Train to Olympia????

[mountainmare]

Okay---don't get excited I'm just passing on what I just read.

On tripadvisor someone just reported that they just got back from a cruise and there was a brand new train that ran from Katakolon to Olympia. It was down the end of the street past the shops.

Does anyone know about this?

I can't find anything on any tourist sites.

[agabbymama]

Okay---don't get excited I'm just passing on what I just read.

On tripadvisor someone just reported that they just got back from a cruise and there was a brand new train that ran from Katakolon to Olympia. It was down the end of the street past the shops.

Does anyone know about this?

I can't find anything on any tourist sites.

 

I did a search and can't find anything other than a reference to a train with freight yards. Nothing for passengers. It would be a nice idea.

[Twiga]

I just looked at the website for the Greek train system OSE and there was a news release saying that they just started a train route from Katakolon to Pirgos (or Pyrgos) to Olympia in June. There was no timetable yet as Katakolon was not on the list of railway stations. See http://www.ose.gr/ecportal.asp?id=1270&nt=18&lang=2

 

On the map, Pirgos is about 1/3 of the way from Katakolon to Olympia. According to the train schedule, the trip from Pirgos to Olympia is about 20-27 minutes and costs .70 Euro one way. If anyone has taken this train please post your comments. I would like to know how long it took, whether it was very crowded, and if you had any trouble getting the train back to Katakolon. I will be there in Septemebr 2007. Thanks!

[mountainmare]

This does sound promising!!! I'll keep checking tripadvisor and see if the poster comes back with more information. She said that the fare was somewhere arounf 1 euro. We will be there in early March, I hope others report back on what they find.

Otherwise we'll rent a car.

[jhaymes]

I saw the same post on trip advisor, and would be very interested in any additional information that is found. My search did not turn up anything more. This would be a wonderful option in a port that seems to have limited reasonably priced transportation to Olympia.

[mountainmare]

New from tripadvisor.

Train

Katakolon-Olympia

Train 382 8:36D 9:17A

Train 1386 11:00D 11:52A

Train 1388 12:52D 13:41A

Train 1390 14:51D 15:38A

 

Olympia-Katakolon

Train 1381 7:30D 8:19A

Train 1383 9:22D 10:08A

Train 387 11:57D 12:39A

Train 1389 13:46D 14:32A

Train 1391 15:42D 16:30A

The poster had e-mailed the Greek rail system for the info.

I would suggest that if you are going to use the train that you e-mail for your travel times (ie off season or on a weekend).

 

Unfortunately for us we are arriving on a Monday when the museum isn't open until 12:30--our ship is in port 12-6 so we're back to the renting a car plan.

I have read that cabs are 120 euro for the trip, if someone returns please report back if this is the case.

Thanks.

[sunraiser]

Mountainmare,

 

Thank you very much for your info. We will be there in 2 weeks. This is the best option than get a cab to Olympia. Deeply appreciated for your afford!!!

[Joystick]

I will be very interested in the train going from Katakolon to Olympia. If anyone has any information on its schedule it would be much appreciated. Thankyou in advance!

[Coreopsis]

is this the same train?

 

http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/08/26/europe/EU-GEN-Greece-Train-Fire.php

 

Doesn't look this is related to the other fire problems. So horrible to see the devastation caused by the fires.

[Steamboatin]

We just returned a week ago from a Trafaglar Best of Greece escorted land tour that went to Olympia. We slept over night there. Was not looking for a train or train tracks but did not see any.

 

Point of interest to anyone interested in catching a train from a ship to see the ruins at Olympia and return to the ship the same day. The ruins at Olympia are on relative flat ground and easy to walk. The area of the ruins covers a large amount of ground and is a very interesting sight. HOWEVER, without a guide to us it would be just a pile of rocks, columns, the track, and one building. The museum is very nice as well.

 

To really enjoy the sight like we did we spent approximately 3 1/2 to 4 hours touring the site and the museum with an excellent tour guide.

 

On our 8 day land trip and 4 day cruise of the Greek Islands it would rank probably as number 3 as being the best ruins we visited.

 

CAUTION: This is if you are leaving in the immediate near future only. Be aware of the current forest fire problem in Greece at this time. The train and you may be delayed because of a fire and thus miss your ship. Just a warning to be aware of.

[Steamboatin]

COPPER 10-8 (A CC POSTER) JUST POSTED THE BELOW INFO ON ANOTHER THREAD.

THOUGHT YOU ALL MAY BE INTERESTED.

GOOD WORK COPPER 10-8 !!!!!

FYI for those who have been at Katakolon, Greece:

 

Greek fires kill 58 and lick ancient Olympia ruins

By Vassilis Triandafyllou 1 hour, 45 minutes ago

 

 

 

ANCIENT OLYMPIA, Greece (Reuters) - Firefighters rescued the marble temples and stadiums of ancient Olympia from raging flames on Sunday but forest fires ravaged nearby villages and the death toll from Greece's three-day inferno rose to 58. The Greek government offered rewards of up to a million euros ($1.36 million) for help in tracking down arsonists who it suggests have played a major role in Greece's worst forest fires in decades.

 

Thick black smoke billowed over the preserved ruins of Olympia, site of the first Olympic Games, on Greece's Peloponnese peninsula. Slowly, the blaze crept up a hillside, engulfing surrounding pine and cypress woods.

"With self sacrifice, firefighters fought 'trench battles' to rescue these sensitive and important sites," Public Order Minister Byron Polydoras told reporters.

 

The fires scorched the yard of the museum, housing a number of famous classical sculptures such as Hermes by Praxiteles, but planes, helicopters and scores of firefighters fought it back. Ancient Olympia, which hosted the Olympics for centuries from 776 BC, is the site of an Olympic flame ceremony every two years.

 

"Here it is, the contrast: ancient Greece gave the world civilization and modern Greece gives it destruction," a resident of ancient Olympia told Alter TV station. Since Friday, towering walls of flame have cut a swathe of destruction through the southern Peloponnese peninsula and swept across other regions, prompting Greece to declare a nationwide state of emergency on Saturday. Firefighters and planes from other European Union countries have joined the battle. The fires have covered Athens in white ash, forced thousands to flee their villages and burned about 500 homes and thousands of hectares of forest and farmland.

[Coreopsis]

My heart breaks for all these people - so much history and artifacts at risk. I suspect my visit next week may be rerouted - but I hope others will still go since they rely very heavily on tourism $$.

 

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070827/ap_on_re_eu/greece_fires

[mochuck]

No wonder people are dying. I saw footage of people fighting fires without any protective gear on at all. I actually saw a guy trying to put out a fire with a hose from a fire truck and he had no shirt on!:eek: