Nature/ ≈ 20 min from the villas
Butterfly Valley
A cool ravine of streams and bridges, and thousands of summer moths.
Petaloudes, the Valley of the Butterflies, is a narrow green ravine in the hills inland from the airport. A path climbs beside a stream, over wooden bridges and past small waterfalls, under trees that keep it cool even in August.
The butterflies
They're actually Jersey tiger moths. From around June to September they gather here in their thousands, drawn by the scent of the oriental sweetgum trees. At rest they're brown and cream; in flight they flash red.
Good to know
- July and August are the best months to see them
- Keep your voice down and don't clap or shake branches; disturbing the moths costs them energy they need
- The path carries on uphill to the 18th-century Kalopetra monastery
- There's an entrance fee
