This tour, which includes two overnight stays, gives you the opportunity to leisurely explore the antiquities and beauties of Delphi and the Monastery of “Hosios Loukas” and also visit the famous Byzantine Monasteries in Meteora, a unique, world historical and geological phenomenon (UNESCO World Heritage Monument).
Itinerary
Day 1
We depart from Athens in the morning via the national highway passing by the towns of Thebes and Levadia. There we will stop for a coffee break and walk to the springs of Krya, known at the ancient times as the springs of Forgetfulness and Remembrance. Small waterfalls, perennial plane trees and watermills create an almost magical atmosphere, mentally transporting the visitor to another era.
The famous monastery of “Hosios Loukas” is next in our itinerary. Hosios Loukas is the largest surviving monastery from the Middle Byzantine period in Greece. It was founded in the early 10th century by the hermit St. Loukas whose relics are kept in the monastery to this day. The Katholikon has some of the best-preserved Byzantine mosaics. Sit under the plane trees in the monastery’s small square and enjoy the rustling of the leaves and the peace that this holly location emanates.
We will continue the trip to Delphi through mount Parnassus enjoying the beautiful nature all around us and the scenic views of the surrounding olive groves and countryside. We will have another stop at the picturesque village of Arachova. We will have time to explore this beautiful village and take some photos before we continue our trip to Delphi.
The village of Delphi was founded in 1892, when the older village of Kastrí, which villagers had built around the archaeological site of the Temple of Apollo, was moved to a new position one kilometer west to allow excavation of the ancient site. This was a ground breaking decision at the time in an attempt to unearth, restore and render it accessible to visitors.
Now it’s time to enjoy your lunch at a traditional Greek taverna, with great open view to the Corinthian gulf. After lunch we’ll go to the hotel and the afternoon will be free to explore the picturesque town of Delphi.
Day 2
After breakfast we leave the town to visit the main archaeological site in Delphi, the Temple of Apollo, the Treasury of the Athenians, the ancient Theatre, the ancient Stadium, etc.)
We will visit the Museum with the famous statue of Antinoos and the unique bronze statue of the Charioteer ( 475 B.C.).
After the visit to the main archaeological site, we will also visit the smaller archaeological site so as to see the ruins of the Temple of Athena Pronea and the Tholos and the famous Castalia Spring.
You will have lunch in the area and then we will continue our trip to Meteora through the mountains of central Greece, passing through various towns and villages, (Lamia, Domokos, Trikala) to arrive at Kalambaka (the town right below the rocks of Meteora). Here we’ll have diner and can spend the night. We can also stay overnight in the nearby village of Kastraki.
Day 3
After breakfast we’ll start our tour of the Monasteries until lunch time in the afternoon. After lunch we’ll start our return trip to Athens.
Almost half the distance to Athens we can stop at Thermopylae, the famous ancient battlefield. There will see the statue of Leonidas, the King of the Spartans, who fell in the battle with all his 300 warriors fighting the Persians of Xerxes in 480 B.C. You will visit the “Hill of Kolonos” where the Tomb of the Spartans lay in ancient times and the commemorative plaque with the writing of Simonides.
All my tours are private (vehicle reserved exclusively for you) and flexible. It is always up to you to modify the suggested itinerary according to your personal preferences, even during the tour, if feasible.
About the Monasteries
“Meteora” is the biggest and most important group of monasteries in Greece after those in Mount Athos. We find the first traces of Meteora in the 11th century when the first hermits settled there. The rock monasteries, a unique geological phenomenon, are in UNESCO’s List of National Heritages and are one of Greece’s cultural treasures.
