Elis in West Greece. Zacharo is situated on the coast of the Gulf of Kyparissia, a part of the Ionian Sea. The mountain Lapithas is to the north, and the Minthi is to the east. Northwest of the town, between mount Lapithas and the sea, is the Kaiafas Lake. Zacharo is 18 km south of Olympia, 28 km southeast of Pyrgos, 65 km northwest of Kalamata and 65 km west of Tripoli. The town is crossed by the Greek National Road 9/E55, that links Patras with Kalamata.

Olympia
Olympia, is a small town in Elis on the Peloponnese peninsula in Greece, famous for the nearby archaeological site of the same name. This site was a major Panhellenic religious sanctuary of ancient Greece, where the ancient Olympic Games were held every four years throughout Classical antiquity, from the 8th century BC to the 4th century AD. They were restored on a global basis in 1894 in honor of the ideal of peaceful international contention for excellence.

The sacred precinct, named the Altis, was primarily dedicated to Zeus, although other gods were worshipped there. The games conducted in his name drew visitors from all over the Greek world as one of a group of such “Panhellenic” centres, which helped to build the identity of the ancient Greeks as a nation. Despite the name, it is nowhere near Mount Olympus in northern Greece, where the Twelve Olympians, the major deities of Ancient Greek religion, were believed to live.

The first major games to have been played at in the Olympia stadium were said to have first begun in the 700s. These prestigious ancient games took place during the festival of Zeus at Olympia. Olympia was a sanctuary, but it was within the independent state of Elis, and since the Eleans managed the games, there was sometimes bias. The famous Olympic truce only mandated safe passage for visitors and did not stop all wars in Greece or even at Olympia.

The village services the adjacent archaeological site to the southeast. The Kladeos River forms the site’s western border. Visitors walk over the bridge to find themselves in front of the main gate. Full visitation is an extensive walking event. Some excavation is in progress there frequently. Moveable artifacts for the most part have found a home in one of the site’s three museums.

Foloi Oak Forest
The Folóï oak forest is an oak forest in southwestern Greece. It is located in the municipal unit Foloi, Elis, in the western part of the Peloponnese peninsula. The Folóï oak forest is situated at an altitude of 688m, on the plateau of the Folóï mountain. It is an ecosystem unique in the Balkan peninsula and consists of a territory of 9,900 acres (40 km2), which is almost entirely covered by deciduous oaks that form a dense forest area.

The Pholóē oak forest was known to Ancient Greeks, because of its proximity to many of their settlements in the Elis region. The mysterious beauty of the forest inspired them to believe that it was a habitat of centaurs and dryads. They gave the forest the name Pholóē and the chief of the Centaurs the name Phólos. The dryads were “oak spirits” of the forest.

The broadleaf oak, Quercus frainetto (Hungarian oak) is the primary species of oak in the forest, and it covers the biggest part of its territory. The trees are 15–20 m tall and can live up to 200 years. Quercus pubescens (downy oak) and evergreen Quercus ilex (holm oak) are also present, though their population is substantially smaller. Besides oaks, ferns and asphodels are very common and they tend to grow in the space between the trunks of the trees.

The acorns provide an abundant source of food for animals such as hares, squirrels, hedgehogs, which are found in significant populations. The ecosystem of the forest is a food chain which also contains badgers, pine martens, foxes, eagles, turtles, weasels, owls, skylarks, jackals, magpies, vipers, rat snakes and others.

The Folóï oak forest has been designated the status of a protected area enlisted in the Natura 2000 ecological network of the E.U.

Aetolia-Acarnania  is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the geographic region of Central Greece and the administrative region of West Greece. A combination of the historical regions of Aetolia and Acarnania, it is the country’s largest regional unit. Its capital is Missolonghi for historical reasons, with its biggest city and economic centre at Agrinio. The area is now connected with the Peloponnese peninsula via the Rio-Antirio Bridge. The surrounding regional units take in Arta in Epirus, a narrow length bordering Karditsa of Thessaly, Evrytania to the northeast, and Phocis to the east.

Nafpaktos
Nafpaktos is a town and a former municipality in Aetolia-Acarnania, West Greece, situated on a bay on the north coast of the Gulf of Corinth, 3 km (2 mi) west of the mouth of the river Mornos.

The modern municipality was incorporated in 1946, but merged into the larger Nafpaktia municipality in the 2010 reform. Nafpaktos is now both the name of a municipal unit within Nafpaktia and of the town proper within the Nafpaktos unit. The municipal district has an area of 159,947 square kilometres (61,756 square miles), with a population close to 20,000 as of 2011.[3]

The town is 9 km (6 mi) northeast of Antirrio, 18 km (11 mi) northeast of Patras, 35 km (22 mi) east of Missolonghi and 45 km (28 mi) southeast of Agrinio. The Greek National Road 48/E65 (Antirrio – Nafpaktos – Delphi – Livadeia) passes north of the town. It is the second largest town of Aetolia-Acarnania, after Agrinio.

