A Patras itinerary: two days most people skip

Two days is generous and one is enough for most people. This plan is written for both. Everything else is in the Patras guide.

Day 1: the arcades, and the climb

The centre is laid out on a grid rising from the port, and its distinguishing feature is the arcades: long covered colonnades along the main streets, which make the city walkable in both sun and rain. That is a genuinely useful piece of urban design and it is the first thing to notice.

Walk up through them from the port. The grid climbs, so you gain height without noticing until you turn and see the gulf.

Above the city stands the castle, Byzantine on Roman foundations, with a park inside the walls and the whole gulf below. The climb from the centre is by a long stair, Agiou Nikolaou, which is a small event in itself and the best twenty minutes in Patras.

Come down for the evening. This is a university city and the squares are busy on a weekday night in a way that a resort town never is.

Day 2: the bridge, and the coast

West of the city, the Rio-Antirrio bridge crosses the mouth of the Gulf of Corinth on a run of cable-stayed spans, and it is one of the more impressive pieces of modern engineering in Greece.

You can drive it, which takes minutes, or look at it from the shore at Rio, which is the better use of the time. The old ferry still runs alongside for anyone who prefers the slow version.

Beyond that, the coast west and south of Patras has beaches and small towns, and the country inland climbs quickly into the mountains of Achaia, where the rack railway from Diakofto up the Vouraikos gorge is the outstanding half day in the region if you have the time.

The Italy ferry, and what to do with the wait

Most people are here for the boat. Two practical notes rather than a plan.

The port is a working freight and passenger terminal and it is not where you want to spend a spare afternoon, so leave the car and walk up into the arcades instead. And check-in for the Italy sailings is earlier than most travellers expect, so the useful hours are the ones before it rather than after.

If you are arriving from Italy instead, a night here before driving on is a much better start than a long drive off the boat.

How to adapt this

One night. The arcades and the castle stair. That is the essential Patras and it fits an evening.

With a car. The bridge, the coast and the rack railway inland all open up. The city itself walks.

During carnival. Patras holds the largest carnival in Greece, in the weeks before Lent, and the city is completely different then. Book far ahead if that is why you are coming.

As a Peloponnese entry point. It is the natural northern gateway, and the road south towards Kalamata and the west coast starts here. Athens to Patras covers the run across.

Where this leaves you

Two days in Patras: the arcaded grid and the castle stair on the first, the Rio-Antirrio bridge and the coast on the second. It is a working city rather than a sight, and the honest recommendation is one night rather than two unless you are here for the carnival or waiting on a boat. Walk up from the port rather than sitting in it.

Quick answers

Is Patras worth visiting?

For a night, yes, particularly if you are catching a ferry or arriving from Italy. The arcaded streets, the castle above the city and a genuinely busy university town are more than the port suggests, and it beats spending the evening in the terminal.

What is there to do in Patras?

Walk the arcades that run along the main streets, climb the Agiou Nikolaou stair to the Byzantine castle and its park, and see the Rio-Antirrio bridge west of the city. Inland, the rack railway up the Vouraikos gorge from Diakofto is the best half day in the region.

How long before an Italy ferry should you arrive?

Check-in for the Italy sailings is earlier than most travellers expect, so plan the day around the hours before it rather than assuming you can arrive close to departure. Confirm the current requirement with your operator.

When is the Patras carnival?

In the weeks before Lent. It is the largest carnival in Greece and it transforms the city. Book accommodation months ahead if the carnival is your reason for coming.