First day

  Arrival  at the “El. Venizelos” airport of “Athens”
  (Please note that visitors from the U.S.A., Canada or Asia, should depart from their country one day in advance)

  Transfer from the Airport to the Hotel – check in.
  Rest of the day and afternoon, free

  20:00 Private welcome dinner. You’ll be informed of the venue, at a later stage
  Dinner will include:
  -Welcome speech
  -Presentation of the Marathon race and other important technical information, by our specialist/marathoner.
  -Three course dinner with background music.

  At the end of the dinner we will distribute to you your Personal Registration Kit that includes:
  • Bib number and safety pins
  • Timing Chip
  • Kit plastic bag and baggage label with your bib number stamped on it

  In addition, you will get:
  -The Program of the Marathon day
  -Information on the Marathon Expo
  -A folder with the Presentation that you have already followed
  -The analytical program of your 12-day stay in Greece
  -A map of Athens and of the area you will visit

Second day

  09:30 Guided visit of the new “Acropolis Museum” and the “Acropolis”.
  13:00 Traditional dishes’ lunch in one of the restaurants of “Plaka”, the oldest neighborhood of Athens   under the rock of Acropolis.

  After lunch, you could stroll around the picturesque streets of Plaka before going back to your Hotel.

  For an easy or recovery run, we suggest the “Dionyssiou Areopagitou” pedestrian street or the “National Garden”.

  18:00 Transportation to the South suburb of P. Phaleron to visit the “Marathon Expo”, the annual gathering of the international running community.  Sport products and entertainment get together here. Free entrance.

  20:30 Night sightseeing tour of Athens’s major attractions (“Kallimarmaro Stadium”, included)and transfer back to the hotel around 22:00

Third day

  Morning (exact time to be determined) Transportation to the “Marathon Tomb” where the Opening Ceremony of the Athens Classical Marathon  takes place.
  The ceremony consists of: “Lighting of the Marathon Flame, Torch Relay and Lighting of the Altar”

  Visit of the “Marathon Race Museum”
  Lunch at a restaurant of the area with Greek cuisine.

  Please note that in this ceremony there are no seats available. Visitors can watch the torch relay from a   distance and the lighted Altar in the provided space inside the Marathon Race Museum.

  Rest of the day free

Fourth day

  “Run the Authentic”

  During the entire day, you will follow the program of the organizers.
  Relevant detailed program has been handed over to you during welcome dinner 

Fifth day

  Morning free

  11:30Transportation to “Cape Sounion – Temple of Poseidon” guided tour. Lunch in a typical Greek fish tavern by the sea.
  Return to the Hotel around 18:00 hrs.
  Rest of the day free.

Sixth day

  One day cruise to the islands of the Saronic Sea.
  07:15Departure from Hotel.
  You will visit “Poros”, “Aegina” and “Hydra”. You will have time to stroll around each island’s harbor. Lunch, dinner, dance, inside the cruise ship.

Seventh day

  “Delphi - Pythian Panhellenic Games”
  One day excursion to Delphi – sanctuary and stadium
  09:00Departure from Athens
  Athens – Delphi.  Distance 180 km – trip duration approx. 2 hours and 30’.

  With evocative ruins surrounded by breathtaking mountain scenery, Delphi is surely the most beautiful   ancient site in Greece.
  Lunch at a restaurant of the area with local specialties.

  Late  afternoon, back to the Hotel.
  Rest of the evening free.

Eighth day

  08:30  Departure from Athens for a 4-day, fully guided, tour of Peloponnese. Please take with you all your belongings.

  On our way to Argolida, a prefecture of Peloponnese, we will visit the “Corinth Canal”  that connects the Gulf of Corinth with the Saronic Gulf in the Aegean Sea.

  “Isthmia Panhellenic Games”
  Not far away, comes “Ancient Corinth” with its sanctuary and the Isthmia Panhellenic Games.  We will visit   the site, as well as the Museum.
  The famous “Ancient Theater of Epidaurus” and the museum is our last stop before entering in “Nafplio”,   the first capital of modern Greece with its castle and other attractions, where we will stay overnight.

  Lunch at a restaurant along our way to Nafplio, with local specialties.

  Distances/trip duration:
  Athens – Corinth Canal  80 km/ 1 hour and 30’
  Corinth Canal – Ancient Corinthos 15 km / 20’
  Ancient Corinthos – Epidaurus 60 km / 1 hour and 30’
  Epidaurus – Nafplio 30 km / 40’

  Check in at the hotel in Nafplio around 18:00, where you can enjoy dinner or just drinks in one of the bars of the old city. You will love it.

Nineth day

  From Nafplio through Mycenae and Nemea to Sparta.
  Distance 160 km - trip duration 3 hours and 30’

  09:30Departure from Nafplio.
  First stop, “Mycenae”, the center of the Mycenaean Civilization.

  “Nemean Panhellenic Games”
  A few kilometer away, comes Nemea where the Nemean Panhellenic Games were taking place. We will visit the site.

  Lunch with local cuisine on our way.

  Arrival in “Sparta” around 18:00
  Ccheck in at the Hotel. Rest of the evening free.

Tenth day

  Sparta – Mystras –Olympia

  10:00Visit of the “Olive & Olive Oil Museum” of Sparta

  11:00  Departure  from “Sparta” to visit the medieval city of “Mystras”, with its scenic churches, palaces,   streets and houses all topped by an imposing castle.
  Lunch after the tour of Mystras

  After lunch, departure for “Olympia”.
  Distance 190 km, trip duration 3 hours and 30’
  Check in at the Hotel. Rest of the evening free

Eleventh day

  Ancient Olympia - Mantinea – Athens:

  “Olympic Panhellenic Games”

  08:30Tour of the site of “Ancient Olympia sanctuary” and the “Museum”. Let yourself imagine the   “Olympic Panhellenic Games”. You are at the place where these globally known games actually started.

  We suggest you treat yourself with a snack before starting our way to Mantinea, as we will have a late lunch.

  Departure from Ancient Olympia to Mantinea
  Distance 120 km, trip duration 3 hours

  Around 14:30, we will have our good buy lunch at the “Domain  Spyropoulos”. Enjoy the taste of varieties of really good wine, directly from the cellars of the winery.

  Mantinea – Athens
  Distance 150 km, trip duration 2 hours and 30’.
  Arrival in Athens in the evening. Check in at the hotel.
  Rest of the evening free.

Twelfth day

  Departure from the hotel, for El. Venizelos Athens Airport 3 hours before the scheduled flight time of departure.

Remarks

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