The port and castle provide the main attraction for the town, both with well kept Venetian vestiges. Shops, cafés and bars dot the immediate area, while a café is also located within the castle walls. The port also includes monuments commemorating the Battle of Lepanto (1571), and there is also a statue of Miguel de Cervantes by the Mallorcan artist Jaume Mir. A small water park is located just past the western portion of the beach near Psani (currently closed).Nafpaktos is also home to a local museum.

Messolonghi
Messolonghi is a municipality of 34,416 people (according to the 2011 census) in western Greece. The town is the capital of Aetolia-Acarnania regional unit, and the seat of the municipality of Iera Polis Messolongiou. Messolonghi is known as the site of a dramatic siege during the Greek War of Independence, and of the death of poet Lord Byron.

The Entrance Gate remains intact and so does part of the fortification of the Free Besieged which was rebuilt by King Otto. Past the gate, there is the Garden of Heroes where several famous and some anonymous heroes who fought during the Heroic Sortie are buried. The Garden of Heroes is the equivalent of the Elysian Fields for modern Greece. Every year the Memorial Day for the Exodus is celebrated on Palm Sunday (the Sunday before Easter); the Greek State is represented by high-ranking officials and foreign countries by their ambassadors.

Agrinio
Agrinio is the largest city of the Aetolia-Acarnania regional unit of Greece and its largest municipality, with 106,053 inhabitants. It is the economical center of Aetolia-Acarnania, although its capital is the town of Mesolonghi. The settlement dates back to ancient times. Ancient Agrinion was 3 kilometres (2 miles) northeast of the present city; some walls and foundations of which have been excavated. In medieval times and until 1836, the city was known as Vrachori.

The majority of the local population was occupied for an important period of time in the tobacco industry, from the last decades of 19th till the end of the 20th century. Big tobacco companies were founded in the city, including the famous Papastratos, alongside Panagopoulos and Papapetrou. Agrinion is also agriculturally known for its production of Agrinion olives.

Lake Trichonida
Lake Trichonida is the largest natural lake in Greece. It is situated in the eastern part of Aetolia-Acarnania, southeast of the city of Agrinio and northwest of Nafpaktos. It covers an area of 98.6 square kilometres (38.1 sq mi) with a maximum length of 19 kilometres (12 mi). Its surface elevation is 15 metres (49 ft) and its maximum depth is 58 metres (190 ft).

One million years ago the lake was much larger, and covered the central part of Aetolia-Acarnania, a part that is now a plain. The Panaitoliko mountains are situated to the north and northeast of the lake. The municipal units surrounding the lake are (from the east and clockwise) Thermo, Makryneia, Arakynthos, Thestieis, and Paravola. Around the lake, there are beautiful forests with maples, pines and other trees. The lake and its environs is home to more than 200 bird species. There are also farmland and various villages surrounding the area. The hydrocarbon lake Trichonida Lacus on the Saturnian moon Titan was named after this lake.

Evinos River
The Evinos is a 92-kilometre-long (57 mi) river in western Greece, flowing into the Gulf of Patras. Its source is in the northern Vardousia mountains, near the village Artotina, Phocis. The river flows in a generally southwestern direction, for most of its length in Aetolia-Acarnania. It feeds the reservoir of Lake Evinos, that is about 10 km. The river flows through a deep forested valley with few small villages. In its lower course it flows through lowlands, and it empties into the Gulf of Patras 10 km southeast of Missolonghi. The village Evinochori near its mouth owes its name to this river.

Corinth is the successor to an ancient city, and is a former municipality in Corinthia, Peloponnese, which is located in south-central Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform, it has been part of the municipality of Corinth, of which it is the seat and a municipal unit. It is the capital of Corinthia.

It was founded as Nea Korinthos, or New Corinth, in 1858 after an earthquake destroyed the existing settlement of Corinth, which had developed in and around the site of ancient Corinth.

Corinth Canal
The Corinth Canal is an artificial canal in Greece, that connects the Gulf of Corinth in the Ionian Sea with the Saronic Gulf in the Aegean Sea. It cuts through the narrow Isthmus of Corinth and separates the Peloponnese from the Greek mainland, arguably making the peninsula an island. The canal was dug through the Isthmus at sea level and has no locks. It is 6.4 kilometres (4 miles) in length and only 24.6 metres (80.7 feet) wide at sea level, making it impassable for many modern ships. It is currently of little economic importance and is mainly a tourist attraction.

