Greek Art & Craft Tour
DAY 1
Arrive at the airport of Athens where our representative will meet you and transfer you to your hotel. In the
evening a “welcome” cocktail party will take place. Dinner and overnight in Athens.
DAY 2
This morning board the cruise ship and sail to the world-famous island of Mykonos. The town is a small
architectural miracle, with its gleaming whitewashed buildings and windmills, and is one of the most cosmopolitan
places in the world.
DAY 3
Today you arrive in Kusadasi, Turkey, and have the option to drive to ancient Ephesus. The impressive
remains include the Agora, the Theater, the Stadium, the Library of Celsius, the ruins of the Temple of
Diana (one of the “Seven Wonders of the Ancient World”) and more. Later, sail for the isle of Patmos where you
can choose to visit the Monastery of St John, on one of the island’s highest points. From there, walk down to
the Grotto of the Apocalypse, the site of the apocalyptic Revelations of St John the Divine.
DAY 4
In the morning arrive in Heraklion, Crete, where you can choose to visit the Minoan Palace of Knossos, home to
king Minos and his legendary beast, the Minotaur. In the Archaeological Museum of Heraklion, you can find the
unbelievable works of art (pieces of sculpture and pottery, jewelry, arms, frescoes) that have been found in a
number of Minoan sites all over Crete. Then sail north to the isle of Santorini, the most breathtaking of all the
Greek islands. The exquisite whitewashed villages, including the town of Fira (aka Thira), cling to volcanic cliffs
accessible only by cable car or mule.
DAY 5
After your breakfast on board you will disembark and meet your guide. This morning, get acquainted with the city
of Athens starting with the world-renowned Acropolis, where you see the architectural miracles of the Golden
Age of Pericles and Pheidias: the Propylea, the Nike Temple, the Erechtheum and, above all, the Parthenon
(Temple of goddess Athena). In the New Acropolis Museum, marvel at the exquisite examples of Archaic and
Classical sculpture including the original Caryatids (Maideus) from the Erechtheum and the Panathenaea
Frieze from the Parthenon. Walk down to the picturesque district of Plaka (the old town of Athens) and enjoy
your included lunch at a traditional Greek restaurant just beneath the Acropolis hill. After lunch, take a walk with
your guide around the famous Plaka, which is full of small neoclassical buildings and ancient ruins. Afterwards
visit the National Art Gallery where you see representative works of important Greek painters of the 19 th and
20 th century (Lytras, Gyris, Lakonides, Parthenis, Tsarouchis, Mytaras etc), European paintings (some as
old as 14 th or 16 th century) comprising works of Venezians, Caravaggio, El Greco, Delacroix, Picasso and
more, and a collection of engravings by leading artists like Duerer, Rembrandt, Lorrain and others. Dinner and
overnight at the hotel.
DAY 6
Fly back home with wonderful memories from your journey and a better understanding of ancient and modern
Greek art.