1) The Holy Monastery of Great Meteoron
| It is the biggest of the Meteorite monasteries. The church ‘Catholicon’, dedicated to the “Transfiguration”, was erected in the middle of 14th century (1387-88) and was hagiographed in 1483 and 1552. The old monastery is used today as a museum. |
| Summer (April 1 – Oct. 31) 09:30 – 15:00 (Every Tuesday Closed) |
| Winter (Nov. 1 – March 31) 09:30 – 14:00 (Every Tuesday, Wednesday & Thursday Closed) |
2) The Holy Monastery of Varlaam
| Is the second in size monastery after the Great Meteoro. The church, dedicated to the three Bishops, is in the Athonite type (cross-in-square with dome and choirs), with spacious “esonarthex” (lite) surrounded by dome as well. It was built in 1541-42 and hagiographed in 1548, while the “esonarthex” was hagiographed in 1566. The old refectory is used as a museum while North of the Church we can see the “parekklesion” of the Three (Bishops) built in 1627 and hagiographed in 1637. |
| Summer (April 1 – Oct. 31) 09:00 – 16:00 (Every Friday Closed) |
| Winter (Nov. 1 – March 31) 09:00 – 15:00 (Every Thursday & Friday Closed) |
3) The Holy Monastery of Rousanou
| This monastery is dedicated to Saint Barbara. The “Katholikon”, in the Athonite type, was founded in the middle of the 16th century and decorated in 1560. Both the “Katholikon” and the reception halls are in the ground floor while the “archontariki”, cells and subsidiary rooms are scattered in the basement and the first floor. |
| Summer (April 1 – Oct. 31) 09:00 – 15:30 (Every Wednesday Closed) |
| Winter (Nov. 1 – March 31) 09:30 – 14:00 (Every Wednesday Closed) |
4) The Holy Monastery of St. Nicholas Anapausas
| Its the first to meet on our way from Kastraki to Meteora. The ‘Katholikon’ dedicated to St. Nicholas, is a single – nave church with small dome, built in the beginning of 16th c. It was decorated by the Cretan painter Theophanis Strelitzas or Bathas, in 1527. |
| Summer (April 1 – Oct. 31) 09:00 – 17:00 Winter (Nov. 1 – March 31) 09:00 – 16:00 |
5) The Holy Monastery of St. Stephen
| It is the one with the easiest access, as we don’t have to climb numerous stairs to reach it. The small single-nave church of St. Stephen was built in the middle of 16th century and hagiographed in circa 1545. The “Katholikon”, dedicated to St. Charalambos, was built in the Athonite type in 1798. |
| Summer (April 1 – Oct. 31) 09:00 – 13:30 and 15:30 – 17:30 (Every Monday Closed) Winter (Nov. 1 – March 31) 09:30 – 13:00 and 15:00 – 17:00 (Every Monday Closed) |
6) The Monastery of the Holy Trinity
| Extremely difficult to reach. The visitor has to cross the valley and continue high up through the rock before he arrives at the entrance gate. The church is in the cross-in-square type with the dome based in two columns. It was built in 1475-76 and hagiographed in 1741. The spacious barrel – vaulted “esonarthex” was erected in 1689 and hagiographed in 1692. A small “skeuophylakeion” (sacristy) was added next to the church in 1684. |
| Summer (April 1 – Oct. 31) 10:00 – 16:00 (Every Thursday Closed) Winter (Nov. 1 – March 31) 10:00 – 15:00 (Every Wednesday & Thursday Closed) |
About Thermopylae
Thermopylae, literally “hot gates”, is the battlefield of the famous battle between the Persians of Xerxes and the Spartans of Leonidas in 480 B.C.
It was a very narrow coastal passage between the steep slope of the mountain and the sea line as it existed in antiquity. Thermopylae derives its name -“hot gates“- from the several natural hot water springs in the area. Today the pass is not near the sea but is several miles inland because of sedimentation in the Gulf of Maliakos. The old track appears at the foot of the hills around the plain flanked by a modern road. Recent core samples indicate that the pass was only 100 meters wide and the waters came up to the gates!
The ancient poet Simonides composed a well-known epigram which was engraved as an epitaph in honor of Leonidas and his Spartans on a commemorative stone placed on top of the burial mound of the Spartans. The original stone has not been preserved. Instead the epitaph was engraved on a new stone erected in 1955.
The epigram, as quoted by Herodotus, reads:
ο ξειν’, αγγέλλειν Λακεδαιμονίοις οτι τειδε
κείμεθα, τοις κείνων ρήμασι πειθόμενοι.
Ō ksein’, angellein Lakedaimoniois hoti tēide
keimetha tois keinōn rhēmasi peithomenoi.
Translation
Stranger, tell the Spartans that we behaved
as they would wish us to, and are buried here.