The canal was initially proposed in classical times and a failed effort was made to build it in the 1st century AD.[4] Construction recommenced in 1881 but was hampered by geological and financial problems that bankrupted the original builders. It was completed in 1893, but, due to the canal’s narrowness, navigational problems, and periodic closures to repair landslides from its steep walls, it failed to attract the level of traffic expected by its operators.

Ancient Corinth
Corinth was a city-state (polis) on the Isthmus of Corinth, the narrow stretch of land that joins the Peloponnese to the mainland of Greece, roughly halfway between Athens and Sparta. The modern city of Corinth is located approximately 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) northeast of the ancient ruins. Since 1896, systematic archaeological investigations of the Corinth Excavations by the American School of Classical Studies at Athens have revealed large parts of the ancient city, and recent excavations conducted by the Greek Ministry of Culture have brought to light important new facets of antiquity.

For Christians, Corinth is well known from the two letters of Saint Paul in the New Testament, First and Second Corinthians. Corinth is also mentioned in the Acts of the Apostles as part of Paul the Apostle’s missionary travels. In addition, the second book of Pausanias’ Description of Greece is devoted to Corinth.

Ancient Corinth was one of the largest and most important cities of Greece, with a population of 90,000 in 400 BC. The Romans demolished Corinth in 146 BC, built a new city in its place in 44 BC, and later made it the provincial capital of Greece.

Loutraki
Loutraki is a seaside resort on the Gulf of Corinth, in Corinthia, Greece. It is located 81 kilometres (50 miles) west of Athens and 8 kilometres (5 miles) northeast of Corinth. Loutraki is the seat of the municipality Loutraki-Perachora-Agioi Theodoroi. The town is known for its vast natural springs and its therapeutic spas. There are many tourists who visit Loutraki every year (especially in summer) because of its crystal clear sea. The Casino of Loutraki has thousands of visitors every day.[citation needed] The population in 2011 was 11,654 people.

In antiquity a town called Thermae existed on the site. In 1847, an announcement in Italy asserting the therapeutic benefits of bathing in the natural thermal spas found in Loutraki caused an influx of settlers in the surrounding areas, thereby creating modern Loutraki. In 1928 Loutraki was completely destroyed by earthquake and rebuilt. A large park was created by reclaiming sea area using the rubble of the fallen houses. Another strong earthquake hit the area in 1981 with less destructive effects.

Kiato
Kiato is a town in the northern part of Corinthia in the Peloponnese, Greece. It is the seat of the municipality of Sikyona. Kiato is situated on the Gulf of Corinth, near the mouth of the river Asopos. It has much tourist activity mainly in the summer. The ancient city Sicyon was located 4 km southwest of present Kiato. Kiato is 4 km northwest of Velo, 13 km southeast of Xylokastro and 18 km northwest of Corinth. The Greek National Road 8A (Patras – Corinth – Athens) passes southwest of the town. It had a station on the now decommissioned Piraeus-Patras railway, and it is the western terminus of a Proastiakos (suburban railway) line to Athens. Public transit passengers traveling between Patras and Athens now switch between train and bus in Kiato.

Vrachati 
Vrachati is a beach town in the municipal unit of Vocha, Corinthia, Greece, population 3,338 (2011). It is located 12 km west of Corinth, and is a very popular destination for day trippers from Athens. Its beach has been awarded with the blue flag from the European Union. Vrachati is located on the Gulf of Corinth. The local economy is based on tourism and on the production of citrus fruits.

Xylokastro 
Xylokastro is a seaside town or village and a former municipality in Corinthia in the Peloponnese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Xylokastro-Evrostina, of which it is a unit or component. The municipal unit has an area of 310.252 km2. In 2011 its population was 5,715 for the town and 13,277 for the municipal unit.

Geographic features include a long 2 km beach and semi-arid forest on varied terrain, scattered with early churches and evidence of early settlements and religious sites. It has narrowly separated upper and lower coastal roads and forms a medium-sized touristic village on the Gulf of Corinth.

Lake Doxa
Lake Doxa is an artificial lake in western Corinthia, Greece. It is situated at an elevation of 900 m, in the municipal unit Feneos, near the village Archaia Feneos. Construction was completed in the late 1990s. It is fed and drained by the small river Doxa, which empties into the plain of Feneos. In the heart of the lake on a small peninsula features a small church of Agios Fanourios. The Saint George Monastery in Feneos was relocated to higher ground, north of the lake. The lake is surrounded by pine forests.