Welcome to Europamundo! Upon arriving at the airport, we will be waiting to transfer you to your hotel. Check the information boards in the hotel reception area for details of the welcome meeting with your guide and fellow travelers.

We depart early in the morning towards the North of Greece. We will make a stop in KAMENA VOURLA, a beautiful touristic hub next to the sea surrounded by beautiful landscapes. We will then proceed to the north. We will make a short stop in the gorge where the Battle of Thermopylae took place. We will visit KASTRAKI, a picturesque village with beautiful views of the whole valley and where we will have free time for lunch before visiting the METEORA valley, a breathtaking place which has been declared World Heritage Site by UNESCO. We include admission to one of the most famous monasteries. Dinner is included in KALAMBAKA.

We will travel south through the Thessaly region. We will arrive in DELPHI after enjoying the view of wonderful landscapes. We include admission to the beautiful archaeological complex that overlooks the Gulf of Corinth with incredible landscapes, time for lunch. After that we travel to the OSIOS LOUKAS MONASTERY, one of the most beautiful Byzantine monasteries in Greece, UNESCO World Heritage Site. Its magnificent 11th century mosaics are incredible. We continue towards ATHENS. Arrival in the evening.

Our journey is very special today. Greece has almost 6.000 islands, of which more than 100 are inhabited. Several ships connect the islands with the continent. We will depart from the hotel early in the morning to get the ferry that will take us to AEGYNA. The way takes a bit less than an hour. This island has been inhabited for more than 4.000 years. You will be able to walk around the picturesque harbor, the typical quarters of little houses and old churches, or go to the Greek temple of Apollo. We then will come back to take the ferry again and, after a 1:15 h journey, we will get to POROS island. You will have free time in this charming place, full of tourist life; its old houses climb up to the clock tower. Free time for walking around and lunch. After lunch, we will make a 15-minutes journey to Galatas, a small harbor in the Peloponnese. We then continue by road, across beautiful landscapes of hills, to EPIDAURUS. The admission is included, and there will be free time to visit its old theater which was built 2.400 years ago and has been excellently preserved. It still holds performances nowadays and has capacity for 14.000 people. We then continue to NAUPLIA, which is a charming coastal city dominated by the citadel and the Venetian fortress. Free time to walk around. Dinner included.

Note: the schedules of the ferries are subject to change. During the low season months, the ferries between Aegyna and Poros may not operate. In this case, Aegyna island will be replaced by the Hydra Island.

We will travel across the mountains of the Peloponnese hinterland to TRIPOLI. Stop in the lively capital of the Arcadia region. There will be free time to walk around the Areos Square, with its cafes and restaurants. We will resume our way to OLYMPIA, where we will visit the archeologic site (admission and visit with a local guide included). This is the place where the first Olympic Games were held in the year 776 BC. Athletes from all over Greece and its colonies participated. The Temple of Zeus, the stadium, the gymnasium, and the arena are outstanding landmarks. We then continue to PATRAS, the third city of Greece in terms of population. It is a port city with an active life, a medieval fortress which overlooks the city, and the biggest cathedral in Greece. Both the cathedral and the small Saint Andrew’s church are pilgrimage destinations. Dinner included.

After breakfast, we will cross over the Rio-Antirrio bridge, a spectacular cable-stayed bridge which connects the Peloponnese with the Greek continent. NAFPAKTOS, in the Gulf of Corinth. Its Venetian fortress dominates the city and reminds us that we are in Lepanto, the city which saw the fight between the Christian and Turkish fleets, the battle in which Cervantes lost his arm. Free time for a walk around its picturesque harbor and its beautiful old town. We then continue our way along the Gulf of Corinth to MYCENAE, a colossal citadel from the 18th century BC, cradle of the European civilization (admission included). Free time for lunch and walking around the place. Afterwards, free time in the huge fortress of ACROCORINTH, entrance ticket included. The foundations of an old temple of Aphrodite rest on the highest part of the settlement. We then resume our way and make a short stop in the Corinth Canal. After that, we arrive at ATHENS. Arrival expected in the evening.

Free day. You can enjoy the charm of this city. Free time to explore and discover memorable places.

In the morning we will have a sightseeing tour of ATHENS; we will discover the modern city, the Panathinaikos Stadium, the Royal Palace. Free time afterwards.

In the afternoon we will transfer you to the port of Piraeus to board the overnight ferry, which has similar facilities to those available on cruise ships. Accommodation in a double cabin. Night on board.

Arrival in RHODES is the first thing in the morning. We start with a city tour of this incredible walled city and the old quarter, which bears the imprints of the different cultures that shaped it (Greek, Roman, Byzantine, Knights of Saint John, Ottoman, Italian). In the afternoon, around 16:00h, we will take an express ferry to Turkey, the journey will last about an hour. MARMARIS, beautiful coastal touristic enclave with a castle, marina and fountains. Accommodation in the region of Marmaris. Dinner included.

IMPORTANT NOTICE: The timetable for the ferry between Rhodes and Marmaris is frequently modified and doesn’t operate every day (except in the summer months), this part of the trip’s itinerary may have to be modified accordingly.

