Classical Greece private tour off the tourist routes 8 days

Upon your arrival, we will meet and transfer your to your hotel. If you like tonoght we can take you to a nice restaurant outside of Athens for dinner or to a restaurant in Plaka area to have dinner and enjoy a program with folk music and dances (food not included)

This tour gives you an opportunity to observe the striking contrasts that make Athens such a fascinating city. Our expert guides will take you to see the Panathenaic Stadium where the first Olympic Games of modern times were held in 1896 (shortstop).
Continue and pass by the Prime Minister’s residence (ex Royal Palace) guarded by the Euzones in their colourful uniform, the Temple of Olympian Zeus, the Hadrian’s Arch, the Parliament and the memorial to the Unknown Soldier, the Academy, the University, theNational Library, the Constitution Square (Syntagma). On the Acropolis visit the Architectural Masterpieces of the Golden Age of Athens: The Propylaea, the Temple of Athena Nike, the Erechtheion and finally “the harmony between material and spirit”, the monument that “puts an order in the mind”, the Parthenon.
Tour will end by visiting the Acropolis and the new Acropolis Museum, “State of the art” in museum construction and very rich in content.
Afternoon free to visit Plaka (The old Athens city) with lots of souvenir shops, restaurants and taverns.
Tonight we will take you to a restaurant with Greek popular music (the transportation is included but not the meal and the drinks)

Leave by the Coastal Road to the Corinth Canal (shortstop). Drive on and visit Epidaurus which was a small city in ancient Greece, at the Saronic Gulf. Reputed to be the birthplace of Apollo’s son Asclepius, the healer, Epidaurus was known for its sanctuary, the cult of Asclepius at Epidaurus is attested in the 6th century BC. as well as its theatre, which is once again in use today.
The Sanctuary of Asclepius at Epidaurus is a UNESCO world heritage site.
The theatre is marvelled for its exceptional acoustics, which permits almost perfect intelligibility of non-amplified spoken word from the proscenium or scene to all 15,000 spectators, regardless of their seating.
Then proceed to the Town of Nauplion, the first capital of Greece. We will see the Bourtzi and the Palamidi fortresses and then continue to Tripolis for a sort stop. We will visit the small towns of Levidi and Vytina and arrive in the village of Valtesiniko to visit the monastery of the assumption of Virgin Mary and the monastery of Saint Nicolas, used as a fortress during the Greek revolution of 1821. Overnight at Valtesiniko

After breakfast in the hotel, we will shoot the sunrise from the opposite mountain and leave for today’s trip. We will have a lot of drive through the forest, passing through the villages of Pirgaki and Elati and arrive in the famous Stemnita with a lot of stone houses with a special colour. Then we go to Dimitsana, a small town that stands on the top of a small hill, with nice houses and a special open-air Hydropower Museum which we will visit. We continue to Lagadia village, famous for its architecture, built on the slope of the mountain. We leave the village and drive from the mountains to the flat Ancient Olympia, the Cradle of the Olympic Games for overnight.

Olympia was a sanctuary of ancient Greece, known for having been the site of the Olympic Games in classical times, the most famous games in history.
The sanctuary, known as the Altis, consists of an unordered arrangement of various buildings. Enclosed within the temenos are the Temple of Hera (or Heraion/Heraeum) and Temple of Zeus, the Pelopion and the area of the altar, where the sacrifices were made. The Hippodrome and later stadium were also to the east.
To the north of the sanctuary can be found the Prytaneion and the Philippeion, as well as the array of treasuries representing the various city-states.
Olympia is also known for the gigantic ivory and gold statue of Zeus that used to stand there, sculpted by Pheidias, which was named one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World by Antipater of Sidon.
After the archaeological site, it is time for a modern famous Greek winery for inspection and wine tasting with Greek meze
Then drive on through the plains of Eliad and Achaia until the magnificent bridge which is crossing the Corinthian Bay from Rion to Antirion. Pass by the picturesque Towns of Nafpactos (Lepanto) and Itea, arrive in Delphi. Overnight in Delphi.

Delphi was the centre of Ancient World – the “Omphalos” (Navel of Earth) – whose prestige extended far beyond the boundaries of the Hellenic World.
On the slopes of Mount Parnassus, in a landscape of unparalleled beauty and majesty, lie the ruins of the Sanctuary of Apollo Pythios.
Visit the Treasury of the Athenians, the Temple of Apollo and the Museum containing such masterpieces of Ancient Greek sculpture as the bronze Charioteer and the famous athlete Aghias. Depart for Kalambaka, a small Town situated at the foot of the astonishing complex of Meteora, gigantic rocks.
Tonight we will take you to admire the sunset on the top of Meteora and then for dinner outside the city to a nice taverna to taste the local cuisine
Overnight in Kalambaka.

Meteora is one of the largest and most important complexes of Eastern Orthodox monasteries in Greece, second only to Mount Athos. Among striking scenery, perched on top of huge rocks which seem to be suspended in mid-air, stand ageless Monasteries, where you can see exquisite specimens of Byzantine art. The six monasteries are built on natural sandstone rock pillars, at the northwestern edge of the Plain of Thessaly near the Pineios river and the Pindus Mountains, in central Greece. The Meteora is included on the UNESCO World Heritage List. Return to Athens via Trikala, Lamia, Thermopylae (visit the Leonida’s monument). Arrive in Athens in the evening and transfer to your hotel.

According to your departure time, you will be transferred to the airport for your flights back home

To get more information and book this tour please use the below form

Related videos
Athens

Epidaurus

Nafplion

Ancient Olympia – Greece

Ancient Delphi

Meteora Monasteries