Hooked on Classics: the Cool Way to Camp in Delphi by Richard Waters

You think Greece: you imagine whitewashed harbours, crates spilling with freshly-caught squid and octopus; old people sat somnolent in doorways decked in black. Then maybe you think of the Gods - the wellspring of the Greek psyche and possible catalyst for its greatness and lofty ambition dating back three thousand years. That's why I trade you the charms of the sea for an ocean of olive trees, above which lies the Bond villain's eyrie of Chrissa Camping.
   
With its geometrically-Seventies design, you half expect a safari-besuited Roger Moore to appear. In all my travels across Greece researching Cool Camping Europe, nowhere did I find such dramatic, vermilion sunsets as here. More importantly, you're a spit from one of Greece's most important historical sights; the sacred oracle of Delphi guided the Spartans to Thermopylae, Heracles to his labours, and just about every other major decision effected by Greece in early western history.

It's a beautiful little gem of a town, precariously hanging to the side of the mountain, its streets scattered with aromatic kafenions, earthy restaurants (Epikouros Restaurant serves up wild boar) and shops crammed with handsome-browed Verdi Gris Gods. They seem to watch you at every turn - none more so than in the fantastical ruins where the air crackles with mythology.
   
On a quiet, cool morning after a dip in Chrissa Camping's swimming pool, thread your way through cypress trees to the laurel bush where Apollo himself made his home. His temple is so intact it gave me goose pimples; I half-expected King Leonidas to wander by. Alternatively, head here toward dusk after taking an ice cream at the excellent museum; the ruins are more animated in the honey light, the air adance with bees and the smell of thyme.
   
The campsite is pretty marvellous too with a number of Serengetti-style family huts and mountain cabins. And though the tent pitches may be harder than a Minotaur's hoof, the restaurant with its magnificent view and earthy cuisine is both romantic and uplifting. But if you're really missing the sea it's only 10 miles away across the olive groves in nearby Itea. Bucket and spade? Ye gods!