Greece Golden Circle! From Athens to Athens 10Days Private Land Tour

What's Included

Meeting and pickup

Itinerary

Day 1
Visit Corinth Canal,Ancient Corinth,Myceane,Epidaurus and overnight in Nauplion
5 stops
1
Depart from Athens and drive along the coast line until we reach the Corinth Canal where we will make a brief stop. The Corinth Canal connects the Gulf of Corinth with the Saronic Gulf in the Aegean Sea. It cuts through the narrow Isthmus of Corinth and separates the Peloponnese from the Greek mainland, arguably making the peninsula an island. ls considered one of the great engineering accomplishments of Greece. The canal was dug through the Isthmus at sea level and has no locks. It is 6.4 kilometres (4 mi) in length and only 21.4 metres (70 ft) wide at its base. The canal was constructed from 1880 to 1893, however, it is something that shipowners and captains had dreamed about for some 2000 years before it became a reality.
10 minutes • Admission ticket not included
2
Ancient Corinth's location was of great strategical and economic importance. It was located between the Saronic and the Corinthian gulf, in the narrow band of land which joins the central Greek land with Peloponnesus. In this way, it had the control of the ships which carried out the trade between eastern Greek and Italy, as well as the control of the entrance to Peloponnesus
2 hours • Admission ticket not included
3
Mycenae is a UNESCO World Heritage Site The Mycenaeans, was a civilization made up of herdsmen and warriors, prevailed in the south of Greece from approximately 1600 - 1100 BCE . Mycenae has been excavated by Heinrich Schliemann, who attempted to locate the legendary city of Troy and his led him to unearth a treasure trove of fortified palace complexes, burial tombs, and a cache of gold and bronze items comparable to the tomb of Tutankhamen
2 hours • Admission ticket not included
4
The ancient Theatre of Epidaurus dates back to 4th century BC and is one of the many UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Greece, but is undeniably unique for a multitude of reasons. It is argued that the Theatre of Epidaurus is the grandest and best preserved in all of Greece, For several centuries, the theatre of Epidaurus has been home to the theatrical arts, offering audiences ancient drama plays and comedies, as well as performances of opera, dance and classical music. The Asklepieion of Epidaurus as an important healing center, considered the cradle of medicinal arts and the mother sanctuary of the plethora of other Asklepieia that were built throughout the Hellenic world. The sanctuary of Epidaurus was named after the god of medicine, Asklepios, and pilgrims came from all over the Mediterranean seeking healing for their ailments through physical and spiritual means
2 hours • Admission ticket not included
5
Nauplion is divided into the old city with its neoclassic buildings, picturesque streets, middle age fountains and Constitution Square. Was the capital of the newly formed Greek state from 1828 to 1834, when this role passed to Athens. It is a colourful town with culture, history and natural beauty.
1 hour • Admission ticket free
Day 2
Visit Sparta/Mystras, overnight in Sparta
2 stops
6
Mystras is UNESCOs World Heritage site! Mystras, the ‘wonder of the Morea’, lies in the southeast of the Peloponnese. The town developed down the hillside from the fortress built in 1249 by the prince of Achaia, William II of Villehardouin, at the top of a 620 m high hill overlooking Sparta. Like a replica in miniature of the majestic form of Mt. Taygetos, Mystras rises above the verdant valley of Eurotas and is the best-preserved example of medieval walled town in the Greek region, is today a standing ghost city that fascinates the modern traveler with its castle, churches and the palatial complex of the ruling Byzantine dynasty, bearing witness to its bygone greatness
3 hours • Admission ticket not included
7
The Museum of the Olive and Greek Olive Oil in the Peloponnesian city of Sparta offers fascinating insights into the history of olive cultivation and olive oil production in Greece from prehistoric times to the early 20th century, from their roles in mythology, religion and the economy to art, culture and cuisine.
1 hour • Admission ticket not included
Day 3
Visit Monemvasia - Water Caves Diros, overnight in Monemvasia
2 stops
8
Built on a rock accessible only through a causeway, the castle of Monemvasia was populated around the 6th century A.D. by the Laconians, in order to protect themselves from the Arabic invasions. They constructed the first wooden, moveable bridge that linked the rock to the shore. The castle was named after this bridge, as “Monemvasia” means “single entrance”. The castle experienced a radical growth during the Byzantine Period from the 12th until the 14th century, and it was then when the finest byzantine churches that decorate the island were built.
