Naufplion, Greece

Tour-Depart 8:30am/Return 7:00pm
Thursday departures on select dates.
Departures: Apr. – Oct. 2016,- Mon, Tues & Sat.
Nov. – Mar.-Every Mon.

DAY 1: Start from Athens and drive westwards along the scenic coast, stop for a short break at the Corinth Canal and enjoy the breathtaking views. The Corinth Canal is a junction of international sea transport that serves ships coming from the western Mediterranean and Adriatic en route to eastern Mediterranean and Black Sea ports and vice-versa.

Continue along the coastal road of the Saronic Gulf to Epidaurus. On the cape of “Nesi” at Palaia Epidaurus is the theater of the ancient city. The theater is quite well-preserved (Apart from a few rows of seats). The semicircular seating is made of limestone with poros staircases. The theater is marveled for its exceptional acoustics, which permits an almost perfect intelligibility of unamplified spoken word from the ancient stage to all 12,000 spectators, regardless of their seating.

Then depart for Nauplia, the first capital of Greece in 1829. Stop in the town for a short visit. Continue to Mycenae. Mycenae, ‘Rich in Gold’, was the kingdom of mythical Agamemnon, first sung by Homer in his epics, is the most important and richest palatial centre of the Late Bronze Age in Greece. Its name was given to one of the greatest civilizations of Greece; the Mycenaean civilization. In the afternoon depart for Olympia – Dinner & overnight in Olympia (D).

DAY 2: Olympia, the most celebrated sanctuary of ancient Greece, dedicated to Zeus, the father of the gods. Olympia sprawls over the southwest foot of Mount Kronios, at the point where the Alpheios and the Kladeos rivers meet. in a lush, green landscape. Although secluded near the west coast of the Peloponnese, Olympia became the most important religious and athletic centers in Greece. The site is famous for the Olympic Games. The greatest national festival and highly prestigious world-wide games were held every four years to honor Zeus. Visit the Archaeological site & the museum. After drive via Patras to Rios, across the channel to Antirrion. Cross the “State of the Art” new suspension bridge considered to be the longest and most modern in Europe. Drive through the town of Nafpatktos then continue to Delphi – Dinner & overnight in Delphi. (B, D).

DAY 3: At the foot of Mount Parnassos, within an angle formed by the twin rocks of the Phaedriades, lies the Pan-Hellenic sanctuary of Delphi, which had the most famous oracle of ancient Greece. Delphi was regarded as the center of the world. According to mythology, it is here that the two eagles sent out by Zeus from the ends of the universe to find the navel of the world met. The sanctuary of Delphi, set within a most spectacular landscape, was for many centuries the cultural and religious center and symbol of unity for the Hellenic world. It was the seat of the Pythian Games, the second most important games in Greece after the Olympics, which were held every four years.

Visit of the archaeological site and the museum. Among the many archeological treasures is the unique bronze statue of the Charioteer dedicated to Apollo by Polyzalos, the tyrant of Gela, in 478 B.C. when he won the chariot-race at the Pythian Games. This incomparable statue is an example of ”true” Attic style, the work of a major artist.

After, depart for Kalambaka. Stop for a short tour of the village.

Dinner & overnight in Kalambaka. (B, D)

DAY 4: Today, visit one of the most amazing places in Greece – Meteora!-Meaning ‘suspended in air’. The name Meteora soon came to encompass the entire rock community of 24 monasteries, the biggest and most important group of monasteries in Greece after those in Mount Athos There were no steps at the time and the main access to the monasteries was by means of a net that was hitched over a hook and hoisted up by rope and a hand cranked pulley. Monks descended in the nets or on retractable wooden ladders up to 130 feet long to the fertile valleys below to grow grapes, corn and potatoes. Each community developed its own resources and by the end of the 14th century, the Grand Meteoron emerged as the dominant community.
The rock monasteries have been named a world heritage site by UNESCO.

After, drive back to Athens, passing through, the ancient battle ground of Thermopylae and stop for some photos. (Date and time for the stop in Thermopylae is subject to change).

Depart
Some departures on Thursday 2016
Departures: Thur, Apr 21, May 12 & 26, June 09 & 23, July 21, Sept 1, 15 & 29

Depart Athens and visit the Corinth Canal. Drive to Epidaurus when you will visit the archaeological site and theater, famous for its remarkable acoustics. Continue to Nauplia for a short visit. Drive to Mycenae and visit the archaeological site. After depart for Olympia, through the central Peloponnese passing through the cities of Megaloposis and Triplosis, Arrive in Olympia. Dinner & overnight (D).

DAY 2: In the morning visit the archaeological site and the museum of Olympia. Drive via Patras to Rion, cross the channel to Antirion on the “state of the art” new suspended bridge, considered to be the longest and most modern in Europe. Pass through Nafpaktos and continue to Delphi. Dinner & overnight. (B, D).

DAY 3: In the morning, visit the archaeological site and the museum of Delphi. Rest of the day at leisure. Dinner & overnight in Delphi. (B, D).

DAY 4: In the morning, drive through drive through the central Greek towns of Amphissa, Lamia and Trikala to Kalambaka. Afternoon visit of the breathtaking Meoteras masteries. Dinner & overnight in Kalambaka. (B, D).

