4-Day Classical Greece Tour
Delve into Classical Greece with this 4-day itinerary and visit some of the most prominent ancient cities in the country. If you want to do this tour at your own leisure, you’ll need to hire a car and enjoy driving, since the whole excursion is 1,400 km long.
To do this 4-day itinerary around Athens, we recommend renting a car with GPS (or using your phone’s GPS), as the roads are not always well-marked.
Keep in mind that, depending on the time of year, most sights close by 3 pm, so it’s best to stick to the schedule.
For accommodation, you’ll need to book one night in Olympia, one in Delphi, and one in Kalambaka. Here you can book at the best price:
Day 1: Athens – Corinth – Epidaurus – Mycenae – Olympia
The first stop on day one is Corinth, one of the most prosperous cities in ancient times and home to the famous Corinth Canal.
If you depart from central Athens at 8:30 am, you should get to the Corinth Canal at 10 am approximately.
Driving to Corinth is very simple: head north on highway A75, take the exit to Corinth, cruise for 70 km and you'll come to the canal. Take the exit to Loutraki to get the best views of one of the most impressive engineering works made by man.
Once you have admired the canal connecting the Gulf of Corinth and the Saronic Gulf, head to Ancient Corinth, the archaeological site of the ancient city.
Next, drive back towards Athens for a few minutes and take the turn to Epidaurus. It'll take a bit more than one hour to get to the Ancient Theatre of Epidaurus. Constructed during the fourth century BC, it's probably the best-preserved ancient theatre in Greece. Nowadays, it still houses concerts and shows during the Athens & Epidaurus Festival.
After verifying the perfect acoustics and admiring the theatre’s still-standing structure, get back in the car and get started to Mycenae. To get there, follow the signs to Nafplia, turning off at Mykines. The journey takes approximately an hour and a half. Mycenae was an important Bronze Age city surrounded by an impressive wall and is believed to have been the capital of Agamemnon. The site’s most impressive landmarks include the fourteenth-century BCE acropolis, the enormous Lion Gate, and the Treasury of Atreus.
After a long day of sightseeing, you’ll want to head to your hotel in Olympia. Even though it's only 160 km from Mycenae, the roads are not very good, and it takes around 3 hours to get there.
The directions to Olympia are quite straightforward: head to Tripoli down the highway E65 and take the exit to Ancient Olympia. The road is winding and mountainous, but it offers beautiful views of the Peloponnese countryside.
In the town of Olympia, there is not much to do, but it offers charming traditional Greek taverns, where you can have a delicious dinner accompanied by some Retsina wine.
Day 2: Olympia – Delphi
If you're visiting Greece in winter, we recommend you get up early to avoid driving at nighttime, since the roads are not very good.
Once you have enjoyed an exquisite breakfast, head to the archaeological site of Olympia, famous for housing the first Olympic Games in antiquity. The main sights of the sanctuary include the stadium, the Archaeological Museum of Olympia, and the Ancient Olympic Games Museum.
At around midday, you should be setting off to Delphi. The easiest way to get there is to head to Pygros, and take the highway to Patras-Athens. Drive through Patras and cross the Rio-Antirrio Bridge, the longest suspension bridge in the world. Then take the highway in direction of Nafpaktos, which will take you to Delphi.
On the route to Delphi, there are two monuments worth exploring: the Venetian Castle of Nafpaktos, which offers superb views of the coast, and the lovely resort Galaxidi, with a charming church and two small harbors.
Situated at the foot of Mount Parnassus, the modern Delphi is a lot livelier than Olympia. It has several bars with panoramic terraces that are worth discovering.
Day 3: Monastery of Osiou Louka – Meteora
Once again, you'll need to get up early to fit in all the visits and still arrive at Meteora with enough daylight for an initial exploration. After visiting the ruins and the Archaeological Museum of Delphi, you will depart the city heading towards Athens.
The first stop, just under 10 minutes away, is Arachova, a charming mountain village offering even more impressive views than Delphi. In winter, it is a popular ski destination in Greece.
Continuing along the same road, a few minutes further, you will see the detour to the Monastery of Osiou Louka. This visit will take just over an hour and is definitely worth it. Aside from admiring the fantastic frescoes and mosaics, you can also purchase local products such as oils and honey.
After returning to the main road, continue towards Athens/Levadia. Upon arriving in Levadia, take the detour to Lamia. Before reaching Lamia, you’ll notice numerous cafés along both sides of the road. Since the drive is about two hours long, it's a good idea to stop for a coffee and a break.
To reach Meteora from Lamia, follow the signs to Karditsa, Trikala, and finally Kalambaka. Once in Kalambaka, you can begin the scenic drive up to Meteora. The route through the monasteries is easy to follow and absolutely essential.
Kalambaka is larger and livelier than other towns along the route, so you'll find restaurants, shops, and bars open later than in Olympia and Delphi.
Day 4: Meteora – Athens
From Kalambaka take the scenic route to Meteora again to visit some of the monasteries. Not all monasteries are open at the same time, so it'll depend on the season and day of the week. Once you get to your hotel you'll find up-to-date information on which monasteries to visit.
After visiting the mountaintop monasteries and admiring the incredible landscape, return to your car and head back to Athens. You'll first have to drive to Lamia, passing by Trikala and Kardista, then take the highway E75 to the capital.
Thermopylae, or Hot Gates in English, is very close to Lamia. It was once the battlefield where Leonidas and 300 men fought against the Persian forces. There is a statue of the national hero where the battle once took place.
Once back on the road, take the € 75 (US$ 78.65) for a couple of hours until you get back to Athens.
4-Day Tour of Greece
If you prefer a more comfortable option, you can book a tour that will include everything you need (transportation, visits, hotels) so that you only have to worry about enjoying the trip. You can make your reservation through our website here:
