Argos
Argos (Greek: Άργος) is a city in the Peloponnese, Greece. It's one of the most ancient settlements in Europe still inhabited.
Understand
Argos is the seat of the municipality of Argos-Mykines and the largest city of the Argolis regional unit, with about 22,200 population. The emblem from the ancient times is the wolf. At first it stood in the Aspis hill which can be seen on the southwest from the Larissa castle, next to the mostly dry Xerias river. It is the economic center of the region, and the largest city of Argolis prefecture by a large margin, almost having the double population of the first capital of Greece and prefectural capital, Nafplio.
Get in
By car
From Athens the trip is about 1 hour and 40 minutes by car (138 km), and from Nafplio about 15 minutes (11 km). There are two public parking areas near the town centre, which can be found by following the signs while entering the town. One is at Emmanouil Rousou street (behind Dimokratias square) and the other is at Agiou Konstantinou street. There are also some taxis available for hire, stationed in Saint Peter's square.
By bus
You can use a long-distance KTEL bus from Athens (which costs around 11,80 euros with discounts for students and some other categories) or via the Isthmos Bus Terminal of Corinth, if you are coming from Patras. There's also the local KTEL bus from Nafplio, for €1.6 (20 minutes).
By train
Since January 2011, train services to Argos were suspended and it is unclear when they will return. The nearest city with passenger services is Corinth.
Get around
There are 4 taxi ranks in the city: at the bus station, at the Agios Petros square, at the Dimokratias square (or Laiki Agora) and at the hospital. However, the city is well-organised and navigable for a newcomer.
See
- The archeological sites of ancient Argos, which include an ancient theatre.
- Town's monastery of Panagia Katakekrymeni.
- The medieval Larissa castle over the town, accessible from the hill's west side.
- The Saint Peter's square is the central square of the city. You can enjoy the view of the Cathedral, you can see the old town hall (whose balcony is open 24/7, something that enables you to take high quality photographs facing the town square but also get a view of the nearby area) and many other places. After the 2014-2016 renovation of central Argos, the square was expanded, and now includes a pedestrian bridge and an artificial lake right next to the Cathedral.
- Archeological Museum of Argos (closed due to renovations as of March 2021).
- Byzantine Museum of Argolida (within the Kapodistrias Barracks).
Do
The most activity goes around the town centre, which is the two big squares of Saint Peter, with the church on it and Dimokratias, with the flea market every Wednesday and Saturday. Another known part of the centre is the pedestrian roads ("pezodromoi" as called in Greek), which are the streets of Eleftheriou Venizelou, Panagi Tsaldari and Mihail Stamou.
Most shops, cafes and restaurants are nearby the town centre.
Go next
- Nafplio to the southeast
- the archeological site of Tiryns towards Nafplio
- the archeological site of Mycenae to the north
- the pyramid of Elliniko to the southwest