The Athens extension: Nafplio and the Argolid

Pickup is in Athens after breakfast, at the point we confirm on booking, and the private transfer reaches the Argolida in about two hours including the stop at the Corinth Canal. Lunch comes on the way, and Epidaurus fills the afternoon. A licensed guide takes you through the sanctuary and up into the theatre, built in the 4th century BC with 55 rows of limestone seats. Nafplio’s old town is next, with the evening free until the welcome dinner, at a table reserved ahead. Bring a hat and water for Epidaurus: the upper rows are a climb in full sun.

Mycenae comes first, out from Nafplio in the morning, with a licensed guide on the citadel. The Lion Gate was carved around 1250 BC, and the walls are built of blocks so large that later Greeks credited them to the Cyclopes. Lunch is included and the afternoon is free back in Nafplio, with a swim below the Palamidi the obvious choice. Dinner tonight is not included; tell us by the morning and we reserve a table. Wear shoes with grip: the stone around the gate is worn smooth.

Water or wheels today, both private and with equipment included: a sea kayak along the Argolic coast, or an e-bike through the orange groves of the plain around Nafplio. Tell us which you prefer when you book. Either way the grading is gentle, and the gulf or the groves replace the ancient stone of the first two days. Lunch is included, and the farewell dinner is in Nafplio tonight, at a table reserved ahead. The easier option is a free day in the old town instead; say so and we adjust the plan.

After breakfast the morning in Nafplio is unhurried, with no site to reach and the old town’s lanes and harbour front on foot. The private transfer back through Corinthia to Athens takes about two hours, with lunch included before you reach the city by mid-afternoon. For longer trips, the route turns west here instead, into one of our longer itineraries through the Peloponnese. If you fly out today, book an evening departure: the transfer reaches Athens mid-afternoon.