Surprise trip to Greece

Day trips to those locales, especially on public transport, really is not practical. I would fly back to Athens from Santorini, get to the bus station, head to Nafplio. Spend no less than two nights, if you want to spend time in the town plus see Epidaurus and Mycenae, then three or four nights. Bus to Olympia is a good part of a day meaning an overnight stay at the least, travel back to Athens (good part of the day) and no fewer than two nights there. Depending on your time allowed, that is 5 to 7 nights for those three sights. Delphi can be done as a day trip from Athens, best with a tour, or on your own as a nice overnight. The Meteora is also nice, from Athens, it is at least an overnight, better with two nights. The main issue whether on the mainland or ferries for the islands is that transport is slow and takes time out of the best part of the day.

Nafplio and Olympia are best done with a car. They are technically doable by bus but it takes forever and it's not easy to do Myceanae and Epidavros without a car. And all three main cities are far enough away from each other that daytrips are not realistic. Depending on how much time you have, you could do a circle tour from Athens, hitting Nafplio (Myceanae and Epidavros), Olympia and Delphi before returning to Athens. You'll need about 5 days to do it since some of that time is taken with the drive. But you will get some scenic drives. Overnights would be at Nafplio (2), Olympia (1 night and one of the best restaurants in Greece is reachable only by car) and Delphi (2 - you can also stay nearby in a costal town - much nice than Delphi itself). Delphi is the only place that is a reasonable daytrip from Athens and there are lots of tour options if you prefer not to drive. There are also tours that will do Nafplio and its nearby sites from Athens, but I think those are worth more than a day tour can give you.

man thank yall! thats a big help! i will have about 5-6 days to do the inland portion so i guess the homebase idea is scratched and going from place to place is better. if anyone has done a similar trip before please feel free to message me with any other good ideas for hotels to stay in and resturants to go to - i will take all the help i can get! joe from jax

Joe - We did a similar trip after going to Crete, Santorini and Mykonos last September. We had a mid-morning flight from Mykonos to Athens and picked up a car. We then headed straight to Olympia. From there we drove down to Monemvasia and after that had a couple days in Nafplio before heading back to Athens to stay. Here's where we stayed... (I had stopped or stayed at each place on a prior trip). The place in Monemvasia is just OK but it's got all the basics including air conditioning, easy parking and a great location. Bacchus Tavern - just outside of Olympia - great restaurant on their terrace - they have a small pool (1 night) Flower of Monemvasia - in the new town (2 nights) Pension Marianna - The brothers who run it are great hosts (2 nights) - if they aren't full ask to see different types of rooms - they have regular rooms, those that seem like in a cave and townhouse type rooms. Hotel Plaka (3 nights) - Great location in the Plaka Between Olympia and Monemvasia, we took the mountain pass road and stopped at Mystras. We went to Epidavros one day from Nafplio. We then went to Mycenae on the way back to Athens. In Athens - I have also stayed at the Hilton (great deal if you are there on a weekend - 249 Euro for 2 nights hotel including full breakfast and passes for 2 people to 6 museums and it's not far from the Metro) and Hotel Hera (nice 4* just outside the Plaka). Feel free to send me a message if you have any questions. Also, check your schedule to make sure everything you want to see if open when you will be there. Enjoy your trip!

Joe, if you can possibly wait til September to start your trip, I would recommend it. The weather will still be great, but the crowds will be gone.

I second Julia's recommendations for Bacchus Tavern - one of the best meals I had in Greece. And Pension Marianna in Nafplio is wonderful. Mystras is one of the best sites in Greece not mentioned in the RS guide. Be sure to pick up a guidebook, most of these are well noted. If you drive to Delphi, I highly recommend staying in Galixidi on the Gulf of Cornith rather than in Delphi itself. There is a great B&B there, check tripadvisor for the name, it'll be near the top.

Man, I really appreciate everyone's help. I checked out Bacchus Tavern and Pension Marianna - definitely going to stay at both of these...really like the look and feel of both! My fiance will love these, she really enjoys the non-traditional hotel feel. I haven't checked out Mystras yet, so hopefully we'll have enough time to go there! If anyone else has cool recommendations, good resturants, or activities, please share! I am open to all that I can hear before I go in September. Joe from Jax