Dilofo
Dilofo is a mountainous village in the prefecture of Ioannina and belongs to the complex of Zagorochoria Epirus. Built 900 meters above sea level. Dilofo belongs to the municipality of Zagori . It is 32 km from Ioannina. The car ban through the settlement has helped significantly to maintain the traditional character. The characterisation of the village as traditional and preserved has strengthened its unchanged nature and allowed restoration and reconstruction of old buildings by using the same stones and same historic architecture.
The oldest name of the village until 1920 was Sopetseli or So(m)potseli, a name which in Slavic means “land of many waters”.
Dilofo is one of the best preserved villages of Zagoria. It is a typical example Zagorian architecture, as all the buildings are made from local slate and for this reason the village has been declared a traditional settlement and preserved. The village traditional character is formed by stone fountains, cobbled streets, small churches and mansions, among which the highest house in Zagoria, 13.5 meters high, the Makropoulos mansion. According to tradition, the son of a wealthy Zagorian married a girl from the neighbouring village Koukouli (Cocoon). When settled in the house of the groom in Dilofo, the girl expressed nostalgia for her village. Her loving husband built the towering mansion so that she can gaze her village from its higher floors.
History
The settlement dates back to 540, when the Slavs invaded Epirus and the inhabitants of Pitourniou moved to the area where today stands Dilofo. Later, residents of another nearby village with the name Zlarovo then moved to Sopotseli(Dilofo), maybe in 1583.
In 1870, the village had 550 inhabitants and a Greek school and later two, one female and one male. However, plagued by raids and robberies its population decreased. In 1940 it had 140 inhabitants.
Environmental Policies
It is important to emphasize the importance of conservation of the site with respect to the flora and fauna of the area.
The hostel has now in its premises energy efficient wood burning fireplaces.
A major difference, between the conventional and the energy efficient fireplaces, is that the burning of the wood is in sealed metal boxes designed to fit inside masonry fireplace openings. They use outside air for combustion and are designed to circulate warm inside air.
Move around by bicycle!
The reason we offer this service is because, apart from a good exercise, we consider it important for the environment! The less you use your car, the more you protect the environment!
Use always a waste bin or dumpster !
We are quite sensitive to this, since we now know how bad it is for the environment! Let’s protect this place and the animals of the region that get entangled in the garbage we leave behind us!
The settlement is preserved!
Traditional villages are considered the settlements that have kept intact the image of its past as well as their local character. The specified by statute traditional settlements in Greece are about 830 designated by the Ministry’s responsibility.
It is important to maintain the architecture of Dilofo! The more careful we are the more drops of history we reserve!