IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF ST. PAUL AND NAXOS ISLAND

Welcome to Greece! Our driver and assistant will welcome you upon arrival to Athens airport. You will be transferred to your hotel in Athens. Check in and have a free day to relax. Dinner and overnight at the hotel.
(Meals: D)

Enjoy your breakfast at the hotel in Athens. With our driver, we will proceed to the city of Ancient Corinth. Our first stop will be at the Corinth canal to enjoy the magnificent view and take photos. We will visit the archaeological site of Ancient Corinth, where St. Paul wrote his most familiar letters, the Archaeological Museum, the Bema, the Market place and the Temples as well.

We will return to Athens late afternoon. Visit of the archaeological site of Acropolis, an UNESCO’s world heritage monument. Visit Propylae, Temple of Athena Nike, Erechtheion with its porch of Maidens and of course the Parthenon! Proceed on foot to the Areopagus or Mars Hill, a bare marble hill next to the Acropolis, where Apostle Paul delivered his famous speech about the identity of “The Unknown God”, according to the biblical account (Acts 17).

Continue your tour with a short stop to Panathinaiko Stadium where the first Olympic Games took place in the modern era (1896). On the way to your hotel, you will pass by Prime Minister’s Residence, ex Royal Palace, Zappeion Hall, Roman Temple of Olympian Zeus, Hadrian’s Arch, St. Paul’s church, National Garden, Syntagma Square with the Greek Parliament and the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, Schliemann’s House, Catholic Cathedral and the famous Athens Trilogy.

Dinner and overnight at the hotel in Athens
(Meals: B, D)

Enjoy your breakfast at the hotel in Athens. Pickup and drive to Kalambaka. Possible visit to a monastery, depending on arrival time. The World-famous Byzantine monasteries of Meteora that are perched precariously on summits of gray rock pinnacles of varied and beautiful shapes. Their history goes back to the 14th century when the monks sought refuge in the cliff-side caves. Then they fled higher to build original wooden shelters, which were later transformed into monasteries.

The remaining day at leisure to relax or explore the city.
Dinner and overnight at the hotel in Kalambaka
(Meals: B, D)

Enjoy your breakfast at the hotel in Kalambaka. After breakfast, a possible visit to a monastery, depending on the time. Drive to Thessaloniki, via Veria. Veria is known for the famous mosaics of St. Paul. St. Paul visited Berea as part of his second tour (49-51 AD) coming from Thessaloniki. In each place he visited he taught at the Synagogue for the Jews of the place, but also in a different place for the Gentiles. There was already a Jewish community in the city at that time, in which Paul must have appeared and taught. Arrival in Thessaloniki, small city tour including St. Demetrius Basilica and St. Sofia churches.

Check in and free time to relax.
Dinner and overnight at the hotel in Thessaloniki.
(Meals: B, D)

Enjoy your breakfast at the hotel in Thessaloniki. Departure for Lydia Springs and Philippi. Philippi is the area where St. Paul preached his first evangelical sermon and where early Christians were baptized on European soil. We will visit the baptismal site where Lydia converted to Christianity. Our tour will continue with a visit to a crypt from the Roman period (that is believed to have served as a prison for St. Paul), the Market place, the famous Acropolis and the Theatre.

Return back to the hotel in Thessaloniki. Time to relax or explore the city.
Dinner and overnight at the hotel in Thessaloniki.
(Meals: B, D)

Enjoy your breakfast at the hotel in Thessaloniki. You will be transferred to Thessaloniki airport for your flight to Naxos, via Athens. Upon arrival you will be transferred to your hotel, check in.

The remaining day at leisure to relax or explore the city.
Overnight at the hotel in Naxos.
(Meals: B)

Enjoy your breakfast at the hotel in Naxos.
At a specific time TBA, pick up to start your Naxos Yesterday & Today Island Half Day Private Tour. Starting from your hotel we head to the small village of Damalas and our first stop for the day, the traditional pottery workshop found at the entrance of the village. As the ceramist works the clay on the pottery wheel and lets us in on his secrets, we witness a lowly ingredient/earth turn into a work of art. After getting initiated into the ancient craft of pottery, we move to the south-west side of the village, to learn about another practice tied to the Greek identity: the production of olive oil. The village’s restored olive press helps us gain precious insight into practices and a way of life that now belongs to the past/ now long gone. Moving on we arrive at Halki, a village situated in a fertile plateau, adorned with beautiful neoclassical mansions and home to the second site on our journey, the distillery that first made the,
today, iconic liqueur “Kitron”, Vallindras Distillery. We get to know everything about the production (tree, fruit distillation methods) and the consumption (taste tasting) of one of the three PDO liqueurs in the country.

Our next stop is in the paleo Christian church of Panagia Drosiani. The oldest nave of this church was built between the 4th and the 6th century and is considered to be one of the oldest in the Balkans. The next location we visit is the picturesque mountain village of Apiranthos. The marble-paved alleys, the majestic view, the distinct traditions and the rich culture are only a few of the charms that will make you fall in love with this jewel of a village. Last but not least, we visit the lush settings of Flerio, a very important area all through antiquity not only for the high-quality marbles but also for the fresh water it provided the island with. Nowadays a fragment of Flerio’s former glory survives in the impressive 7th century BC, 6,4-meter-long statue of Kouros (dubbed “the Greek”).

The remaining day at leisure to relax or explore the city.
Overnight at the hotel in Naxos.
(Meals: B)

Enjoy your breakfast at the hotel in Naxos.
Your day is at leisure to relax or explore the city on your own way.

Overnight at the hotel in Naxos.
(Meals: B)

Enjoy your breakfast at the hotel in Naxos.
At a specific time TBA, pick up for your transfer to Naxos port to catch your hydrofoil boat to Athens.
Upon arrival in Piraeus, our driver and assistant will welcome you. You will be transferred to the hotel.

Check in and have a free afternoon to relax.

Dinner and overnight at the hotel in Athens.
(Meals: B, D)

Enjoy your breakfast at the hotel in Athens.
At the arranged time, departure transfer to Athens Airport to catch your flight back to USA.
(Meals: B)