Insider journey through the mountainous landscape and idyllic coasts of the Peloponnese

The historic center is an open-air museum, yet the city’s cultural and social life takes place amid the ancient landmarks, merging the past with the present. The magnificent Acropolis rises above the sprawling metropolis and has stood witness to the city’s transformation. The group will meet and have dinner in a downtown Greek restaurant.

visit the Acropolis, and then you will head towards the new Acropolis museum, where you’ll see the treasures of the Acropolis. After lunch, you will take the scenic coastal road to Cape Sounio, which is the southernmost point of Attica. The Temple of Poseidon stands there, on a craggy spur that plunges 65m down to the sea. After a visit to the temple, you will return to Athens and have dinner there.

with balconies dripping with bougainvillea, elegant Venetian houses, handsome neoclassical mansions, enticing shops, restaurants, cafes and interesting museums. On our way there we will first visit the mighty ruins of World-Heritage listed Ancient Mycenae which stands at the barren foothills of two mountains. For 400 years this vestige of a kingdom was the most powerful in Greece and is synonymous with the names of Homer and Schliemann. And after lunch we will drive towards the Theater of Epidaurus, one of the best-preserved Classical Greek structures, renowned for its amazing acoustics. A coin dropped in the centre can be heard from the highest seat.

the Taygetos Mountains. It’s among the most important historical sites in the Pelopponese and here is where the Byzantine Empire’s richly artistic and intellectual culture made its last stand. We will visit the site, have lunch in the tiny village of Mystras and then we will drive towards Monemvasia where are we going to spend the night. Vast, imposing, spectacular Monemvasia rock is the Greek equivalent to Gibraltar and thus having the nickname Gibraltar of the East. This perfect fortress is an iceberg-like slab of rock moored off the coast, with sheer cliffs rising hundreds of meters from the sea. A medieval village is enclosed within the walls of the rock’s castle with narrow, cobbled streets, flanked by winding stairways that weave between a complex network of stone houses with walled gardens and courtyards.

of Monemvasia, out across the sea and deep into the mountains of the Mani peninsula. After lunch we will drive towards Mani region which is still one of the least visited areas in Greece and our guesthouse. To this day the architecture of the area is famed for the tower houses and fortified family dwellings from the period of the Ottoman occupation of Greece so in order to get a sense of this remote and haunting region we will spend two nights here, in one of the restored tower-houses.

Mani that many would-be occupiers opted in the end to leave them alone. The steep tumbling skirts of the Taygetos Mountains and the tiny coves and ports nestling beside them make for some memorably dramatic scenery. Dotted around the territory, you will find bizarre tower settlements that were built as refuges during clan wars from the 17th century onwards and as well as the towers, there are magnificent churches and caves. Today we will do a driving tour in the area and we will hike the path which leads to the cape Tenaron, one of Europe’s most southern points, towards a beautiful lighthouse.

were abandoned after an earthquake in4 BC and weren’t rediscovered until 1895. Speleologists have so far estimated the caves to be around 14km, tourists enter to 1.2km, the first 300m on foot and the remaining section by boat. After visiting the caves, we will drive towards Kardamyli, where are we going to spend the night. This tiny village has one of the prettiest settings in the Peloponnese, nestled between the blue waters of the Messinian Gulf and the Taygetos Mountains. In the afternoon we will hike from old Karamyli to a church in a hill upon the village with magnificent views to it.

streets, two castles and surrounding pine covered hills, Pylos is one of the most picturesque towns in the Peloponnese. In the afternoon we will go for a swim to Voidokilia beach, which is not only one of the most beautiful beaches in Greece, but maybe also in the Mediterranean Sea. The sheltered bay is referred to in Homer’s Odyssey and archaeologists believe it was used by King Nestor as a port in ancient times.

one of the highest concentrations of masterpieces from the ancient Greek world. In addition to temples, there are the remains of all the sports structures erected for the Olympic Games, which were held in Olympia every four years beginning in 776. Alongside with you guide you will visit the archeological site and the museum which is a must, as it has some of the most important works of Classical art such as the sculpted decoration of the temple of Zeus, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, the statue of Nike by Paionios and the famous Hermes of Praxiteles are major museum’s masterpieces. After visiting the site we will continue our drive towards the picturesque rural prefecture of Arkadia which occupies much of the central Peloponnese.

and shady grottoes. According to mythology, it was a favorite haunt of Pan. This is the heart of the Arkadia prefecture, and you’ll find it’s an area with some of the most breathtaking scenery in the Peloponnese. Hiking is a popular activity in these magnificent surroundings. There are some splendid walks along the Lousios Gorge, taking in monasteries including Prodromou and Philosophou and this is what are we going to experience today.

known for its wines since Mycenaean times when it was supplied the wine for the royal court at Mycenae. Following winery visit and lunch, we drive back to Athens and have our farewell dinner in a restaurant in Plaka area with traditional live Greek music.