A Preveza food tour walks you through the old town of Preveza for pies, coffee, ouzo and the seafood of the Ambracian Gulf. Find more food walks in Epirus and beyond on Greece Tours.
Read on for the walks on sale, every stop, the gulf’s seafood, the drinks, the town’s past, who the walk suits, how to prepare and the questions guests ask.
What is a Preveza food tour?
A Preveza food tour is a guided walk through the old town of Preveza with stops for pies, coffee, local products, ouzo, seafood and homemade ice cream. A local guide leads it, and the route ends at a seafood tavern.
Preveza is a city in Epirus, in north-western Greece. It stands on the northern side of the mouth of the Ambracian Gulf, where the gulf opens into the Ionian Sea. Today it is a commercial harbour and a tourist hub, with a marina, museums, tavernas and cafes.
The town’s food comes from its position between two seas. Gastronomy Tours, a Greek food travel site, describes Preveza as a city where the Ionian Sea meets the Ambracian Gulf. The gulf’s fish, shrimp and lagoon products shape the local table, and a Preveza food tour tastes them at the source.
The bookable walks come from Epirus Adventures, a tour operator for Epirus and mainland Greece. The company started in 2018 with day trips to Zagori, Tzoumerka and Metsovo. It sells its Preveza food tour through Discover Greece and Gastronomy Tours, and GetYourGuide lists a private walk with the same mix of coffee, ouzo and seafood. Our Preveza tours page covers the rest of the town and region.
Which Preveza food tour can you book?
GetYourGuide lists a 3-hour private food and culture walking tour of Preveza, and a 1-hour wine tasting in the town. Discover Greece and Gastronomy Tours sell the same walk in a small group of up to 6 people.
The GetYourGuide Preveza food tour is called “Preveza: Private Food and Culture Walking Tour”. It promises coffee in a traditional cafe, time with the locals, ouzo in the alleys and seafood such as octopus. The listing gives 3 hours and runs as a private group. Cancellation is free, and bookings close 8 hours before the start.
Gastronomy Tours offers the walk as semi-private or private. It lists a walking distance of 2.2 km, an easy level and a maximum of 6 people. Children from 2 years old can join, with at least 2 adults in the group. Its version also includes a short cooking experience making a traditional pie.
The Discover Greece listing adds the practical details. A local English-speaking guide leads the walk, and an escort-driver comes with the tour. Hotel transfers are not included. The walk does not finish at its starting point, and the guide gives directions for the way back.
For wine, GetYourGuide lists “Preveza: Wine tasting”. It introduces native Greek wine varieties in a 1-hour session. It runs as a private group, is wheelchair accessible and needs booking 10 hours in advance. It pairs well with a Preveza food tour on the same day.
Which stops does the Preveza food tour make?
The Preveza food tour starts at Androutsos square with breakfast pies, stops for coffee at Saitan Pazar, visits a delicatessen and a family ouzo maker, and ends at a seafood tavern with homemade ice cream.
The walk begins in Androutsos central square, the main square of Preveza. A few metres away, the group tries the traditional pies that locals prefer for breakfast. From there, the route enters the narrow alleys of the old town, past walls covered in bougainvillea.
The second stop is Saitan Pazar, a historic spot with traditional cafes. The group takes coffee here among the locals. The guide uses the break to tell the history of the town through the people who live in it.
A delicatessen comes next on the Preveza food tour. Here the group samples the local products of the area. A short walk then leads to a family shop that has made ouzo and other drinks in the town for 70 years. The operator says four generations of the same family have run it.
The last stop is the tavern of Dimitris, a friend of the guides. The table fills with the seafood of the Ambracian Gulf: shrimp, grilled octopus and fish dishes cooked the traditional way. The meal ends with ice cream made from pure local ingredients by the same family.
Gastronomy Tours lists what the Preveza food tour includes:
- behind-the-scenes access at some of the venues
- samplings of seafood and drinks
- a local ouzo and liqueur tasting
- a short cooking experience with a traditional pie
- umbrellas for rainy weather
Why does Ambracian Gulf seafood lead a Preveza food tour?
