Alternative Grand Historic experience (1-3 pax)

Visit Mycenae, the mythical citadel and
UNESCO World Heritage Site linked to the Homer’s epics the Iliad and the
Odyssey, which dates back to as many as 4,000 years ago.

Discover the charming coastal town of Nafplio,
visit a loom weaver and try your skills in a ceramics workshop.

Explore Ancient Olympia, visit a
countryside honey bee farm and go onto an excavation simulation.

Admire ancient Greece’s most sacred site, the Oracle of Delphi, discover a beautiful abandoned village and watch one of the last tanners and bellmakers of Greece at work.

Embark on an off-road adventure to reach a
wonderful natural site with a hidden waterfall,
where you’ll have a swim and a
specially cooked Greek lunch just for you.

Discover local Greek life in the South,
through different generations of people who open their homes and workshops.

Day 1: Mycenae &
Nafplio tour

The
fabled Homeric city of Mycenae, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and capital of one of the
oldest civilizations in the world, is where you’ll start your adventure into
antiquity, by walking under the famed Lion Gate into ruins that are part
history, part myth. While you’ll be literally walking in the steps of King
Agamemnon, your expert guide will reveal every story, myth and legend that hide
behind the imposing ruins of the citadel.

After
visiting the site of Mycenae, you’ll then head towards the historic seaside
city of Nafplio, where a scrumptious lunch awaits you in one of
the best tavernas in town only locals know of. This romantic, picturesque town,
the old capital of modern Greece, is crowned by Venetian fortifications and
embraced by a beautiful seafront.

You’ll
visit local craftspeople, including a potter and a weaver at work in their workshops, to discover
how they carry the traditions of the past into the present. You’ll also see a
number of other local crafts and goods and a confectionery where the traditional Greek almond
cookies are still made the way they were generations ago.

From
Nafplio, your trip will take you through the beautiful Peloponnesian
countryside towards the site of ancient Olympia; along the way, you’ll stop at a
beautiful honey farm, where you’ll learn the secrets of the
world-renowned Greek honey firsthand from a working
beekeeper. You’ll also see her mother making “diples”, a traditional dessert
drizzled with honey, cooked just for you in an outdoor kitchen under the trees!

With
the day drawing to a close, you’ll stop at one of the first organic Greek wineries for a wine-tasting session (optional) and
a walk through their vineyards, all followed by a delicious homemade dinner.
You’ll spend the night among the vineyards, in their traditional guesthouse, a former watermill.

Day 2: ancient Olympia
tour

The
next morning belongs to ancient Olympia, the most important athletic,
religious and political centre of the ancient Greek world. Here, your top-rated
guide will let you into the secrets of the temples, the training area and the original stadium where the Olympic Games were born, and held for centuries. The
visit of the archaeological Museum of Olympia is also not to be missed, as
it holds world-class masterpieces and treasures like the breathtaking statue of Hermes and the infant Dionysus, by
Praxiteles.

Children
are always welcome on our ancient Olympia tour, and in case we have little
participants, we’ll have the opportunity to take part in some hands-on practice
at archaeology, with an excavation simulation that is both educative and
fun! Alternatively, we’ll leave ancient Olympia to visit a nearby trend-setting olive farmer to discover revolutionary new
techniques in homeodynamic olive oil production and to sample some incredibly
tasting and top-quality olive oil.

Then
it’s time for an unusual off-road adventure and an exciting lunch break:
after an easy guided walk through a stunning gorge, you’ll discover two impressive waterfalls where your lunch will be served, right by
the river picnic-style, with homemade local specialties cooked by local women.
For the bravest among you, you’ll have the chance to swim there too!

After
leaving the waterfalls, you’ll travel to one of the most picturesque seaside
villages of Greece, Galaxidi, to spend the night in a charmingly restored
19th century ‘arhontiko’ mansion with an enchanting courtyard.

Day 3: Delphi tour

We’ll
start the day tour of Delphi and the area by exploring Galaxidi, once a
thriving port and home to some of the most powerful families of seafaring
merchants in the Mediterranean. Then we’ll head to the regional capital of Amfissa, where Greece’s last handmade bell-maker will show you how livestock bells have
been forged by hand in his family for generations; then you’ll stroll through
the cobbled streets of the old leather-tanning district. Here, in one of the
last remaining tanning workshops in Europe, you’ll see what a tanner’s working life was, almost unchanged from a century
ago up to today, and listen to the tanners’ stories – father and son – to understand what life is
like today in this part of Greece.

You’ll
then enjoy your lunch under the shade of the large plane tree in the town
square, where you will taste local delicacies prepared for you by women of the
village.

After
lunch, we’re off to visit the site of Delphi, sacred oracle of the ancient Gods. There
you’ll marvel at the beauty of the ancient monuments, including the ruins of
the Temple of Apollo and the Athenian Treasury. You’ll have plenty of time to soak in the
magical scenery, after which it’ll be time to visit the Delphi museum, where some of the finest examples of ancient
Greek art are on display – including the world-famous bronze statue of the Charioteer of Delphi.

The
drive back to Athens concludes your Grand Tour of ancient Greece’s most
celebrated landmarks, places of beauty and power, whose cultural influences are
still felt today.

You’ll
then enjoy your lunch under the shade of the large plane tree in the town
square, where you will taste local delicacies prepared for you by women of the
village.

After
lunch, we’re off to visit the site of Delphi, sacred oracle of the ancient Gods. There
you’ll marvel at the beauty of the ancient monuments, including the ruins of
the Temple of Apollo and the Athenian Treasury. You’ll have plenty of time to soak in the
magical scenery, after which it’ll be time to visit the Delphi museum, where some of the finest examples of ancient
Greek art are on display – including the world-famous bronze statue of the Charioteer of Delphi.

The
drive back to Athens concludes your Grand Tour of ancient Greece’s most
celebrated landmarks, places of beauty and power, whose cultural influences are
still felt today.

Ideal starting time 07:30 -08:30

Return time: 19:00-19:30 ( Next day)