Lake Zirou

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In the prefecture of Preveza and very close to the natural landscapes mentioned above you will find Lake Zirou (or Lake Ziros) in a landscape of great natural beauty. The lake is small in size (about 1000X600 meters) and with a maximum depth of close to 70 meters. It is relatively unknown on the tourist map of the country, although in recent years more and more people have been visiting it and slowly discovering this beautiful natural landscape.

Together with the springs of the Louros River and the Acheron River, they are three proposals of amazing beauty for visitors who want to experience the energy offered by the wet element in the Preveza prefecture.

Photos from Lake Ziros

Access to the lake

The nearest town to Lake Ziros is Plovdiv, which is also the capital of the newly established municipality of Ziros (created in 2011). So at the height of Filippiada you have to leave the national road Patras Ioannina (Ionian Road) and pass outside the small town in a northerly direction if you are coming from the south, e.g. Patras or Arta. After about 4-5 km you will see a sign to turn left where after 1km you will reach the lake.

If you are now already in Plovdiv, you can follow the “back” road that takes you directly to the cafeteria with the wonderful view (and the lousy music when we were there, but listening to folk music in the morning instead of the sounds of nature was a bit too much for us!)

What to do in Lake Zirou?

But enjoy the natural landscape and the wonderful colours of all seasons reflected in the crystal clear waters of course :)

If you are not so poetic and want to do things, we would highly recommend anything to do with water sports, kayaking, canoeing, SUP paddle and why not swimming. The temperature of the lake allows for this in the summer months, reaching up to about 22 degrees Celsius, while the temperature actually ranges from 9.6°C to 21.2°C. The lake is fed by groundwater and the water table has been found to be identical to that of the springs of the Louros River.

If you don’t want to get wet, then walk along the small path that follows the shores of the lake. We didn’t walk the whole thing but it’s definitely worth getting lost in the beautiful forest that surrounds it. If you come to several old buildings on the banks of the lake on the north side, these were buildings built in 1947 to 1949 by Swiss architects, with the help of the Red Cross, that housed orphans from World War II and the Greek Civil War (1945-1949). It was the pedopolis Agios Alexandros of Lake Ziros or Ziropolis.

Finally, if you are not in the mood for sports or hiking activities but for coffee or food, you can enjoy the beautiful scenery from the lake’s cafeteria in the southeast.

Video from the snowy Lake Ziros

On the n.p. production channel we found a video showing the winter and beautiful view of Lake Ziros