I’d like to fly into Athens, stay for 5-6 nights before my cruise.
I’d love any suggestions on where to travel from Athens that are historic and/or active.
My son is 19 and will be bored at islands only offering beaches. We cruised the Canary Islands and he didn’t like hanging out at the beach but absolutely loved everything about Cadiz and the walkability, history, food, museums and beautiful gardens and parks.
He also loved Casablancas history, Mosque, parks.
Nafplion is only a two hours drive from Athens. It is historic and is surrounded by many of Greece’s most famous antiquities. It also is considered to be one of Greece’s two most beautiful cities. The other one is Chania, Crete which would also be an interesting place to visit.
Delphi.
For me, it was one of the most amazing sights in all of Greece.
Where is your cruise going?
For me, a ferry to Hydra, Poros or Aegina. But not really historic or active, just beautiful, relaxing and authentic.
Are you looking for day trips or some place for a couple days?
The best option would be Nafplio, one of Greece's prettiest towns.
Lots to do just in town but even more nearby.
It's great as a day trip just to wander around the Old Town and check out the historic sites right in town.
It's also a perfect base for a couple days to explore nearby world class archeological sites and more.
Here's the best website for Nafplio. There's more than enough to do, see and experience whether for a day or a few days.
We are just finishing a five day private tour with Alternative Athens that we booked after our cruise and it has been Amazing! We hit all the historical sites outside of Athens( Olympia. Mycenae, Delphi, Nafplio, Meteora as well as LOTS of back door experiences ( bee farm, bell maker, tanner, wine tasting, food tours, I can’t recommend them enough! Fabulous tour!
We took a day trip to Delphi from Athens last summer and loved it. The site is beautiful and the museum there is really, really nice. We had lunch in the town after then made a stop in beautiful Arachova on the way back. Perfect day. We hired a private driver, Dimitris Roussos of drpremiumtaxi, who was a wonderful host for the day. Highly recommend watching the 1-hour BBC documentary “Delphi Why It Matters” before you go and take maps of site and museum from Rick’s guide book.
@sboh - thank you for the tip. We hired the same guide and I cannot say enough what a pleasant experience that was. Dimitri is personable, speaks excellent English and he is also passionate about the history and culture of his country. We had a wonderful day. Highly recommend!
Delphi, Napflio or Meteora can be done in a day or so from Athens. With three days you could definitely see Delphi and Meteora. Plan on at least one full day at Meteora to see the majority of the monasteries.
We need to know if you are looking for day trips from Athens rather than spending several nights elsewhere.
From the sound of your post it appears you are looking for day trips.
If you want one of the best islands for a day trip then it's Aegina just a relatively short ferry ride from Piraeus.
Aegina Town is very nice with a long waterfront and the back streets are very appealing. Numbers shops, markets and tavernas.
It's known as the Pistachio Capital of Greece, has one of the best preserved temples in Greece, and abandoned Byzantine Village in the Hills aka "The Mystras of Aegina" and more than enough to keep you son occupied.
As mentioned Nafplio would be ideal if you want to spend at least 2 days there as it will take at least 2+ hours to get there limiting your time in and around Nafplio. It's a perfect base to explore nearby World Class Archeological/Historic sites and so much more.
Both would be a good place for a couple days and spend the final three in Athens before your cruise.
Most other popular areas may be too far for a day trip.
