Athens & Santorini: Ancient Capital & the Caldera

Today you explore the ancient heart of Athens. With your expert guide you climb the sacred rock of the Acropolis, past the great gateway of the Propylaia, the elegant Temple of Athena Nike and the Erechtheion with its graceful Caryatids, to stand before the majestic Parthenon, the supreme masterpiece of ancient Greek architecture, with all of Athens spread beneath you. You then visit the stunning Acropolis Museum, marvelling at the original Caryatids and the beautiful Parthenon friezes. In the afternoon you wander the atmospheric old quarter of Plaka, its narrow lanes, neoclassical houses and the island-like Anafiotika quarter, alive with tavernas and craft shops beneath the sacred rock. As the day ends, you soak up the buzz of the old city. This evening, savour a taverna dinner in Plaka. Rest well, for tomorrow you explore more of the ancient capital.

Today you delve deeper into Athens at a relaxed pace. You might visit the magnificent National Archaeological Museum, one of the world's great museums, filled with the treasures of ancient Greece, from Mycenaean gold to classical sculpture, or explore the ancient Agora, the marketplace where Socrates once walked, with its beautifully preserved Temple of Hephaestus. You wander the lively Monastiraki flea market and the bustling central market, browse for crafts and antiques, and relax in a leafy square with a Greek coffee. Energetic travellers might climb Lycabettus Hill or Philopappos for sweeping views over the city and the Acropolis. As the day ends, you take in a final Athens sunset, perhaps from a rooftop with the floodlit Parthenon. This evening, enjoy a lively dinner in the old city. Rest well, for tomorrow you fly to spectacular Santorini.

Today you leave the ancient capital and fly to spectacular Santorini. You are transferred to Athens airport for the short, scenic flight over the Aegean to Santorini, where you are met and transferred to your hotel in lively cliff-top Fira, perched high on the rim of the drowned volcano. The first sight of the great flooded crater, ringed by dazzling white villages and deep blue sea, is unforgettable after the buzz of the city. You settle in, then explore Fira, wandering its maze of marble lanes, whitewashed churches and caldera-view terraces, and riding the cable car down and up the cliff to the old port far below. As the day ends, you find a terrace for your first Santorini sunset over the caldera. This evening, savour a caldera-view taverna. Rest well, for tomorrow you explore lovely Oia and its famous sunset.

Today you explore lovely Oia, the jewel of Santorini. You travel along the caldera rim to Oia, tumbling down the northern tip of the island in a cascade of white and pastel houses, blue-domed churches, cave dwellings and windmills, the most photographed village in Greece. You wander its marble lanes and cliff-edge terraces, past whitewashed chapels with their signature blue domes framed against the sea, browse its galleries and boutiques, and descend the winding steps to Amoudi Bay far below for the freshest seafood at a taverna almost on the water. In the late afternoon you find your place along the castle walls to watch the sun sink into the Aegean in a blaze of gold and rose, the world-famous sunset. As the day ends, you savour Oia by night. This evening, dine above the caldera. Rest well, for tomorrow you discover the island's ancient past and wine.

Today you discover the ancient past and volcanic wine of Santorini. You step into the astonishing Minoan city of Akrotiri, a sophisticated Bronze Age town frozen in volcanic ash for 3,600 years and sheltered beneath a vast roof, walking its ancient streets as your guide brings the lost civilisation and the great eruption to life. You take in the dramatic Red Beach nearby, and visit a traditional winery such as Santo Wines on the caldera rim, tasting the island's crisp Assyrtiko and sweet Vinsanto among the low, basket-pruned vines, with the whole caldera beneath you. You might add an afternoon catamaran cruise to the smoking volcano and hot springs. As the day ends, you return to Fira for a last caldera sunset. This evening, savour a final Santorini dinner. Rest well, for tomorrow you depart.

After a final morning on Santorini, perhaps a last stroll along Fira's caldera-view terraces or a final Greek coffee gazing over the volcano, you are transferred to Santorini's airport or port for your onward journey. You leave having experienced the essence of Greece, its ancient heart and its island soul, the Acropolis and Parthenon, the Acropolis Museum and atmospheric Plaka of Athens, then the cliff-top villages, blue domes, world-famous sunset, Minoan city and volcanic wine of Santorini. The images stay vivid long after you leave, the majestic Parthenon high above the city, the charming lanes of Plaka, the dazzling white villages on the drowned volcano, the blue domes of Oia, and the sun sinking into the sea. Greece offers ancient wonder and island beauty in abundance, and you depart with the essence of the country, already dreaming of a return.