The Odyssey on the Greek island of Agistri

We are currently planning our fifth visit to the enchanting island of Agistri on the Saronic Gulf to read the classical literature of Greece and Rome. We will study Homer’s Odyssey and Virgil’s Aeneid, reading these extraordinary and enduring works in the midst of a land and seascape that can only enhance the experience. Check out our ‘Gallery’ page to see photos from our 2025 studies on the island.

In May 2026, we’ll be returning to our Greek home-from-home for the fifth year running, to study Homer’s Odyssey for one week. The Odyssey is a meditation on identity, homecoming and finding your place in the world. Full of complex relationships and people – including a wealth of female characters – the work considers the guest-host relationship and how we interact with difference. The story is also a collection of thrilling adventures featuring our ‘hero’ pitted against fantastical monsters, seductive sorcerers and the forces of nature. 

This year sees the publication of an extraordinary new translation of The Odyssey by Daniel Mendelsohn. This work is notable for the precision and care that Mendelsohn brings to his word choice and meter when translating the original Greek in order to maintain the subtlety, richness and nuance of the original.

Homer’s works form the foundation of Western civilisation, and their influence is still current in the modern world so, even on a first read, the characters, themes and events can feel familiar. While both works stand alone, if you’ve read the Iliad, you’ll find references to its themes and characters and endings for the stories of many of the key players. On the island, we’ll be reading Homer in the land where it was written and performed, and where the setting reflects and illuminates the beauty of the language and themes. Each year we find that studying as part of a residential group creates new, rich understandings and connections with both the work and each other. 

This will be the third time we embark on reading the vivid and gripping Odyssey on Agistri. Our study will use Homer’s epic poem to consider closely the guest-host relationship, the defining struggle of humans against overwhelming nature, the struggle to know ourselves in foreign spaces, our understanding of the heroic, and the role of myth and epic in lived experience.Facilitators for the study are Salon Director, Toby Brothers, together with Alison Cable and Susanna Taggart. Susanna, who combines her love of Ancient Greek literature with professional life as a clinical psychologist, will bring to the discussion thoughts about the psychological challenges of post-combat living for returning soldiers, their loved ones and communities. 

As a complement to the textual study, writer and facilitator Alison Cable will lead creative writing and off-loom weaving sessions inspired by Penelope, who weaves both as duty and as an act of quiet resistance. Participants will be invited to engage with The Odyssey in a layered, playful way—through hands-on, intuitive making with fibre, found materials and words. Writing will be sparked by poetry responding to The Odyssey and by Margaret Atwood’s novella The Penelopiad, which gives Penelope her own voice—not just as the faithful wife, but as a subtle subversive, spinning her version of events. Between the textual study, the weaving, the poetry and the retelling, we’ll have rich material to draw from when we put pen to paper ourselves.

The venue we have chosen for our stay on the beautiful and quiet island of Agistri is a small family-run hotel that is easily accessible (just one hour by ferry from Athens). It provides the perfect setting for our study, offering a relaxing atmosphere, excellent food and opportunities for additional cultural and recreational activities. As one former participant said: “The beauty and pleasure of the surroundings soothed my soul, leaving me feeling refreshed and connected to the literature and the group in ways I couldn’t have experienced at home.” Do come and join us!

JOINING DETAILS:

• Seven-day study of Homer’s Odyssey on the island of Agistri: 9-16 May 2026
• Facilitated by Toby Brothers, Alison Cable and Susanna Taggart
• Cost: £880 for the Salon study, to include a preparatory meeting in April (on Zoom, date to be confirmed), background materials and opening notes. Opening notes will be sent after registration.
• The study programme will run for four to five hours per day for five days, with one day left open and travel at each end. There will be time for other optional activities including kayaking adventures, a trip to the Temple of Aphaia on Aegina, or pure relaxation.
• Before you arrive on Agistri we will ask you to read Daniel Mendelsohn’s translation of The Odyssey (Penguin Classics, ISBN: 9780241733585). Ian McKellen’s audio reading of Robert Fagles’ translation is also a great way to experience The Odyssey that we recommend as preparation for the study.
• Payment: we ask for an initial (non-returnable) deposit of £50 on registration to secure your place using the booking form below. The balance of £830 will be payable by bank transfer (we will supply bank details), due by 31 January 2026.
• Refunds: please note that any refunds will be entirely at the discretion of the London Literary Salon, dependent on our ability to fill the place, and will be subject to a charge to cover our administration costs.
• Waiting list: if the study sells out early we will maintain a waiting list as we sometimes find that people have to withdraw for reasons beyond their control.

BOOKING & ENQUIRIES

To ask questions please email us at litsalon@gmail.com using ‘Agistri 2026 – Odyssey’ as the subject line.

ADDITIONAL COSTS TO BUDGET FOR

Room and half board (breakfast and dinner each day) will be arranged by each participant with the hotel and paid for directly to them. A deposit to cover two nights accommodation will be required by the hotel on booking. We will send you full contact details for payment on registration. We have set out the anticipated charges below, but these may be subject to change at the time of booking at the discretion of the hotel.

Accommodation prices per night at the hotel – Rosy’s Little Village – are estimated below on the basis of figures available in July 2025 but may be subect to change:

• Single – €80 per night plus half board (breakfast and dinner) estimated at €55 per day
• Double – €90 per night plus half board (breakfast and dinner) estimated at €55 per person per day
• Triple – €77 per night plus half board (breakfast and dinner) estimated at €55 per person per day
• Family room for two people – €100 per night plus half board (breakfast and dinner) estimated at €55 per person per day
• Family room for three people – €107 per night plus half board (breakfast and dinner) estimated at €55 per person per day

Please consider sharing accommodation with another participant as this helps us to ensure everyone can stay on site; double and triple rooms offer split levels and so allow sharers a significant degree of privacy.

Flights to Athens: when booking please make sure you can arrive in Piraeus by 15.00 local time on the first day of your study to catch the ferry. We will not be meeting formally on the final day of each study, so you have choices about your return (ferries are frequent and the travel time to Piraeus is one hour).

Ferry to Agistri: normally around €14 each way, but may be €30 for arrival if the group chooses to use a private water taxi.

Incidental expenses: drinks, lunches, extra trips etc.

Insurance: we hope this will be entirely redundant, but we ask you to arrange your own travel and health insurance to protect you in case of anything untoward happening. We will ask you for details of the insurance provider and reference number, as well as your mobile phone number and details of next of kin to add to our (confidential) records for use during the study.