6 Day Self-Drive-Road Trip Itinerary in Peloponnese, Mythical Paths & Castles

Day 1: Athens - Mycenae - Epidaurus - Nafplio - Sparta

• Early in the morning around 08:30 our office representative will meet you at your hotel to deliver your car so that to depart from Athens and driving along the mainland coast to Peloponnese, you may have your first stop, 1 hour later, at the Canal of Corinth (6 km length and 80m height). Soon you will reach at the Ancient Theatre of Epidaurus, one of the best Ancient Theatres worldwide with amazing acoustic. You will stop for lunch or a coffee break, at one of the most romantic towns of Greece, the seaside town of Nafplio, first capital city of Modern Greece. Then, you will continue your self driving tour to the archaeological site of Mycenae, an ancient town with great power during the ancient years, with the famous ‘’Gate of Lions’’ and the ‘’Atreus King Tomb’’. Your first day will be finished at the famous town of  Sparta for overnight.

Day 2: Sparta - Mystras - Monemvasia - Sparta

• During your second day, you will first visit the unique Museum of Olive Oil of Sparta, a great Museum showing the unique history of olive production in Greece. You continue this excellent self driving experience, to the nearby glory Byzantine town of Mystras (a crusader fortress, one of the strongholds of Byzantium, in the middle of the Peloponnese). Wander around the castle city the Upper and the Lower Town, and sense through the silence the city's sheer grandeur: the Palace of the Despots (Anaktora), the Houses of Laskaris and Frangopoulos, the Monasteries of Our Lady Pantánassa, and of Οur Lady Perivleptos. Afterwards, you will visit the second famous Tower Town of Peloponnesse, Monemvassia, a mystical stone-built settlement, nestled at the edge of a big rock by the sea that was founded by the Byzantines in the sixth century. Peer into the history of the fortress –the so-called “Gibraltar of the East”. Wander around its narrow cobbled streets, the Upper and the Lower part of the town, and admire the beautifully restored stone buildings. Taste culinary delights at a fine restaurant on the roof of a tower house. Late in the afternoon you will return in Sparta for overnight.

Day 3: Saprta - Ancient Olympia

• After your breakfast, you will take your rented car and leave Sparta and after a short stop at the picturesque small coastal town of Gythio, you arrive at Areopolis and Diros, famous for its marvelous subterranean caves, as a part of an underground river. About 5,000 meters have been exposed and accessible by small boats and through narrow passageways, surrounded by formations of stalagmites and stalactites. Caves have served as places of worship in Paleolithic and Neolithic times and their inhabitant believed that the caves were the entrance to the underworld. You can also visit the local museum and then we continue to some of the most beautiful places of Southern Peloponnese, the coastal villages of Stoupa and Kardamili, for swimming or lunch. You pass by the town of Kalamata and you will finally arrive at Ancient Olympia for overnight.

Day 4: Ancient Olympia - Delphi 

• Start early in the morning your self driving tour by visiting the archaeological site of Ancient Olympia, the place that the first ever Olympic Games took place in 776 B.C. Visit the remains of the gymnasium, the palestra (practice ground for the wrestlers), the VIP hotel, the troughs that held olive-oil balm for the athletes, and plinths for the victors' statues, complete with their footprints, are all still here. The stadium's banks, the surrounding hills and the sky above are exactly as they were. Also, there you will see the temple of Zeus the most celebrated sanctuary of ancient Greece and one of the 7 wonders of the Ancient world. Then you will cross over the amazing bridge of Rio – Antirio, one of the biggest in Europe, to reach at Naupactus. We recommend you having a lunch in this beautiful seaside small town, surrounded by the Venetian Castle, next to the Venetian Port. Afterwards, you will reach at Delphi for Overnight.

Day 5: Delphi - Meteora

• After your breakfast, you will visit the archaeological site of Delphi. You will visit the Ancient Oracle, the Stadium, the Ancient Theatre which can host more than 5000 seated spectators and of course the Museum of Delphi, where you can admire the ‘’Charioteer’’, one of the best bronze statues ever! Delphi is perhaps best known for the oracle at the sanctuary that was dedicated to Apollo during the classical period. Continuing you will depart to continue your self driving holidays and reach the village of Arachova, the most bustling winter destination in Greece, a mountainous village at 1000 meters altitude. Discover the traditional character of the village by taking a coffee or lunch break. Don’t forget to try the famous, traditional cheese, Arachova’s formaela, in various forms. Departing from Arachova and driving through Central Greece, and the city of Trikala, where you can make a quick stop, you will arrive in Kalambaka, a small traditional town that is built at the foot of the majestic grey rocks of God, at the shadow of the great Meteora Monasteries. Kalambaka (Meteora) for overnight.

Day 6: Meteora - Athens

• You may start at 09.00 in order to visit the monasteries of Meteora, having your first stop at The Holy Monastery of Great Meteoro, the biggest and oldest one of all. It was called the monastery that was "suspended in the air" (meteoro), because of the formation of the gigantic rock on top of which it was built. your second visit may be to the great monastery of St. Stephan. The Monastery of St. Stephan is a small church built in the 16th century and decorated in 1545. This monastery rests on the plain rather than on a cliff. This wonderful tour will be completed at the picturesque village of Kalambaka, where you will have a traditional Greek lunch! Then, you will leave from Meteora with your rented car to return to Athens and complete your self driving tour package, with a short stop at Kamena Vourla at the seaside and Thermopiles where you may admire the statue of Leonidas which was placed there as a memorial of the battle of the 300 Spartans against thousands of Persian soldiers of the Persian Empire. Overnight in Athens. (Next morning our office representative will meet with you at your hotel to pick up the rented car)