In Vyzitsa the cars stay at the entrance to the village. From there on you walk: cobbled paths between high stone walls, wooden doors, courtyards with vine arbours, and above everything the grey slate roofs. It is one of the Pelion villages that has changed least.
The village
Vyzitsa lies on western Pelion, a little above Milies, on a slope looking towards the Pagasetic Gulf. It is a designated traditional settlement, and it shows: most houses keep the old Pelion form, with a stone ground floor and projecting wooden upper storeys.
Many are mansions of the 18th and 19th centuries, from the years when Pelion grew rich on trade and crafts. Quite a few are now guesthouses, so you can stay in one.
The square
Like almost every Pelion village, Vyzitsa has a square with big plane trees, a church and a coffee house or two. It is the place for a tsipouro with meze or a spoon sweet after a walk. In autumn, with the plane leaves falling on the paving, the square is one of the loveliest sights on the mountain.
Walking
Vyzitsa is a good starting point for footpaths. An old cobbled path links it to Milies, and the walk between the two villages is short and easy. Other paths go down towards the sea or up into the forest. Ask in the village about the state of the paths before you set off, because some close after heavy rain.
When to go
Vyzitsa is worth a visit in any season, but two moments stand out. October, when chestnuts fall on the cobbles and the chestnut trees around the village turn yellow. And December, when the fireplaces are lit in the guesthouses and smoke rises from the slate roofs. August weekends are busier, as all over Pelion.
Nearby
Milies, with the Pelion train and its library, is next door. Tsagkarada and the eastern side of the mountain are an hour's drive further on. A good day on western Pelion might be morning in Milies, midday in Vyzitsa and dusk by the sea at Kala Nera.
