Nafplio sites and Athens rent a car

We are doing the same, using a company called Athens Car Rental:

https://www.athens-carrental.com

Athens airport has all the maior car rental agencies like Hertz, Avis, Sixt etc. Nafplio is a nice town with traces of its Venetian, Turkish, Bavarian (it was the first capital of Greek and the residence of the Bavarian Wittelsbach dynasty) past. The castle (Palamidi) gives good views on the Argosaronic gulf; if you want to do something good for yourself, then walk up the 1001 steps on foot (it's accessible by car from the other side). In the upper part of the Town there is the church of Hagios Spyridon, where Ianiis Kapodistrias, the first president of modern Greece, was assasinated in 1831. Not far away from the town there are the ancient sites of Tiryns and Mycene (and the less spectacular ones of Argos and the Irion of Argos), a few miles to the east there is the famous theater of Epidauros and the ruins of the sanctuary of Asclepios. Tolo (ca 15. km east) has a nice beach.

Any major agency at the airport proper will work fine. Always read fine print and I recommend getting their full CDW unless you have a cheaper 3rd party program. If something happens, you simple walk away rather than dealing with your insurance or credit card and needing all kinds of reports and documents.

Nearby Nafplio is Myceanea which is well worth a few hours and is best accessed with a car. Epidavros is nearby and can be seen in an hour or so and is best done on your way to or from Athens. Ancient Corinth is another good stop to or from, as is the canal if that interests you. If you do have time, the ruined Byzantine city of Mystras, just outside of modern Sparta, is a cool and picturesque sight. And leave plenty of time to just wander Nafplio, a great pedestrian city with lots of picturesque views.

Abby, Doug is right ON! The car does enable you to do a LOT of sightseeing in a short length of time.... and doing it in the right sequence saves backtracking. Here's the BEST (and noncommercial) website about Nafplio AND the surrounding Argolid area: http://www.visitnafplio.com/ -- I URGE you to click on every link... sights, beaches, where to stay, dine, hike etc. And here's a super photo album by another Nafplio fan, showing beautiful Old Town plus ancient sites around -- http://www.flickr.com/photos/stanbr54/sets/72157632094108982/ --

If you need automatic-shift, advance reservation is good, because fleets have more stick-shifts than automatic. Jessica's agency is a good choice. Their lot is off-premises but they meet you with the car at airport, no problem. You will be pleased with the ride to Nafplio -- it's on Greece's most modern divided highway, a "straight shoot" to the Corinth Canal. Some sequence ideas, depending on age of your daughters, interest etc:

• EN ROUTE OUTBOUND -- Just about 15 Km after Corinth Canal, You can exit at "ANCIENT NEMEA" on RH side, about 5 miles, to an "unknown gem" -- a Sacred Games Site (runner-up to Olympia), with temple, small museum AND stadium, w. original starting-blocks for racers! No crowds, u can enjoy in 45 minutes... in nearby Nemea Village on main street there's a bottling-plant/tasting room for the famous Nemean Red grown in nearby vineyards -- my fave Greek red. Afterwards, you cross biggie highway and on other side is the small (low-traffic) road leading to Nafplio.

• NAFPLIO & AREA - The fascinating city itself is worth a full day, but u can do it in half-day "bites", i.e.: DAY 1 afternoon - Museum in square (open til 3); small, superb, a good intro to area .. then up to top of Acronafplio, view from peninsula pinnacle is aces! And/or walk around base of peninsula, have a late-day swim @town beach. DAY 2 - Zip off EARLY to Mycenae by 8, beat the tour crowds, then hit a beach/ TOLO or ASINI. Late-day, wander Nafplio shopping "lanes". DAY 3 - Final look at Nafplio, then head out.

• EN ROUTE, INBOUND - Head up the BACK of PALAMIDI (avoids the 999-step climb!), go to the ramparts for awesome view & pix. Then take road across the "Thumb" of Peloponnese to ANCIENT EPIDAURUS. The Stunning Amphitheatre will be a highlight of your trip (u don't have to spend too much time on the ruins or museum). Then head for the coast road that goes up to Corinth; if it's a hot day, and you have plenty of time, stop at any beach for a swim. When you get to Isthmus, do a 20-minute stop to walk on the Old Bridge over Corinth Canal (SO deep! SO skinny!). After that, jump on that biggie modern highway back to airport. Final tip: if you must return car with full gas-tank, keep eyes peeled, the last petrol station is about 10 Km before the airport. Bon VOyage!

We used ACR Athens Car Rentals a couple of years ago. As Janet mentioned they meet you at arrivals and take you to the car in the parking lot. Do the paperwork give you a run down on the car and away you go. They are a locally owned company and in my experience these companies work very hard for your business.
We had a flight change and we asked them for the car for an additional 4 hours which they granted and didn't charge us for the extra time. Thats what I mean when I say they work hard for you.

With respect to the discussion about full insurance coverage one needs to fully understand what is covered and what is not. You are covered if the incident is your fault. The other guy is covered if the accident is your fault. However if the other guy is at fault then his insurance has to cover the loss. The rental car insurance company doesn't pay if its not your fault. Our rental company said to take pictures of the accident scene, the license plate of the other car and the damage to both cars to demonstrate who is at fault..
I have been renting in Greece for a couple of decades and never realized this until last Sept.
Also liability insurance is not in the insurance package only damage to the vehicles. Its a good idea to take out a rider on your home insurance for liability coverage. Its cheap.

Thank you Janet and others on here for the great information. I will contact the Athens car rental place and also look into the sites that Janet mentioned. Really appreciate it. And, I am glad also that we will be driving on the R side of the road:)

Abby