The Ambracian Gulf is a large, sheltered gulf fed by two rivers, which keeps its water warmer and fresher than the open sea. It is rich in grey mullet, sole and eel, and famous for its large local shrimp, called gabari.
Measuring roughly 40 by 15 km, it is one of the biggest enclosed bodies of water on the Greek coast. Its only entrance is a channel 700 metres wide between Aktio to the south and Preveza to the north. The town of Preveza therefore guards the door to the whole gulf.
Two rivers, the Louros and the Arachthos, drain into the gulf. Their fresh water keeps it warmer and fresher than the Ionian, and a current flows out from the gulf into the sea. These waters hold the fish and shellfish that end up on a Preveza food tour.
The gulf’s shrimp is the local star. The large shrimp known in Greek as gabari is the variety that made the gulf famous. Scientists have studied the breeding of the Karamote shrimp, Penaeus kerathurus, in these same waters. On the tour, the shrimp appears at the tavern stop beside the octopus.
The gulf is protected for its wildlife too. It became a Ramsar wetland of international importance in 1975 and is one of the national parks of Greece. Dolphins and sea turtles visit its waters, and its lagoons draw birds such as pelicans and flamingos. Our Preveza dolphin watching cruise page covers trips to see them.
What drinks come with a Preveza food tour?
The Preveza food tour pours ouzo and liqueurs from a family distiller in the town, with coffee at a traditional cafe earlier in the walk. A separate 1-hour tasting in Preveza covers native Greek wines.
The ouzo stop is the drinks highlight of the walk. The shop sits in the alleys of the old town and has made ouzo and other drinks in Preveza for 70 years. The guides pair the ouzo with seafood, as the operator’s description of the walk promises.
The same family makes liqueurs as well. Guests on a Preveza food tour taste them at the same stop and hear about a business run by four generations of one family. Gastronomy Tours lists the ouzo and liqueur tasting among the fixed inclusions of the walk.
Tsipouro is the other strong spirit of the region. This clear, un-aged Greek brandy comes from Epirus as well as Thessaly and Macedonia, and its strength runs from 40 to 45% alcohol. It comes in two styles, plain and flavoured with anise, the second a newer style from the 1900s. Ask the guide whether the family shop makes it too.
Wine has its own tasting in the town. The GetYourGuide wine tasting in Preveza lasts 1 hour and presents native Greek wine varieties. It is wheelchair accessible and private, so it fits before or after a Preveza food tour on a single day.
What history does a Preveza food tour tell?
The guide covers the history of Preveza and of ancient Nikopolis, the city that Augustus built near Preveza after the Battle of Actium. Nikopolis lies 7 km north of the modern town.
The story starts at sea. On 2 September 31 BC, the Battle of Actium was fought in the Ionian Sea near the mouth of the gulf. The forces of Octavian defeated those of Mark Antony and Queen Cleopatra of Egypt. Octavian, later the emperor Augustus, then founded Nikopolis, the “City of Victory”, to mark the win.
Nikopolis became a large city. At its peak, it is believed to have held some 150,000 people. In AD 90, the philosopher Epictetus arrived there after the emperor Domitian banished him, and he founded a school of philosophy in the city. Our Nikopolis tour page covers the ruins in detail.
Modern Preveza is younger than its neighbour. The Ottomans refounded the town around 1477 and strengthened its walls in 1495. In 1538, the Battle of Preveza was fought in the same gulf, when the Ottoman admiral Hayreddin Barbarossa defeated the Holy League fleet under Andrea Doria.
The guides tell this past through the town’s daily life. At Saitan Pazar, guests talk with locals about how the town grew. A Preveza food tour mixes these stories with the stops, so the history arrives between plates rather than in a museum.
Who suits a Preveza food tour?
A Preveza food tour suits food lovers, history fans and families with children aged 2 and up. The walk is easy, covers about 2.2 km and keeps groups to 6 people at most, with private options for couples and friends.
The pace is gentle. Gastronomy Tours rates the walk as easy, over a distance of 2.2 km, with stops along the way. That suits travellers of most ages who walk comfortably for a few hours in town. The GetYourGuide version runs for 3 hours.