DAY 5: Drive through Trikala and Larissa and visit the famous, sacred Macedonian town of Dion. Then continue to Thessaloniki, the largest town in Northern Greece. Visit the most interesting museum of Thessaloniki and after enjoy a sightseeing tour of the city. Dinner & overnight (B, D).

DAY 6: Morning drive to Pella, capital of the ancient kingdom of Macedon during the time of Alexander the Great. Continue to Vergina to visit the Tomb of the King Philip and the famous ‘’Vergina Treasures”. Continue on to Lefkadia where to visit the excavations. Return to Thessalonika via Veria. Dinner & overnight (B, D).

DAY 7: Drive to Athens, pass through the Tempi Valley, Larissa, Lamia, Visit Thermopylae (famous for the ancient battle that took place there), Kamena Vourla, Athens (B).

Depart 8:45am/Return 7:00pm
Departures: Nov to Mar 2016-Every Monday
Apr. – Oct. 2016-Every Mon.,Tue.,&Sat. and Thurs (departure on select dates)

Day 1: Start from Athens and drive westwards along the scenic coast,stop for short break at the Corinth Canal and enjoy the breathtaking views.The Corinth Canal is a junction of international sea transport that serves ships coming from western Mediterranean and Adriatic en route the eastern Mediterranean and black sea ports and vice-versa.

Continue along the coastal road of the Saronic Gulf to Epidaurus. On the cape of “Nesi” at Palaia Epidaurus,the theater of the ancient city.The theater is quite well-preserved.(Apart from a few rows of seats).The semicircular seating is made of limestone with poros staircases.The theater is marveled for its exceptional acoustics, which permits an almost perfect intelligibility of amplified spoken word from ancient stage to all 12,000 spectators,regardless of their seating.

After depart for Nauplia, the first capital of Greece in 1829.Stop in the town for a short visit.After, visit Mycenae. Mycenae,”Rich in Gold”, was the kingdom of mythical Agamemnon,first sung by Homer in his epics,is the most important and richest palatial center of the Late Bronze Age in Greece.Its name was given to one of the greatest civilizations of Greece;the Mycenaean civilization.In the afternoon depart for Olympia-Dinner & overnight in Olympia (D).

Day 2: Olympia, the most celebrated sanctuary of ancient Greece, dedicated to Zeus,the father of the gods. Olympia sprawls over the southwest foot of Mount Kronios, at the point where the Alpheios and the Kladeos rivers meet in a lush, green landscape.Although secluded near the west coast of the Peloponnese, Olympia became the most important religious and athletic centers in Greece. The site is famous for the Olympic Games.The greatest national festival and highly prestigious world-wide games were held every four years to honor Zeus. Visit the archaeological site & the museum and then drive via Patras to Rios, across the channel to Antirrion. Cross the “State of the Art” new suspension bridge considered to be the longest and most modern in Europe. Drive through the town of Nafpatktos then continue to Delphi-Dinner & overnight in Delphi (B,D).

Day 3:At the foot of Mount Parnassos, with in an angle formed by the twin rocks of the Phaedriades, lies the Pan-Hellenic sanctuary of Delphi, which had the most famous oracle of ancient Greece. Delphi was regarded as the center of the world. According to mythology,it is here that the two eagles sent out by Zeus from the ends of the universe to find the navel of the world met.The sanctuary of Delphi.set within a most spectacular landscape, was for many centuries the cultural and religious center and symbol of unity for the Hellenic world.It was the seat of the Pythian Games,the second most important games in Greece after the Olympics, which was held every four years. Visit of the archaeological site and the museum.Among the many archaeological treasures is the unique bronze statue of the Charioteer dedicated to Apollo by Polyzalos, the tyrant of Gela, in 478 B.C. when he won the chariot-race at the Pythian Games.This incomparable statue is an example of the “true”Attic style, the work of a major artist.

After the tour, enjoy 2 hours at leisure to relax and explore,then drive back to Athens (B).

Depart 8:45am/Return 7:00pm
Departures: Apr. 1 – Oct. 31 2016-Every Tue., Wed., Thurs., & Sat.
Nov. 1 – Mar. 31 2016-Every Tue. & Sat.

Drive along the coastal road of the Saronic Gulf and visit Mycenae. Mycenae, “Rich in Gold”, the kingdom of mythical Agamemnon, first sung by Homer in his epic poems. Mycenae was the most important and richest palatial center of the Late Bronze Age in Greece. Its name was given to one of the greatest civilizations of Greece, the Mycenaean Civilization. Drive through Argos and on to Nauplia, the first capital of Greece in 1829. After lunch visit Epidaurus. On the cape of “Nesi” at Palaia Epidaurus is the theater of the ancient city. The theater is quite well-preserved (Apart from a few rows of seats). The semicircular seating is made of limestone with poros staircases.
Until now, nine sections containing eighteen rows of seats have been excavated and originally could accommodate about 2000 spectators. All the benches and thrones of the theater carry inscriptions with the names of the donors indicating a direct relationship of the monument with the cult of Dionysus.

The theater is marveled for its exceptional acoustics, which permits an almost perfect intelligibility of unamplified spoken word from the ancient stage to all 12,000 spectators, regardless of their seating.