Kartmania

In Vrachneika, in the coastal suburbs of Patras in the northern Peloponnese, Kartmania lays out one of the longest karting tracks in Greece: a thousand and twenty-five metres of open-air layout, nine metres wide, on petrol karts. Enough to drive fast and long, with room to string the corners together and try overtakes. You drive outdoors, facing the Ionian Sea, on a circuit built for speed lovers and group outings alike.

The length and width of the layout make it a generous playground, far from small urban tracks: you have time to find your feet, work on your lines and feel the kart slide through the fast curves. People come with family or friends for a few timed heats, in the easy-going mood of the Greek south-west. It is best to check the opening days and hours in advance, as the website is being rebuilt.

Patras is Greece's third city, a great port facing Italy and the gateway to the Peloponnese. It is known for its carnival, the largest in the country, and for the Rio-Antirrio bridge, one of the longest cable-stayed bridges in the world, which spans the Gulf of Corinth. Kartmania holds a prime spot for the region's motorsport fans, on one of the longest karting circuits in the country.