"Olympia Private Tour" shore excursion from Katakolon
Private Olympia Tour: 4 hours min, 7 hours max
(Private Transportation + Private Guided Tour of Olympic Games Site + Private Guided Tour of the Archaeological Museum + Free time in Olympia)
An ideal way to visit Ancient Olympia. For couples, families or friends that want to travel individually we offer a high quality customized tour.
Your tour will include:
- Private transportation from Katakolon to Olympia and back by one of luxury type fully air-conditioned vehicles(private car, Mercedes minivan, Mercedes minibus, private coach). We use only experienced non smoking professional drivers.
- Private guided tour in Olympia by an officially licensed tour guide. By choosing to have a private tour you can either be escorted throughout by a licenced guide or be locally guided in Olympia.
- Free time in Olympia for a stroll around the modern village to enjoy local food, drinks and shopping.
Apart from the private guided tour of the Olympic Games site and museum you can prolong your tour and enhance your visit by choosing from the following suggestions.
Greek Dining Experience
Cooking for Greeks is a very important element of their culture and way of life. Using only the purest ingredients that the Olympian countryside has to offer we prepare for you homemade style Greek cuisine dishes in an all-you-can-eat buffet. Local house wine from biological cultivated grapes is included along with Greek coffee and dessert. A Greek Dining Experience as such will give you the opportunity to taste a variety of traditional greek cuisine recipes.
Wine Tasting
In the area surrounding Olympia there are many small wineries that produce famous labels of wines not only in the prefecture of Ilia but also in all of Greece. Relax and enjoy the view of the Olympian vineyards while having a glass of our wonderful wines with a gourmet platter of local food.
Home Meals
For small groups of people we suggest an alternative experience in dinning. Local families open their houses, offering their hospitality by cooking especially for you their traditional Greek Cuisine recipes. Such dishes pass from one generation to another, from mother to daughter.
By participating in the home meal experience you are given the unique opportunity to taste the original traditional dishes such as mousakas, rooster youvetsi, yemista, dakos salad etc. prepared by local housewives in their home environment.
Cooking Classes
There is an easy and fun way to enhance the experience of your visit to Olympia by learning how to cook traditional Greek recipes next to famous local restaurateurs.
Take some of their recipes back home by learning how to prepare them in our cooking class. Every participant is given a cookbook with the suggested recipes.
Making Soap
Extra virgin olive oil, produced in large quantities in the area of Ilia has been used for ages to produce soap in its purest form. Natural hand made therapeutic soap ideal for sensitive types of skin is produced in front of you by using local extra virgin olive oil.
Pure olive oil soap produces a very mild and creamy lather without large bubbles. It rejuvenates, moisturizes and keeps the skin soft and supple. Due to its high content of vitamin C it is ideal for young children and people with sensitive skin. In olive oil soap herbs and essential oils can be added to give even more therapeutic properties. It is the perfect soap for all skin types, for small and large babies.
Experience the olive oil soap making and take some of the purest soap ever made back home with you.
Ionian seaside
After you visit Olympia it only takes 30 min. to reach two of the most beautiful beaches in the area St. Andreas and Skafidia beach. The sandy beaches and the crystal clear waters of the Ionian Sea will help you to relax and have un unforgettable experience. Along the seafront there are beach bars serving Greek coffee, ouzo and traditional dishes. You can either swim and catch some sun on the sunbeds, or read a book, relax and admire the sea view in the shade.
Olive press
The harvesting of the olives and the production of the extra virgin olive oil takes place between November and January each year. If you are lucky to visit the area that period of the year you get to see the whole procedure of the production of olive oil by visiting an olive press. Even the rest of the year the press can be visited upon request so you can see the installations and hear how everything works by the olive press master. You will also taste the fresh olive oil with traditionally baked bread and oregano. Also olives and snacks of local products will be served.
Chlemoutsi Castle
Chelmoutsi castle, built in 1220 AD, stands on the summit of a hill on the westernmost headland of the Peloponnese. It is the most well preserved Frankish castle of the Peloponnese and consists of two enclosures. Inside the visitor can admire well-preserved building remains that belong to the original construction of the 13th century.
Monasteries
In the valley of Elis, 25 km from Olympia and 10 km from Katakolon, lies the monastery of Skafidia since the 10th century AD. Built as a fortress to be protected from the enemies through the years, it has a beautiful view of the Ionian sea.
Another important Orthodox monastery is Kremasti Panagia, halfway from Katakolon to Olympia. The monastery stands majestic and impresses with its volume as if suspended from the rock. From the balcony of the church the visitor can look down across the beauty of the land of Elis up to the forest of Foloi and the magnificence River of Erymanthos.
All shore excursions are guaranteed to return to the port in time so that there will be no chance of you not getting on board your cruise ship.