11 Day Tour of Greece

Welcome to Greece, the capital of democracy, ancient civilization and art! Upon arrival we’ll be met by our guide and driver and travel to the city for a panoramic orientation tour before arrival to our hotel to settle. We will have a free afternoon to explore the Athens’ oldest neighborhoods of Plaka. Plaka’s charming stone-paved streets, colorful houses, and beautiful little gardens create a delightful atmosphere. Dinner and overnight in Athens.

After breakfast we will depart the hotel and transfer to the port to embark our cruise. Our first stop will be at the famous island of Mykonos. A shuttle bus will take us to the capital to enjoy walking in the narrow roads full of shops and restaurants.

Early this morning, we explore Ephesus, dominated by the great 24,000-seat amphitheater, cited in Acts as the place of the apostles’ courageous witness.  What a privilege to walk these ancient streets in the footsteps of New Testament writers Paul and John!  Excavations at Ephesus are ongoing…each season more can be seen of the city where Paul invested two years of his ministry.  Archaeologists still digging at the site have reconstructed much of it, including the beautiful two-story Library of Celsus, The Temple of Hadrian, and the Temple of Artemis (one of the Seven Wonders of the World, the temple once had 129 columns and was the size of a football field). Our second stop today is at Patmos where the exiled St John received the Revelation which forms the last book of the New Testament. Included is an excursion to the Monastery which is of the 11^th Century and to the Grotto of Revelation.

This morning our ship will reach its final destination-Athens. We will disembark the ship and meet our guide and bus to leave Athens to drive to Thessaloniki. We will enjoy the nature of the country. Continue Veria (Berea) where St. Paul escaped the hostility he encountered at Thessaloniki, we will see the monument built to the Apostle at the southern part of the city, also known as the Bema. We’ll have a walking tour of the Jewish quarter.  Berea’s Jewish synagogue is located in a restored Jewish Quarter called Barbuta, outside the city walls on a cliff overlooking a river. This location brings to mind two words – piety and antiquity.  Piety, because the synagogue is near a river where ceremonial cleansing could take place, and antiquity, since Jewish communities began to relocation inside the city walls in the 2^nd century BC. This suggests that the original synagogue is Berea – the one the Apostle Paul visited-was probably built on this site. But there is another indication as well.  Thirteen ancient scrolls were kept in this synagogue until 1943.  According to Jewish scholars, one of them dated back to the 2^nd century BC.  Continue to Thessaloniki, the second largest city in Greece. We will see the White Tower, the Arch of Galerius. We will then check in at our hotel, have dinner, and spend the next two overnights.

This morning we will have a city tour of the second biggest city in Greece where we will see the castles and the Byzantine churches of St Sophia and St Demetrius, the White Tower and the Arch of Galerius and many other features of the city. Then we will continue to Kalambaka to see the amazing “Hanging Monasteries”.  We will see the striking scenery, perched on top of huge rocks, that seem to be suspended in mid-air, stand ageless monasteries where you can see exquisite specimens of Byzantine art. There are 24 monasteries while 6 only are inhabited. We will visit one of them before checking in our hotel for dinner and overnight Kalambaka.

Today we will depart the town and make our way to Athens admiring the amazing nature of the country. We will visit on the way the site of Thermopylae famous battle of the Spartans against the Persians 480 BC and see the statue of Lionidas, the king of Sparta, in memorial to this battle of 480 B.C. Continue to Athens where we conclude with a some free time prior to our magnificent meal in the roof garden overlooking the stunning Acropolis, celebrating our time together in this glorious country. 

After breakfast this morning we’ll be transferred to the airport for our return back to the USA, arriving the same day.