Families can join with young children. Gastronomy Tours accepts children from 2 years old, with at least 2 adults in each group that brings children. The ice cream at the end of the Preveza food tour gives younger guests a stop of their own.
The group stays small. The Discover Greece and Gastronomy Tours versions keep to a maximum of 6 guests, and the private format keeps the walk for your own party alone. Gastronomy Tours describes its guests as foodies, history lovers and travellers who want to discover the city through its flavours.
The walk runs all year. Gastronomy Tours lists the tour as active in every month, from January to December. The operator supplies umbrellas on rainy days, and in summer guests bring hats and sunscreen for the walk between stops.
How do you prepare for a Preveza food tour?
Arrive 10 minutes before the start at Androutsos square, bring a hat and sunscreen in summer and come hungry. Book ahead, since the Discover Greece version refunds in full only on cancellations 5 or more days before.
The meeting point is Androutsos central square in the centre of Preveza. Discover Greece asks guests to arrive 10 minutes early. The listed length is approximate, so allow some spare time after the walk. The tour ends away from the square, and the guide explains the way back.
Cancellation terms differ between sellers. On the Discover Greece listing, the operator refunds in full for cancellations 5 or more days before the private experience. Cancellations 3 to 4 days before get a 50% refund, and later ones get none. The GetYourGuide Preveza food tour allows free cancellation under its own terms.
Come hungry. The walk serves breakfast pies, deli tastings, ouzo with seafood, a tavern meal of shrimp, octopus and fish, and ice cream to finish. Tell the operator about any food allergies when you book, so the stops can be planned around them.
How do you reach Preveza for a food tour?
Aktion National Airport serves Preveza and the island of Lefkada. An undersea road tunnel links Preveza with Aktio across the mouth of the gulf, which shortens the drive to Lefkada and the south.
Flights land at Aktion National Airport, just across the gulf mouth from the town. The airport also serves Lefkada, a major holiday island close by. Our Preveza airport transfers page covers the ride into town.
The Aktio-Preveza Immersed Tunnel is the only undersea tunnel in Greece. It opened in 2002 and links Preveza with Aktio, on the southern shore of the gulf. For a region long seen as remote, it cut the journey to Lefkada sharply.
Visitors staying on Lefkada can join a Preveza food tour as a half-day trip across the tunnel. Visitors on the Epirus coast to the north reach the town by road. Our Parga food tour page covers a similar walk further up the coast.
What other food experiences pair with a Preveza food tour?
The same operator runs a fishing trip with a cooking class from Preveza, and Gastronomy Tours lists a beekeeping and honey tasting near the town. Further inland, the operator offers food tours in Ioannina and Metsovo and a truffle hunt in Zagori.
The fishing trip keeps the sea theme of a Preveza food tour. Gastronomy Tours lists it as “Preveza Fishing Adventure with Cooking Experience”, from the same provider as the food walk. Its title pairs a fishing trip on the water with a cooking session.
Honey adds a sweet stop. The “Vasiliko Meli Beekeeping and Honey Tasting Experience in Preveza” appears among the nearby activities on Gastronomy Tours. It shows how bees are kept and lets guests taste the honey of the area.
The operator’s roots lie in the mountains of Epirus. Its other food trips include an Ioannina food and culture tour, with or without a cooking class, a Metsovo food and culture tour with wine tasting and an East Zagori truffle hunt with cooking. Our Metsovo tours page covers the mountain town and its cheeses.
These trips suit a longer stay in Epirus. Start with a Preveza food tour on the coast, then head inland for the mountain cooking of Metsovo and Zagori on the following days.
What do travellers ask about a Preveza food tour?
How long is a Preveza food tour?
The GetYourGuide Preveza food tour lasts 3 hours. The walk covers about 2.2 km, from Androutsos square to the tavern stop.
What seafood do you taste on a Preveza food tour?
The tavern stop serves Ambracian Gulf shrimp, grilled octopus and fish dishes cooked the traditional way.
Can children join a Preveza food tour?
Yes. Gastronomy Tours accepts children from 2 years old, with at least 2 adults in the group.
Is the Preveza food tour private?
The GetYourGuide version runs as a private group. Gastronomy Tours offers both semi-private and private formats, with up to 6 guests.