Hotel’s Location
A 10 minute drive from the rafting’s starting point on the Arachthos river
The hotel is located in Kostitsi, a small village of Epirus, in the Northern part of Tzoumerka, Ioannina, Greece. It is within the National Park of Tzoumerka, a protected area of Europe, part of the EUROPARC Federation. Kostitsi, is 11 km. from both the Egnatia and Ionia Motorways and just a 25 minute drive from the centre of Ioannina, the city of Ali Pasha and its magnificent lake. It is also just a 10 minute drive, the closest you can get, from the starting point of the classic rafting experience one should not miss when visiting North Tzoumerka. Nearby are also the Elliniko village with its Byzantine Tsouka Monastery founded in 1190 and the “Theodoros Papagiannis” Museum of Contemporary Art. Hotel Princess Lanassa is easily accessed from the airports of Ioannina (IOA), Preveza-Aktion (PVK) and Thessalonica (SKG) as well as the port of Igoumenitsa.
Kostitsi’s View
A panoramic view of the Arachthos River Gorge
For a brief period, the village of Kostitsi was named Kallithea (Beautiful View) which is not surprising, as at a very short distance you can visit the chapel of Prophet Elias (950m) and enjoy the panoramic view of the Arachthos River Gorge and the Alp like mountains of Tzoumerka with the pyramid shaped peaks of Strongoula (2.100m) and Kakarditsa (2.429).
Kostitsi’s History
Kostitsi took its name from Kostas, the survivor of a terrible plague
The village of Kostitsi, first settled in the 17th century, is located at an altitude of 870m. Legend has it, that the village took its name from the survivor of the terrible plague which struck the area “Lati” and settlement “Latio” in 1740. Apparently, the area “Lati” took place just a bit further out from the current village’s location, above the main road which now takes you to the city of Ioannina (Epar. Od. Agnanton-Lazena) and the survivor’s name was “Kostas”.
Tradition meets History
Charming stone houses built by the renowned Tzoumerkan stone masons
The Tzoumerka Mountains, often sung about, are wild, abrupt, “proud” and their peaks remain snow-capped for most months of the year. They host dozens of villages, the architecture of which is rich in historical tradition. The stone buildings and lively cultural heritage invite you to the birthplace of countless artists and craftsmen. These stone masons who built the renowned arched bridges, churches and bell towers, stone mansions and dry stone walls have left their mark not only in Epirus but on all the villages and cities of Greece. They are the ones who, with the masters of Konitsa, “built the world”.
History of Epirus
The Ancient cradle of the Greek nation
Epirus is the ancient cradle of the Greek nation. The philosopher Aristotle, teacher of Alexander the Great wrote: “Ancient Greece is defined as the land around (the oracle of) Dodoni and (the river) Acheloos. It is inhabited by two tribes, the tribe of Selloi (Σελλοί) and the tribe with the ancient name Graekoi (Γραικοί), now called Hellenes (Έλληνες)”, (Aristotle, “Meteorika” ch.14). These two tribes gave Greece (Hellas) and its inhabitants Greeks (Hellenes), their name.
