Greek Islands Getaway
with Rio Vitale

Upon arrival to the Athens airport, you are greeted by our experienced tour leader who will be your chaperone for the duration of the trip. You board a deluxe bus for transfer to your Athens hotel located in the heart of the city. Take some time to relax and freshen up. The tour leader may suggest some nearby sites to explore. Later, a reception will be held, welcoming you to Greece. Afterwards, dinner will be served in the hotel. A nice glass of wine will be included. Rest up tonight for a full day tomorrow.

With the direction of an expert local guide, we begin a panoramic bus tour of the city before arriving at the Acropolis, the majestic centerpiece of Athens. At the top of the Acropolis, we explore The Parthenon, temple to the Greek goddess Athena, along with the Propylaea, the Temple of Athena Nike and the sacred temple of Erechtheion. You'll also view the Dionysus Theater at the base of the Acropolis. Grab some lunch before enjoying free time in the afternoon. Tonight, celebrate with a festive Greek dinner show with wine and song.

Take some free time this morning to shop and explore some of the many sites that are nearby to our centrally located hotel. After lunch, we board the our coach for an excursion to Cape Sounio for a guided tour of the Temple of Poseidon. Take in the the breathtaking views of the Mediterranean from the temple dedicated to the Greek god of the seas. We'll also view the ruins of another Greek temple to the goddess Athena. Enjoy a seafood dinner at a coastal seaside tavern before returning back to our hotel in Athens.

This morning, we leave our Athens hotel and transfer to the Port of Piraeus. (Hint: Have your bags packed and ready and we'll do the rest.) We board a comfortable, high speed ferry boat (hydrofoil) for a cruise to Santorini, one of thousands of Greek Islands dotting the Mediterranean and Aegean Seas. From the port of Santorini, tranfer to your seaside resort hotel. Enjoy some free time at the beach or shopping at local stores. Our dinner tonight is at a local restaurant within walking distance of the hotel.

Santorini ("Thera" in Greek) is the largest of five volcanic islands that make up the Santorini Caldera archipelago (i.e. group of islands). Today we explore two of the other islands of the caldera. We visit Thersasia, the second largest island of the caldera. We also visit Kameni, famous for its therapeutic, geothermal hot springs. Depending on weather conditions, guests are welcome to come and test the waters. We then return to Santorini for dinner in the hotel.

This morning, spend some time on the beach, basking in the Mediterranean sunshine, but don't forget the sunscreen and sunglasses. This afternoon, we take a tour of some typical Santorini villages and view the vineyards of the rich volcanic soil and dry climate, perfect conditions for growing the grapes. Of course, we'll need to sample these fine wines. A local restaurant will provide tonight's dinner. After enjoying the beautiful sunset, prepare your luggage for our next day's journey, a cruise to the island of Crete.

After breakfast, we make our way to the port of Santorini to board another high speed ferry that wisks us off to the Greek island of Crete. Crete is the largest island in Greece , and it is the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after Sicily, Sardinia, Cyprus and Corsica. The two hour cruise brings us into port early enough to check into our seaside resort hotel in Elounda/Aghios Nikolaos. There is plenty of free time to aquaint ourselves with the local surroundings . Tonight's included dinner is at the hotel.

Today we board the bus for Herakon for a visit to the Minoan Palace at Knossos. The initial construction of the palace dates back to about 2000 B.C. which makes it the oldest active Bronze Age archeological site. However, it has been estimated that Neolithic inhabitants settled the region as far back as 7,000 B.C. Because of this, Knossos has been (unofficially) called Europe's oldest city. Dinner tonight is back in the hotel and, as always, will be served with a glass of wine.

Just a short boat ride from our hotel location, today we visit the historic island of Spinalonga. In the late 16th century, the Venetians built a fortification on the island for protection against their Turkish enemies. After a long history of warfare, the fort was turned into one of the last leper colonies in the early 20th century. Uninhabited today, it has become a popular destination for tourists and historians alike. It is currently being considered by UNESCO for World Heritage Site status. Dinner tonight is served in the hotel.

Today, we are free to take in the mythical majesty of our last day in Crete. You may choose to spend a few hours on the beach. You may try to finish up some last minute souvenir shopping. There may be time to take a local excursion to a nearby destination recommended by your tour director. Fully enjoy whatever you decide. You can partake of lunch and venture off on your own. Tonight, dinner with wine will be served in the hotel. Prepare your luggage for check-out in the morning.

We bid farewell to Crete and head to the airport in Heraklion for our transfer back to Athens. After our transfer to the hotel, we will have some free time to visit (or revisit) some of the locations we may have missed earlier in the trip. It's also a good time to reminisce the wonderful memories and share precious photos with our friends. Make sure to get phone numbers, address and emails from your new-found friends. Tonight we will have our last supper in Greece along with more Greek merriment and plenty more Greek wine. Sten ygeiá sas! (Cheers!)

After breakfast, we transfer back to the Athens Airport. Most of us are returning home with our forever memories and forever photos of our Greek vacation. Some of us are extending our travels to other parts of the world. Please let us know if you would like to continue your vacation beyond Greece. May we suggest a three day stay in Sorrento Italy or a destination anywhere else? Please let us know. In any event, we hope you had a wonderful time in Greece, and please keep us in mind for your future travel plans. Thank you. Wherever Tours.