Kalamata in the Peloponnese Region - a Beach Town with a Brooklyn Hub

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We’ve made our way to Kalamata, another city in the Peloponnese region of Greece, about a two-hour drive from Nafplio. First impressions? It feels like a mix of Brooklyn, New Orleans, South Beach Miami, and Beverly Hills—a strange combination, I know!



Unlike Nafplio or Athens, the urban streets of Kalamata are wide, a more recent development that feels refreshingly familiar to an American. But that sense of spaciousness doesn’t last. Once you




leave the urban center and enter the residential neighborhoods—mostly beach towns lining the coast—the roads quickly revert to being incredibly narrow, winding beyond anything you can imagine, and at times, quite rough.

Kalamata’s street life has the energy of Brooklyn, but it’s dotted with charming, French-influenced two-story buildings featuring ornate wrought-iron balconies that evoke New Orleans. Our Airbnb is directly on the port, overlooking the water, surrounded by restaurants, shops, and a few small beaches. Just an eighth of a mile down the coast, the beach towns begin—each bursting with personality.

Some of these areas feel distinctly Beverly Hills: grand estates, sleek new buildings, and signs of serious money, all seamlessly mingled with crumbling old stone houses from traditional Greek villages. Somehow, it works.


Driving along the coast is an adventure in itself, with a mix of free beaches offering turquoise waters and pristine stone-and-sand entries, alongside more elaborate setups—rows of beach beds and loungers shaded by canopies, available to rent for about 10 euros a day.


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