Mount Pelion is straddling an inverted L-shaped peninsula whose length runs from north to south along the Aegean coastline of the Prefecture of Magnesia, which is located in the plain of Thessaly right in the heartland of Greece. The base of the peninsula turns in a right angle due west to embrace the Pagasitikos Gulf. Due to the fact that the mountain runs all along the peninsula, the term Pelion is also used for the peninsula itself. The north to south axis has a length of approximately 45 klm while the west to east axis ranges between 25 and 10 klm.

The main bulk of the mountain is in the north. Both the eastern and the western slopes are quite steep and as the highest peak is at an altitude of 1624 meters --5354 feet -- Pelion looks as if it is a great natural fortress rising straight to the sky. Toward the south the peaks lose height and the slopes become gentler. The awesome gorges, deep ravines and hidden valleys of the north give place to rolling hills and fairly low land that will soon start rising to a respectable yet not forbidding height as the traveller reaches the tip of the peninsula.

The gateway to Pelion is the fair city of Volos lying at the foot of north-west Pelion. It is the capital of Magnesia and the third most important port in Greece. Volos is 215 klm from Thessaloniki in the north, and 320 from Athens in the south. Access to the area is possible through the Nea Anhialos Airport, half an hour's drive from Volos, or via the airport on Skiathos island. If one could travel as the crow flies one would see that distances are not great in Pelion. However, due to the steep and often precipitous configuration of the ground, access to the north-eastern regions is possible only through a circuitous and tortuous road. Therefore, the average distance the traveller will have to cover from Volos to the north-east is 50 klm with an approximate travelling time of 75-90 minutes. To the south the distance is greater but the journey time is about the same. The duration of the trip increases by one third when one is heading for the tip of the peninsula.