3 hours • Admission ticket not included
9
The spectacular cave complex of Diros in the Peloponnese offers visitors the opportunity to travel back to the Neolithic era and even further. It is not just the drop in temperature that gives you the chills as you descend underground to start the 40-minute boat tour of Vlychada, the biggest cave of the Diros complex. It is the beautiful and dramatic formations of stalactites and stalagmites, formed millions of years ago, when the sea, located just a few meters away, started to rise and formed the lake we see today. It is the excitement of not knowing what can be hiding in the darkness beyond the illuminated 1.5k route, and the realization of the sheer size of this underground miracle of nature: a series of vast caverns stretching 15k into the rock, with 2,800 waterways – and this is only what we know of so far.
1 hour • Admission ticket not included
Day 4
Visit Temple of Apollo Epikourios- Olympia, overnight in Olympia
2 stops
10
This famous temple to the god of healing and the sun was built towards the middle of the 5th century B.C. in the lonely heights of the Arcadian mountains. The temple, which has the oldest Corinthian capital yet found, combines the Archaic style and the serenity of the Doric style with some daring architectural features. Is an exceptionally large, well-preserved and mysterious Classical temple.
1 hour • Admission ticket not included
11
Visit the Archaeological Site with Temples of Zeus and Hera and the Ancient Olympic Stadium, where the First Olympic Games in 776 B.C. were held. Visit the New Archaeological Museum of Olympia and see among others the Sculpture Masterpieces of Hermes by Praxitelis and the Nike (Victory) by Paionios.
3 hours • Admission ticket not included
Day 5
Visit Delphi, overnight in Delphi
1 stop
12
Delphi is a UNESCO World Heritage Site! Welcome to the grandeur of Delphi, where nature and ancient ruins blend in an extraordinary way, enhancing the beauty of one another against a setting of mountains, terraces and trees. Located on the slopes of Mount Parnassos, hundreds of feet above the sea, it is easy to see why Delphi was once believed to be the center of the earth. Before you reach the archaeological site of Delphi and its Museum, a short stop at the traditional picturesque village of Arachova is a must! Take your chance to lay back and listen to your driver as he ,on the way to your destination, he tells you the fascinating history of the Sanctuary of Apollo, the paved Sacred Way, and the Doric temple of Apollo. Admire the Theatre and the Stadium, used for the main events of the Pythian Festival, located on terraces above the Temple. To the right of the entrance to the Sanctuary is the Kastalian Fountain, where Pythia washed before speaking her prophecies. Across and below the road from the Spring you will find the Marmaria or Sanctuary of Athena Pronaia, with the conspicuous building of Tholos.
3 hours • Admission ticket not included
Day 6
Visit Meteora , overnight in Meteora
1 stop
13
Meteora
The UNESCO World Heritage Site Meteora consists of a group of monasteries built on rocky spires in northwestern Thessaly. The monasteries are ‘floating in the air’, as its name means, on a series of spectacular outcrops of this region that are as much as 400 meters high. They are formed of eroded conglomerate and riddled with caves that provided shelter for the hermits who first settled there. Meteora is now the biggest and most important group of monasteries in Greece after those in Mount Athos. While monasteries in Meteora are first attested in the early 14th century, its history can be traced back to the 11th century when monks first settled there. Its sublime beauty cannot be conveyed in words or pictures. The soaring monoliths of more than four hundred metres in height seem to have been expressly created by God for the bold ascetics who would seek the ideal place in this tranquil setting to devote themselves wholly to prayer.
5 hours • Admission ticket not included
Day 7
Visit Dion‎, overnight in Thessaloniki
1 stop
14
The Archaeological Park of Dion is the most important archaeological site at Mount Olympus in Greece. The park has an area of 150 hectares, of which nearly 50 hectares belong to the urban area and 50 hectares to the sanctuaries. The other area has not yet been explored archaeologically. In the former urban area residential buildings, a market square, public buildings, churches, bathhouses, shops, workshops and toilets have been found. The sanctuaries, the theaters and the cemetery are located outside the city
3 hours • Admission ticket not included
Day 8
Visit Vergina- Pella, overnight in Thessaloniki
2 stops
15
