The Arcadian Ideal: Living Close to Nature at MANNA Arcadia

At MANNA, your first connection with the forest begins with a spa treatment inspired by Anna Mela, the woman who first made this mountain a place of retreat. A warm towel scented with fir wraps around your feet as a cool stone from the Arcadian mountains rests in your hands, followed by a deeply relaxing massage and warm, cocooning body wrap. Emerge slowly. Step into the sauna among the trees, sink into the cave pool or find a fireside corner and do very little at all.

As morning light filters through the firs, set out with a local mountain guide and Bianca, a Lagotto Romagnolo trained to find wild truffles beneath the forest floor. Follow the Mylaon River through the trees as your guide introduces the mushrooms, herbs and seasonal life of the forest, while Bianca picks up the scent. Follow her lead when she finds something, then finish the walk with a delicious tasting of fresh truffle.

Step behind the scenes of MANNA’s restaurant for private time with the chef. Discover the wild mushrooms found across this part of Arcadia through one of the hotel’s signature dishes, mushroom kritharoto. Learn about the different varieties and how they’re used, then pick up a knife and cook together. Gather around the stove as the dish slowly comes together, before taking a seat to enjoy what you’ve made.

At a small agro-tourism farm in the Arcadian mountains, spend time with a local herbalist discovering the plants that grow here and the uses passed down with them. Gather seasonal herbs and watch as they are distilled, learning how their natural oils are extracted before taking part in preparing an essential oil of your own: the scent of the Arcadian mountains captured in a bottle to take home with you.

At Arcadiani, a mountain farm devoted to preserving the food traditions of Arcadia, gather what’s ready from the garden before joining a local mother in the outdoor kitchen. Knead bread, prepare vegetables and tend the wood-fired oven, then sit down together over the lunch you’ve helped prepare. The conversation, stories and time around the table are as much a part of the experience as the cooking itself.

Your journey closes with a day in the Lousios Gorge. Follow an old path with your guide through the forest, across the river and up towards the monasteries of Philosophou and Prodromou, the latter clinging almost impossibly to the rock face. Step inside for centuries-old frescoes and a traditional welcome from the monks, then continue towards the river. After hours on foot, peel off your walking boots and slip into one of the clear, cold pools of the Lousios. Few things feel better than mountain water on tired legs.

Between adventures, MANNA draws you back to the mountain sanctuary: a sauna among the firs, a swim in the cave pool, long dinners and fireside corners. These unhurried hours become part of the journey too, a counterpoint to days spent out on foot. There’s a particular pleasure in coming in from the wild, tired, hungry and ready for dinner.

For centuries, the Arcadian Ideal has imagined a good life shaped by nature, simplicity and the pleasures of the everyday. After a few days living closer to the land, it’s easy to understand its enduring pull. Perhaps Arcadia was never really about imagining a perfect life. Perhaps its appeal lies in something much simpler: keeping the things that make life feel naturally good close at hand.