Rooms

Within the confines of a medium-sized Ottoman townhouse, the Rittas and Zannis families have done their best at packing in 7 tastefully decorated bedrooms and a breakfast room. The bedrooms come in pastel shades of green, peach or magnolia, with very comfy twin- or double beds (though a little narrow for couples, perhaps), neatly painted ceilings and wooden floors. Floral drapes and rustic, distressed wood bedside furniture add a pretty, feminine touch. There's air-con, TVs and WiFi, too.

In the compact, marble-tiled bathrooms you'll find excellent, glass-walled showers with reliably hot water, good pressure and detachable shower head; plus hairdryer, towel rail and the standard sachets of shampoo and gel.

The 4 rooms off the first floor landing-salon are higher and more spacious, with tall wooden doors and windows looking onto either the city walls or the hotel courtyard. The largest can sleep three, thanks to an additional single bed alongside the double. The 3 ground floor rooms are darker and slightly smaller, with compact shower cubicles and mullioned windows opening onto a courtyard of red and white potted geraniums, or onto the carpark outside. Avoid these 3 if possible.

Features include:

• Air conditioning
• Central heating
• Cots Available
• TV

Eating

The hotel can serve you a simple breakfast of bread, cake, orange juice, jams, hot drinks and – a nod, perhaps, to the Dutch and German hikers who pass through here on their way into the Pindos mountains – cold meats and cheeses. Other than that, you’ll have to wander into town for lunch and dinner – no hardship, given the abundance and variety of tavernas, cafes and restaurants.

Our favourite restaurant is Es Aei, a converted Ottoman residence with a delightful glass-covered, fountain-cooled inner court. A truly unusual selection of salads, starters and cooked dishes from around the Ottoman empire graces their menu: Cretan rusks with cottage cheese; fresh orange salad with potatoes, herbs and olives from the Mani; crunchy chick-pea balls from Sifnos; and, even though they use tinned ingredients for this, irresistible spicy grilled mushrooms. Their home-bottled Zitsa white wine is among the crispest we tasted, and excellent value.

Other recommended options include Stoa Louli, a bustling arcade in the Jewish quarter serving stylish modern Greek cuisine, somewhat overpriced wines and, in the separate gallery bar, cocktails until the small hours.

At the molos – the quay for the little passenger boats to Nisaki island – you’ll find a buzzing, shady piazza of tavernas serving everything from breaded frogs legs to burgers. Just along the lakefront is a booming waterside café from where you can observe trendily-clad university students from behind a ‘frappé’ coffee and a cloud of Assos and Karelia smoke.

Features include:

• Breakfast
• Restaurants nearby
• Room service

Activities

• Explore the city’s walled fortress, its converted mosques and the museums of folklore and Byzantine history detailing, among other things, Ali Pasha's gruesome death.
  
  
• Take a shuttle boat across the lake to the laid-back fishermen's island of Nisaki; visit frescoed chapels and graceful monasteries from the 16th-18th centuries, wander the car-free cobbled lanes, taste eels and frogs from the lake if you're feeling brave
  
  
• Ioannina has some excellent silver and jewellery outlets - its historic trading forte - as well as decent leather, fabric and clothes shops (but don’t expect Armani)
  
  
• Don't miss the ancient Greek theatre and oracle-site of Dodona, nestling in a mountain-ringed valley half an hour outside town; you'll need a car (or a friendly taxi driver), but it's one of our favourite classical sites in the whole country, and you might even have it to yourself
  
  
• Greek history buffs can head half an hour outside town to the moderately amusing waxwork collection of Pavlos Vrellis
  
  
• Wake yourself up with a day’s rafting along the Arachthos river gorge, or kayaking through the spectacular Voidomatis river
  
  
• Be guided through the dark world of the Perama caves, one of the mythical entrances to Hades
  
  
• Drive along the 1600-metre Katara (‘accursed’) road pass and up to Metsovo, a handsome mountain village of stone houses and black-clad elders gazing wrily at the ski-fashionistas from Athens
  
  
• Look for brown bears in the forested Valia Calda valley, spot eagles and orchids in the Zagori National Park, or hike through the breathtaking Vikos gorge (just about feasible as a day trip from Ioannina if you start very early and arrange transport both ends).

Activities on site or nearby include:

• Boat trips
• Fishing
• Hiking
• Historical sites
• Museums / galleries
• Shopping / markets

Kids

Children are welcome, but no special concessions are made for them - although under 2s are free in the cot provided. A couple of rooms can sleep a child plus parents, some rooms have a folding bed, and there is an extra cost per additional person.

Family friendly accommodation:

The Triple Room and Superior Room are perfect for families as they both have extra beds.

Cots Available, Extra Beds Available

For more family-friendly places, see our Kids Collection

Location

Hotel Castro is in the historic citadel of Ioannina, which is a small city in the region of Epirus (Ipiros) in northwest mainland Greece. Most people fly here from Athens, or come overland from Preveza or Corfu (both about 2 hours).

By Air
Either fly into Athens (550km) and then take a domestic flight to Ioannina (45 mins flight). Or fly into Preveza (110km - restricted flights). It is also possible to fly into Corfu and catch the ferry and bus to Ioannina (about 2 hours). Click on the links below for a list of airlines.

From the Airport
From Ioannina airport take a taxi or hire a car to the hotel (5km/10mins); from Preveza get a bus or drive to Ioannina (2 hrs).

By Car
For hire cars see our car rental recommendations.

Detailed directions to the hotel itself will be sent when you confirm your booking.

More on getting to Greece and getting around.