A Week In Greece

John, One tip to mention..... As I recall, an International Driver's Permit is compulsory in Greece. This must be used in conjunction with your home D.L. and the IDP is valid for one year. You can obtain these easily and inexpensively at at AAA office (call them for the details). You might want to pack along a GPS unit along with a good road map, as at least some of the road signs are written only in Greek. I'd also suggest budgeting for good CDW coverage, as driving in Greece can be somewhat "challenging" at times. That's a lot of driving, but those are all fantastic places to visit (I was in all the places you mentioned earlier this year). Happy travels!

JOhn, sounds like a terrific trip to me. I've done a lot of the Pelops by bus, or sitting shotgun while others drove, but it's OK, you'll love it, take a rainjacket, spring flowers will be out in force, beautiful. Driving alone is fine, aways good to have a cellphone & know a roadside assistance #; ask rental agency. Regarding driving, GPS isn't flawless in places like this, the Old Pro's advise getting a GOOD road map too. The one called Road Editions is best... usually available in Airport bookstall, but don't count on it, maybe order thru Amazon. Also, use the Michelin Trip Planner website for each leg: gives detailed MAP, text directions, est trip duration, even est cost (gas/tolls). http://www.viamichelin.com/tpl/hme/MaHomePage.htm Gives 2-3 trip options; their recommend, the fastest, etc. Other sites right on road near Nafplio: Tiryns (another huge Iliad-era fort, NO tour busses); Asine, en route to Tolo. Don't miss Nafplio's archeo. museum right on square, newly redone, VERY enjoyable.

I have done nearly this exact same route. Based on my experience, you can do it but it will be tight. I assume you'll arrive in Athens by mid-afternoon. You can drive to Delphi in 2 hours and stay overnight. Then do the site/museum the next morning and have lunch there. Then drive to Olympia. It's a long but beautiful drive to Olympia - about 4-5 hours. Stay there on your 2nd night and do the site/museum the next morning. Have lunch there and then drive to Nafplio that afternoon. It's a long drive to Nafplio - about 4 hours. You'll need at least 2 nights in Nafplio to spend a 1/2 day at Myceanae and the rest in the city (which is fantastic). You can easily stop at Epidavros on your way to Athens. That trip is a scenic 3 hours total. 2 nights in Athens is a minimum and will only get you a little over a day to see the sights. With that I'd recommend the Acropolis/museum, Agora and Archeological Museum and fill the rest of your time wandering the Plaka. You won't really have time for any other side trips. Driving outside of Athens is not bad and its ironically hard to get lost as there are few roads and they are pretty well marked. A good map is all you'll need. Get your car at the airport to avoid any driving in Athens proper. You MUST have an IDP to rent a car. PS - the passing lane is in the middle of rural Greek highways. Always stay near the right side even though the road may seem really wide.

I had read that most of the tourist sights would be closed during the first week of April. If this is not true, please let me know! I will be making a trip to Europe March 31-April 7, 2012, and was thinking about the same itinerary!

Does anyone have any information about sites being closed the first week of April? I need to know ASAP!

If you have time, I would certainly add Meteora in the town of Kalambaka to your itinerary. Monasteries sitting atop stone pinnacles. Take a look at the pics on google. You can visit the monasteries. It's an amazing place. I agree that you should take a GPS. I think all the road signs I saw were also in English, but I'm sure there are some that are just in Greek. All the roads we were on were good.
Weather in early April is likely to be cool/chilly - or not. Take a jacket.

Janis: did you see the number of days he has, and the ground he proposes to cover?? No, he does NOT have time. KB: where did you find that idea that ancient sites will be closed the first week of April?? It is not Easter week, and there are no national holidays that week. It's not nice to spread panic without giving the source of your information! Now you've got John all anxious!! I "googled" "Mycenae closure in APrill 2010" ... and there was NO official news story about any such thing, same using Delphi, Olympia, etc. What it DID show was a website for Antelope Travel's Luxury Travel Package "Ikarus" of ancient sites and it shows a tour for April 3-15 with the notation "closed." KB, that means the TOUR is closed, not the sites. If you have some other source, PLEASE cite it and relieve JOhn's mind.

We did a very similar trip this summer with our two teenage kids and it worked superbly. We started with two full days in Athens (which was enough to see the major sites - the Plaka, Agora, Acropolis, National Arch Museum, and even the Museum of Popular Greek Musical Instruments). This allowed us an early start when driving to Delphi. By the time we got to the Port where we rented our car, we hit the road at 09h30. It took 2.5 hours to drive to Delphi, arriving at noon. A quick picnic lunch and we had plenty of time to see the Arch site and museum. We stayed at Pitho Rooms - very nice and served the best coffee we had in our month in Greece and Turkey. Next morning it took 4.5 hours to drive to Olympia, again leaving plenty of time to see the arch site and museum. Enjoyed an excellent meal at Taverna Bacchus in Miraka, about 5 km outside Olympia. Next day it took almost 3.5 hours to Mycenae. Not far but the road is spectacular and filled with switchbacks. We arrived at the site 13h30 and had a picnic lunch, again leaving plenty of time to see the venue and drive to our accommodations in Nafplion. The Marianna Pension is fabulous and the brothers who run the place really are as friendly as RS implies. Hike up to the Palamidi Fortress (one of our favouriite sites) where you can easily spend 3 hours exploring the nooks and crannies. Combine it with a trip to Epidavros late that afternoon, which is only 25km away. We spent an extra day in Nafplion taking it easy at the beach and walking its streets just because it is so beautiful. The drive back to Athens took about 2 hours to the Port of Pireaus but wil take longer to the airport which is on the eastern side of the city. All in all, a terrific and manageable trip.

That is a great driving trip. My wife and I drove the same route a year ago. When you are driving from Olympia to Nafplio, take road 74 (some maps will call it 115) through Tripoli. It is realy beautiful going through the mountians and going through the little villages. From Tripoli take road 7 (maybe called 56) to Nafplio. It is very beautiful and you will drive next to the water also. If you have a chance while in Nafplio, visit Tolo just outside of town. Have a great trip.