Argolis - Olympia - Delphi 3 day private tour
Athens - Corinth - Mycenae - Epidaurus - Nafplion - Olympia - Delphi - Athens
Day 1: Your 3 day tour will start with the drive through the National Highway to Peloponnese. A stop will be made by the famous Corinthian Canal or else Isthmus that separates the Peloponnese from the Greek mainland, for pictures and coffee. Your journey will continue with a 40 min. scenic drive along the coast of the Saronic Gulf. Reaching Epidaurus you will have a private tour of the spiritual sanctuary of Asclepius and the theatre with the most famous acoustic in the world. Leaving ancient Epidaurus we will continue with the drive to Nafplion, a picturesque sea port town on the Argolic Gulf. This was the first capital of modern Greece. It’s a city with beautiful monuments and neoclassical buildings as well as two famous forts Palamidi and Bourtzi which seats in an island opposite the port. We will be able to stroll around, take pictures and have lunch in the “shade” of the tall neoclassical buildings next to Sydagma square. Continuing our journey in the afternoon we will also drive and visit Mycenae, the centre of power in the late Bronze Age till 11th century BC. There lies the famous Lions Gate and the Acropolis where Agamemnon was murdered by his wife Clytemnestra and that is where will be able to explore all of its pathways. Leaving the Acropolis we will also make a short stop by the treasury of Atreus also known as a tomb of Agamemnon. Afterwards, you will take the road to Olympia where you will arrive approximately 8pm and spend the night.
Day 2: After having breakfast, you will enjoy a 2.5 hour private tour through the site-birthplace of the Olympic Games, where still lie the ancient gymnasiums, the temple of Zeus and Hera and the stadium. A few meters away from the site is where you will visit one of the most impressive museums in the world, since it houses the originals pediments of the temple of Zeus and Hermes by Praxiteles. Then we will start the drive back to Athens through the large and lush valley of Ellis. Along the way we will pass the city of Patras and we will then cross one of the largest suspension bridges in the world that connects the mainland to the Peloponnese. We can then have a short coffee stop in the historical city by the sea called Nafpaktos in the waters of which the famous battle of Lepando was fought. The rest of our drive will be absolutely impressive since we will be taking the coastal road having the sea on one side and the mountains of the Greek mainland on the other. We will also pass by some of the most beautiful fishing villages of the Corinthian golf and cross the largest olive grow in Greece next to the city of Itea, before we start our windy drive, up to mount Parnassus. In the elevation of 600 meters (1800 feet) are built both the ancient century and the modern town of Delphi. Overnight stay in the small town of Delphi with the amazing view down to the valley and sea.
Day 3: After having breakfast you will enjoy a private guided tour through the museum where the famous bronze charioteer is kept, the Sphinx and other well preserved statues and artifacts. You will also be guided at the site where you will see the ancient treasury houses, the temple of Apollo, oracle, the theatre and the stadium. On the way down you can also have time by the Castalia spring, the gymnasiums and the temple of Athena Pronaia. Afterwards, driving back to Athens we will stop in the picturesque village of Arachova which is famous for the hand woven flokati rugs. Also, if time permits, a stop can be made at the Osios Loukas monastery, a UNESCO monument dating back to the 10th century. Along the way we will also pass the city of Thebes famous for Oedipus and the battle of Plataea as well as the area of Marathon where the other famous battle of the Medic war was fought in 490BC. Soon after that we will arrive back to Athens and drop you off at the hotel or airport.