Greece Tours
Greek Islands and Villages Tour

Greek Islands and Villages Tour

A fully escorted , off the beaten track tour visiting small villages, national parks, nature protection areas, archaeological sites, museums and galleries ... also featuring the island of Santorini ( Lost City of Atlantis ) and Chios island.

The beautiful scenery, exciting archaeological sites, picturesque little villages and romantic islands make Greece a logical choice for anyone who wants a relaxing holiday with lots of atmosphere and eye appeal.

This particular journey has been designed especially to allow you several days in each location giving you time to enjoy and absorb the atmosphere of your surroundings.

Next Departure : To be advised

A Unique Experience

Tiny tranquil harbours, brightly painted fishing boats reflecting in the mirror still waters, deserted coves with iridescent blue pools, donkeys with saddle bags trudging along cobblestone paths and old villages of stone built houses that still exude the atmosphere of a more leisurely age.

If these are the images you are looking for, you'll find them on this tour.

Here is an evocative and intimate journey into a country whose ancient landscape and culture are changing irreversibly. You will visit fascinating parts of Greece that most tourists never see as well as famous sites of antiquity. Meet the people and see their traditional way of life, their homes and their villages set against the haunting beauty of a wild and majestic landscape. Here is inspiration for those who have yet to discover the mysterious magnetism of this thought provoking land .



Something for Everyone

See arched stone bridges span ravines as weightlessly as rainbows, steep cobbled paths zigzag through the beech woods of Zagoria and grey stone houses tiled with giant slabs of slate breathe the rustic air of open log fires. In the distance, rings a cacophony of bells heralding the evening's return of flocks of sheep from their mountain meadows.

Each day will reveal something new with nature punctuated by culture, from the unexpected to the famous, from stark mountain slopes to the indelible marks of civilization. Olympia, home of the first Olympic Games and the great Mycenaean walls of Agamemnon's City will be a compliment, yet contrast to the forest of Vikos Aoos National Park with its emerald lizards and tortoises and the volcano island of Santorini.



Islands and Villages

This tour has been especially designed to take you to the most picturesque natural and wild areas of the Greek mainland and the islands of Santorini and Chios. September is when all the crowds of summer tourists start to vanish and the rural and mountain villages revert to their romantic, peaceful and most photogenic atmosphere.

Temperatures around the islands hover around a pleasant 28 degrees C whilst the mountainous areas can go down to around 15 degrees C just before dawn.

With fine food and excellent Greek wines to enjoy, you will find this to be a journey of many pleasures and most rewarding.



Zagoria (North West Greece)

Here we explore the wild forested mountains and deep ravines of the Vikos Aoos National Park. Most photogenic are the old arched stone bridges that cross the ravines and little Byzantine churches that hide a treasure trove of icons, silver, 16th century frescos and intricately carved wooden altars. Best of all is that there are so few people in the area you can walk for hours without seeing anybody. Chances are that the first person you are likely to see will be a farmer on a donkey and he'll be worthy of a photo.

Hotels as we recognize them are virtually non-existent in many parts of Greece and that is why usual tour groups never come to Zagoria. Special arrangements have been made for you on this occasion to stay in a fully restored villa, once the grand residence of a wealthy merchant. The rooms have two double beds with an open log fireplace between them and when you open the timber window shutters, the view across the vineyards to the towering nearby mountains is simply spectacular.



The Lost City of Atlantis

One of the highlights of this journey is a three day visit to the island of Santorini where the archaeological excavation at Akrotiri is said to be that of the Lost City of Atlantis.

Here we find the astonishingly well preserved remains of a Minoan style civilisation with paved city streets, 3 storey buildings and sewer system including a flush toilet, in a town that abruptly came to an end around 1500 B.C. when it was covered by a deep layer of volcanic ash.

The villages here are built along the rim of a dormant volcano where from the balcony of a wonderful taverna perched atop a sheer cliff, almost 1000 feet above the sea, you get the feeling that you are sitting on the middle of a perfect calendar photo.

This is like viewing an Imax movie screen except that you are really here and the breathtaking view will not finish in 15 minutes.

This Cycladic island is a photographer's paradise, where white washed little cubic houses are scattered like dice across the brown and green countryside.



Chios Island

On Chios island, you visit Neo Moni, a monastery built in 1049, that houses some stunning frescos.

Here is an island with Folk Architecture that is quite unique but unfortunately disappearing very fast. Simple structures of limestone rubble bound in mud with unworked tree trunks used as pillars to support a roof of myrtle branches, can be seen in the old mastic villages. In Pyrgi village, we find in contrast the unique xysta facades, highly decorative black and white geometric shapes that are painstakingly hand scraped into the plaster surface. We also visit the abandoned village of Anavatos for a rather ghostly experience, as well as the medieval labyrinth maze of lanes, tunnels and shoulder wide alleys in the village of Mesta.



International Guests

Guests from all countries are welcome to join us . Though many of our guests are from Australia and USA , we are often joined by people from New Zealand, UK, South Africa and New Guinea. All our tours are in English only and our Guides are all local in the country in which we are touring .

If you would like to join us, we can either include your air ticket from Australia or you can just ask for a Land Only Price so that you can arrange your own flights through your local travel agent .

For detailed itinerary and brochure CLICK HERE or

send us an email - travel@toursgallery.com