Vergina is best known as the site of ancient Aigai, the first capital of Macedon. It was there when in 336 BC Philip II was assassinated in the theatre and Alexander the Great was proclaimed king.The excavation unearthed the burial sites of many kings of Macedon, including the tomb of Philip II, father of Alexander the Great, which, unlike so many other tombs, had not been disturbed or looted. It is also the site of an extensive royal palace. The archaeological museum of Vergina was built to house all the artifacts found at the site and is one of the most important museums in Greece. Aigai has been awarded UNESCO World Heritage Site status as "an exceptional testimony to a significant development in European civilization, at the transition from classical city-state to the imperial structure of the Hellenistic period.
2 hours • Admission ticket not included
16
Pella, ancient capital of King Archelaus of Macedonia at the end of the 5th century BC and birthplace of Alexander the Great. Best known as the historical capital of the ancient Greek kingdom of Macedon. At the site can be found ruins of the ancient town, Macedonian graves and, in the archaeological museum one can see interesting exhibits of sculptures of the classic and Hellenistic eras, magnificent mosaic floors, pottery, figurines and jewellery.
2 hours • Admission ticket not included
Day 9
Visit Philippi- Kavala and overnight in Thessaloniki
2 stops
17
The remains of this walled city lie at the foot of an acropolis in north-eastern Greece, on the ancient route linking Europe and Asia, the Via Egnatia. Founded in 356 BC by the Macedonian King Philip II, the city developed as a “small Rome” with the establishment of the Roman Empire in the decades following the Battle of Philippi, in 42 BCE. The vibrant Hellenistic city of Philip II, of which the walls and their gates, the theatre and the funerary heroon (temple) are to be seen, was supplemented with Roman public buildings such as the Forum and a monumental terrace with temples to its north. Later the city became a centre of the Christian faith following the visit of the Apostle Paul in 49-50 CE. The remains of its basilicas constitute an exceptional testimony to the early establishment of Christianity.
2 hours • Admission ticket not included
18
Its geographical location, its natural port and its adjacency with gold-bearing Mt Pangaion make Kavala one of the oldest coastal towns, with its traces being lost in the mists of prehistory. It was to this town that the Apostle Paul came to teach the message of Christianity for the first time in Europe in 49 AD.
2 hours • Admission ticket not included
Day 10
Visit Thessaloniki and return back to Athens
3 stops
19
The Archaeological Museum of Thessaloniki It holds and interprets artifacts from the Prehistoric, Archaic, Classical, Hellenistic and Roman periods, mostly from the city of Thessaloniki but also from the region of Macedonia in general.
2 hours • Admission ticket not included
20
The Rotunda of Galerius is 125m northeast of the Arch of Galerius. It is also known (by its consecration and use) as the Greek Orthodox Church of Agios Georgios, and is informally called the Church of the Rotunda (or simply The Rotunda). The cylindrical structure was built in 306 AD on the orders of the tetrarch Galerius, who was thought to have intended it to be his mausoleum. It was more likely intended as a temple; it is not known to what god it would have been dedicated, probably Zeus. The Rotunda has a diameter of 24.5 m. The walls are interrupted by eight rectangular bays, with the west bay forming the entrance. A flat brick dome, 30 m high at the peak, crowns the cylindrical structure. In its original design, the dome of the Rotunda had an oculus, as does the Pantheon in Rome.
1 hour • Admission ticket not included
21
Thermopylae is a place in Greece where a narrow coastal passage existed in antiquity. It derives its name from its hot sulphur springs.The Hot Gates is "the place of hot springs" Thermopylae is world-famous for the battle that took place there between the Greek forces (notably the Spartans) and the invading Persian forces, commemorated by Simonides in the famous epitaph, "Go tell the Spartans, stranger passing by, That here obedient to their laws we lie." Thermopylae is the only land route large enough to bear any significant traffic between Lokris and Thessaly. This passage from north to south along the east coast of the Balkan peninsula requires use of the pass and for this reason Thermopylae has been the site of several battles.
30 minutes • Admission ticket not included

Additional info

• Wheelchair accessible
• Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
• Specialized infant seats are available
• Suitable for all physical fitness levels
• Transport is wheelchair accessible however be prepared for uneven surfaces at the sites visited which may be difficult for those with walking disabilities or using a wheelchair
• Infant seats are available on request if advised at time of booking

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