We depart for DALYAN, an incredible place next to a beautiful navigable river. We include a boat ride of about two hours to see the ROYAL LYCIAN TOMBS. Also by boat, we will continue on to a large lake where we will stop at the hot springs. If you wish, you can swim in its warm waters or take a mud bath! We allow time to eat at one of the many Dalyan restaurants by the river. We continue to ANTALYA, where we will have a brief visit to this great coastal city of more than one million inhabitants; Hadrian’s Gate, the Ottoman district and its great waterfall that falls directly to the sea. Dinner included.

TODAY’S HIGHLIGHTS: Contrast of the Anatolian region between the coast and the high mountains. Dinner included.

We will leave Antalya towards ASPENDOS. We will visit the Roman theatre, for many, it is the best preserved in the world. After that, in SIDE, we will be able to admire the Greek temple of Apollo by the sea. There’s time to walk through its port and streets that are full of life. Travelling through breathtaking landscapes, we cross the Taurus mountains – their peaks stand at over 3500 meters high, and are covered in snow for most of the year. Stop in KARAMAN where we will see its fortress from the outside. We continue on to the Cappadocia region. NIGDE, dinner included.

Full day in the fantastic region of CAPPADOCIA, with its lunar landscapes, its churches and troglodyte villages. We start by visiting GUMUSLER, an incredible underground monastery of the 7th century with perhaps the best Byzantine frescoes in Turkey. In KAIMACLI we will visit the underground city that could house 30,000 people. We will visitUCHISAR, a natural fortress. After lunch we will discover the GOREME Valley with its open-air museum and its churches carved out of the rocks, entry tickets included. Hotel in Avanos. Dinner included.

TODAY’S HIGHLIGHTS: Ihlara Valley, Caravanserai, Konya. Dinner included.

At the far end of Cappadocia, we will visit the IHLARA Valley; known for the freshness of its waters, its churches and villages excavated in the rock. Then we continue our route, with a stop in an old CARAVANSERAI from the 13th Century before arriving in KONYA where we visit the Mausoleum of Mevlana (Rumi). Here we will learn about the sect of the Dervishes (entrance included). Dinner included. At night, we suggest that you attend the dance performance of the whirling dervishes in the cultural centre.

We take a scenic road between the lakes, and get to know EGRIDIR, a beautiful town next to a large lake, with its walls and mosques. There’s time to have lunch. We then continue to PAMUKKALE-Hierapolis, whose calcareous waters have created the Cotton Castle (entrance included). Dinner included.

TODAY´S HIGHLIGHTS: Ephesus. Dinner included.
We leave in the direction of EPHESUS, the best preserved ancient city of Asia Minor; 2000 years ago it had a quarter of a million inhabitants. We will discover the house of the Virgin Mary, the Basilica of Saint John and the impressive ruins at Ephesus (entrance included). We then go on to KUSADASI, a popular coastal town with a lot of atmosphere, commercial life and a small castle. Dinner included.

TODAY’S HIGHLIGHT: Interior of Anatolia. Hanging bridges crossing the Sea of Marmara and the Bosphorus Strait.

We leave for the city with the fourth largest population in Turkey: IZMIR. We make a brief visit with our guide to this city considered the most westernized and modern city in the country in terms of values, ideology and lifestyle. We then return to inland Turkey. Stop en route for lunch before reaching BURSA, the fourth largest city in Turkey, whose historic centre has been declared UNESCO World Heritage, with its traditional commercial districts, mosques, religious schools, public baths … The green mosque stands out. Arrival in ISTANBUL at the end of the day.

TODAY’S HIGHLIGHTS: Sightseeing tour. Topkapi Palace. Night transfer to Taksim.

A sightseeing tour of the city. We find ourselves in a city built in two continents. On our tour, we will enter the Mosque of Suleyman the Magnificent (the largest in Istanbul). We will see the walls, the Golden Horn, the fishing district, and we will admire the exterior of Hagia Sofia. After the visit, we will offer tickets and a visit to the Top Kapi Palace, which was the administrative center of the Ottoman Empire, with its magnificent courtyards and its pavilions.

At the end of the afternoon we will provide a transfer to the Taksim neighborhood, the most commercialized and lively area of the city. There will be time to dine in one of its many restaurants, and you can also take the old tram that crosses the area or go to see the nearby Galata Tower.

TODAY’S HIGHLIGHTS: Boat trip on the Bosphorus.

Today we include a boat trip on the Bosphorus that will last about two hours. We will undertake the trip on a boat exclusively for Europamundo travellers. The Bosphorus is a strait that connects the Black Sea with the Sea of Marmara, which separates Istanbul into two parts: the European part and the Asian one. We will enjoy seeing the liveliness of the strait with its multitude of boats. We will pass under the two bridges that unite Europe and Asia and we will admire the palaces of the sultans, the typical wooden houses and the Ottoman villas. Return to the center of Istanbul. Free time .

After breakfast, end of our services.