Greece: Second Attempt. Seeking itinerary feedback

Just 2 remarks:

May 1st (Labor Day) is a public holiday and traditionally a ferry strike day. If you were planning to take the ferry to an island on May 1st, the day you land, you'll have to change your plans.

You'll be the one spending time in the car, but I warn you that you'll be doing a lot of driving, especially the trip between Meteora and Olympia, which will take almost an entire day.

In mainland Greece, it's common to want to see too much in too little time and to rush from one must-see to the next. It's not as easy as getting from one place to another by turning the pages of a travel guide. Taking Olympia as an example, it's certainly an interesting (and very touristy) site, but keep in mind that you won't spend more than 2 or 3 hours visiting it, and at least 6/7 hours traveling to get there from Meteora.

I'd add that you shouldn't consider everything between two sites as a gray area of ​​no interest. By driving from one place to another, without stopping you'll miss a lot. The best memories are often the places along the way, not the "must-sees" themselves.

This is just my opinion and it's your trip, so you decide.

You are trying to see Meteora and the Peloponnese in one trip so that will make for a lot of driving. You will have a very long day driving from Meteora to the Peloponnese. You could put Delphi and Meteora at the end rather than the beginning. That way drive from Nafplio to Delphi and then Delphi to Meteora. It is about 4 hours from Kastraki to the Athens airport.

I would skip Olympia. You are already visiting Nemea (which we also visited) so seems a bit repetitive and not worth it for all the driving. If you skip it, you could go straight to Kardamyli. It is about 3.5-4 hours from Piraeus Port to Kardamyli (there is a toll way for most of the way). You should stop and see the Cornith canal on the way. It is so amazing. This is assuming you go to Delphi and Meteora at the end of your trip. I do think that would work better.

I would add that night to Meteora. I think you are only spending one night and you really need two. We spent two nights and saw all but one monastery. We would have been able to see all of them if it had not been 2022 when we had to go to the next town for covid testing. Both my son and brother in law (not together) spent one night and said it wasn’t enough.

I also would lay your itinerary out by nights. It makes it easier to see how much time you have. Two nights equals one full day.

Thank you both for your replies, especially for the May 1 holiday information. My plan was to take a ferry that day, so I need to create a plan b. And Olympia may be on the chopping block...

I didn't make it clear in my original post, but the itinerary is laid out by nights.

Thank you again; the input is very helpful.

Based upon the information regarding both a possible strike on May 1 and the various driving distances, here is Plan B. I welcome feedback on this version, and would especially appreciate lodging recommendations anyone feels strongly about. Thanks again for the input.

April 30: Depart for Greece from the US.

May 1-5 (five nights in Athens): Arrive in Athens at 9:15am. Two of these days will be taken up with private tours of Delphi and Meteora.

May 6-7 (two nights in Hydra)

May 8-10 (three nights in Pylos): Rent a car in Piraeus Port and drive ~4 hours to Pylos. Explore Pylos, Nestor's Palace, various castles, and Gialova Lagoon.

May 11-14 (four nights in Kardamyli): Drive ~2 hours to Kardamyli. E-bike tour, Diros Caves, hiking.

May 15-16 (2 nights in Dimitsana): Drive ~3 hours to Dimitsana, stopping on the way at Mystras. Explore area/monasteries.

May 17-20 (4 nights in Nafplio): Drive ~2.5 hours to Nafplio. Explore Nafplio, Epidavros, Mycenae, and Nemea.

May 21 (1 night in Rafina): Drive ~2 hours to the Athens airport to return the rental car (see Corinth on the way). Overnight at Hotel Avra Rafina, utilizing the hotel shuttle for transport back and forth.

May 22: 12pm flight home.

Based on the information regarding a possible strike on May 1,

It's more than possible, it will happen. Also note that there will be demonstrations in Athens starting around 10 a.m., with major transport disruptions. Check out the local news for May 1 this year:

https://www.ekathimerini.com/politics/1268389/labor-day-being-marked-with-marches-and-strikes/

and in 2024:

https://www.ekathimerini.com/news/1237720/labor-day-strikes-to-paralyze-transport/

Depending on your arrival time, factor this into your travel plans from the airport to your accommodation.

Also note that sites and museums are closed on May 1, so take advantage of it to... stay cool!
If you want to wander around the city a bit, you can take a stroll, for example, in Anafiotika, the micro-neighborhood "Cycladic village" near Plaka.

Avoid Syntagma Square during the protests unless you enjoy action and the smell of tear gas.

But the good news is that since you'll be in the Pylos/Kardamyli area for several days and you had wisely skipped Olympia on your new itinerary, to compensate for this "loss," I'll reiterate my suggestion from last year: go to Ancient Messene.
It's about 1.5 hours from Pylos or Kardamyli.
In my opinion, it's just as interesting as Olympia, without the crowds of tourists.

https://greeking.me/blog/greek-mainland/ancient-messene

I was going to make the same suggestion about Messene, and I like this revised itinerary--looks great!

We are going to Pylos and Kardamyli next May and are stopping at Messene on the way to Kardamyli.

I know it's less appealing than a tourist brochure or a YouTube video, but for those who want to improve their knowledge of the history, demographics, and sociology of the Pylos region, they can start reading a study document published by an American student at the University of Cincinnati.

This is Part VI.

https://www.ascsa.edu.gr/uploads/media/hesperia/3182019.pdf

I'll just add that the U of Cincinnati has become a magnet for archeology students, due to the rremarkable work & discoveries of Jack Davis and Sharon Stocker, husband & wife archeologists whose team at the Palace of Nestor in 2015 uncovered the stunning unraided tomb of a 3,500-year-old Early Mycenaean warrior -- the most important ancient Greek find in more than half a century. -- https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/golden-warrior-greek-tomb-exposes-roots-western-civilization-180961441/ I visited the site just a couple years before this discovery but had the good luck to meet the Cincinnati team & get an individual tour of the site.

Thank you JoLui and Janet! Such interesting articles.

We stayed a night this past September in Kardamyli and then drove to Mystras. Just so you know the road is very curvy in sections so it can be slow going. We spent several hours exploring Mystras then drove to Levidi in Arcadia area. ( ten minutes from the national highway) We spent the night there at a wonderful hotel with a very nice local restaurant close by. The next morning we drove to Dimitsana and went to the monasteries. Levidi to Dimitsana is almost an hour drive. Going from Kardamyli, Mystras then Dimitsana will be a lot of driving on curvy roads once you are off the main highway.

This is great information, and I very much appreciate the links. I will definitely include Messene in our itinerary. I'm glad to hear it is as interesting as Olympia, but with fewer crowds.

We are also going to Mystras and Dimitsana this summer. One thought I had in response to the all the curvy roads and length of driving from Kardamyli to Dimitsana is to consider taking one night from Kardamyli and stay in Mystras that one night. You could do some of the things you have planned in the morning on the way to Mystras and see Mystras in the afternoon. It might be more efficient because you won’t have to return to Kardamyli.