June 17-28, 2007
DAY 1 Spetses
Greece welcomes you with open arms! We meet at Piraeus port to take the ferry to Spetses Island in the Argo-Saronic Gulf. The main port of lovely Spetses is car free. Children ride bicycles and honeymooners take horse drawn carriages in this romantic harbor town. Our welcome dinner is along the sea front.
DAY 2 Spetses
On our first day of cycling we circumnavigate the little island, stopping at our whim to swim at several of the appealing beaches and secluded coves en route. Spetses was home to many wealthy ship builders, as evident by the stately mansions they left behind, one of which is now a museum. 25 km, 15.5 miles
DAY 3 Porto Heli
Bicycle past scenic sandy beaches through pine dotted nature, stopping whenever the desire overtakes us to dive into the deep blue sea. Porto Heli, roughly translated as “Bay of Eels,” offers an enticing array of tavernas and seaside restaurants. No wonder it is a popular getaway for Athenians. 25 km, 15.5 miles
DAY 4 Porto Heli
We abandon our bikes for a day trip to Hydra, an island where motor vehicles are prohibited and bicycles are useless. Donkeys rule here. Without the noise of honking horns and idling motors, a calming tranquility envelops Hydra. The island is a haven for artists which perhaps accounts for Hydra’s simple, yet classy, elegance.
DAY 5 Nafplio
We transfer to Epidavros, the 3rd century BC outdoor theatre which seats 12,000 spectators and still has impeccable acoustics. Our bicycles are waiting for us at the site’s forest-y parking lot. We cycle all downhill to elegant Nafplio, the onetime capital of Greece, that you will come to cherish with its neoclassical Venetian mansions and narrow streets. 30 km, 18.5 miles
DAY 6 Nafplio
In the morning we transfer to ancient Mycenae to admire the treasure of Atreus and Lions Gate. These ruins are some of the most beloved in Greece for their antiquity and myths. Our bikes are waiting for us so that we can casually cycle the flat rural backroad to Nafplio. 20 km, 12.5 miles
DAY 7 Loutraki
Transfer to Akrokorinthos Fortress which offers panoramic views of the waters surrounding the Peloponnese peninsula. We cycle downhill, hug the coast, then cycle across the Corinth Canal dug in 1898 before reaching our seaside hotel in Loutraki, a town famous for its thermal healing waters and mineral baths.
25 km, 15.5 miles
DAY 8 Delphi or departures
8 day guests transfer to Athens airport, a little over an hour away. 12 day guests continue with a 4-day add-on walking tour of historic sites (end of cycling). We transfer to Delphi, home of the oracles near pristine Mt. Parnassos, which the ancient Greeks regarded as the geographical center of the world.
DAY 9 Meteora
Meteora is a UNESCO World Heritage Site composed of a community of Byzantine monasteries perched atop rock pinnacles that astound you how they were ever built. We spend two full days in this central Greece region walking to the various monasteries, listening to monks chanting and applauding the modern day rock climbers.
DAY 10 Evia
After exhausting the monasteries of Meteora, we make a late afternoon transfer to Evia island, unfrequented by foreign tourists. Our destination is Thermae Sylla, one of Greece’s most precious spa resorts. Its thermal waters have attracted health adherents from antiquity to the modern era with such visitors as Greta Garbo and Artistotle Onassis.
DAY 11 Evia
A final relaxing day at the thermal spa where you might want a massage, aromatherapy or thalassatherapy which is Greece’s unique sea water therapy treatments. Local walk in the pine forests.
DAY 12 Departure
Transfer from Evia to Athens airport
Notes:
Airfare is not included in the tour price.
8 day Single Supplement is 300 Euros
12 day Single Supplement is 452 Euros
Please check current exchange rates for tour price in dollars.
Also see tour packages in:
Europe
Greece
Bicycle Touring
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