An unforgettable place for anyone who visits, due to the lovely view of the Prespa lakes and the wild boars that are bred there.
Nestled on the slopes of mount Varnounta, at 1,044 m – at a location known as Kaleto – Antartiko is one of the villages at the highest altitude in an area known for its mountains. It’s 29 km away from Florina, on the road to Kristalopigi, an easy drive of less than half an hour.
Antartiko has a significant history and was a blooming trading centre, as well as a famous resting location for the travellers in the wider area. Today it’s a small village with 84 permanent residents (according to the 2011 census). The first settlement seems to have been founded at about 1800 and was called Zelovo, a name of Slavic origin. Many of the area’s fields were chifliks, belonging to Turkish Beys, until they were bought by the locals in 1909, just before the Balkan Wars, after which Zelovo became part of Greece.
The village played an important role during the Macedonian Struggle, being the base of the Greek chieftains Efthimios Karidis and Pavlos Kyros, as well as the target of the Bulgarian Komitadji, who tried to take it over (1904) but were heroically pushed back at such a fierce battle that the Ottoman army had to intervene. In 1927, when the Greek government changed the Slavic toponyms, they wanted to honour this past and so they named Zelovo Antartiko (Antartis in Greek means rebel).
Up until the Civil War, there were about 2,500 residents, but the village gradually declined as many emigrated. In fact, in Canada there is a Macedonian Association with people from Antartiko with a few thousand members.
Where to stay
Even though it’s located in area that welcomes crowds throughout the year, Antartiko remains unexplored. However, it does have the facilities that will ensure that you have everything you need if you choose to stay there when exploring the surrounding area or if you just want to enjoy the mountain’s calm.
Villa Rosa is a family-run business on the main road that offers rooms with a fireplace. If you like hunting and fishing, the owners are glad to share local “secrets” with you.
The only other accommodation choice is the guesthouse Frida, another great option, where you can also buy honey and/or great legumes (Prespa gigantes beans, chickpeas, papouda beans etc) that the owners grow and produce.
Where to have coffee and food
Even though Antartiko has a few good choices, don’t expect anything too fancy.
In the winter, a popular choice for a coffee or a drink is the two large halls of Frida guesthouse, in front of the fireplace, or alternatively, Villa Rosa’s bar. There’s a café-tavern, “O Neromilos”, at the watermill, where you can have a coffee, or lunch with tsipouro (traditional pomace raki) and meze, or even steaks.
In terms of food, the Villa Rosa restaurant is the protagonist in Antartiko. Their specialty is the roast boar with potatoes (though they also serve boar in tomato sauce). The boars are grown at the family farm which you can visit.
4 things worth doing in Antartiko
A walk around the village
Antartiko is a listed traditional settlement and its size is ideal for exploring it on foot and admiring the brick buildings and the old mansions. The latter stand out due to the traditional architecture and their well-kept gardens that prove a glorious past, when the village was an important village in the area, while the many abandoned houses, especially near the edge of the village, before the road that leads to Kristalopigi, show that the population used to be much larger.
The surrounding nature is also lovely, since the village stands among dense beech and oak forests, while there is also rich wildlife (deer, bears, wolves, hares etc). The river Ladopotamos or Zelovitis – a tributary of Aliakmonas river, with scenic banks covered in willow and hazelnut trees– is nearby, while 7 km outside Antartiko you can reach the gorgeous spot of the Pelior spring.
If you go on a hike in the wider area, you’ll also see the bridges (all of them restored) while at the location Exohika you can see a stone fount that has been there since 1934.
Visit the church of Agios Athanasios
A church of great architectural interest, Agios Athanasios is a three-aisled basilica built in 1882, with a beautiful hayati (traditional covered mezzanine) and an elaborate interior. The wooden altar is original and has been there since 1882. Every year, on May 2nd, a festival is held here, and people from all over the wider area come to participate.
Visit the old watermill
A typical example of the everyday life of the past, Antartiko’s watermill has been standing there for 110 years. Today it’s a sight you can visit, while it also houses a photograph exhibition that’s worth seeing.
See the Prespa lakes from Pervali
You’ll have to leave the village to get to the location Pervali (the locals will gladly show you the way), towards the Mikri Prespa, but the trip will reward you, since Antartiko’s elevation gives it a magnificent view of the two Prespa lakes.
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