Greece 11-Day Spring Break Itinerary

This Greece Itinerary pretty much focused on the Peloponnese and a couple islands on the Cyclades Archipelago.

For Julie and I, it was our second time to the country (our first was in May 2010), but for our daughter, it was her first time. That was why we stuck with Southern Greece instead of spreading out to Northern Greece like we did on that first visit.

The main goal of this trip was to let our daughter indulge in her Percy Jackson fandom while I had an ulterior motive of visiting more waterfalls. After all, we only had the Edessa Waterfalls to show for on our first visit to Greece.

Like with our Italy trip last November, I’m generally bearish about doing repeat trips (even doing repeat attractions), but sometimes when you get older, you learn to appreciate the more finer details of experiences that were missed the first time around.

Such experiences (as well as new ones) are highlighted down below…

Trip Map

Trip Highlights

Acropolis – This is the signature and iconic massif in the center of the city of Athens, where ruins and restored buildings sat on top of the monolith. Of course, seeing it from the rooftops as well as from almost anywhere around the attraction’s base is a highlight itself. However, doing a tour to go onto the monolith and walk among its ruins and restored buildings helped us to better understand the why behind this place. Then, we also getting nice city views in all directions, to boot!

Acropolis Museum – This used to be on the Acropolis until they moved the artifacts into a more modern three-story building whose top floor faces the monolith. Doing this museum in a guided tour definitely helped us to reinforce the history and possible motivations for its evolution. That said, we also learned a bit more about the story behind Athenians as a whole, which compelled me to consider this museum visit a highlight (something I’m not normally keen on doing).

Ancient Agora – This was perhaps the oldest marketplace or public space in Ancient Greece. Its extensive grounds to the north side of the base of the Acropolis featured a museum within a Stora as well as the columnar Temple of Hephaistos. All the ruins and artifacts here helped to paint a picture of what the social and political order was like back then. Heck, we even saw a turtle during our visit.

Monastiraki Square – If you want to be part of the action, this happening square near the northeastern side of the Acropolis was where it was at. Not only was there a public square bustling with activity, but there was also an old church as well as blocks of busy walking lanes (plus an ancient library). There was also plenty of eating establishments around the square making for a nice way to enjoy some nightlife when you’ve had enough of sightseeing.

Palamidi Fortress – This imposing fortress (one of three in the town of Nafplio) was the highest as well as the largest one. We got to experience plenty of views over the town fringed on at least two (maybe three) sides by the Aegean Sea. There were also two intact bastions as well as an upper bastion accessed by a memorable walking path perched precariously on a ledge with dropoffs right into the sea below.

Nafplio – This was a charming seaside town with plenty of walking lanes, the aforementioned three fortresses around it, and a strategic location being in relatively close proximity to Epidavros (Greece’s most well-preserved ancient theater) and Mycenae (perhaps the location of Greece’s oldest archaeological site). Next time we’re in the area, we’ll definitely have to check out the waterfalls as well as the beaches in the vicinity.

Polilimnio Waterfalls – This was a network of several waterfalls, and it took a little bit of an adventure to experience the majority of them. At a time when I thought Greece’s waterfalls wouldn’t perform due to drought, this one defied those lowered expectations. Heck, there was even a local dog that kept me company throughout my hike, and thus I had to say that this made for one of the most memorable experiences on this trip.

Methoni Castle – This seaside castle jutting out towards the Ionian sea in the southwestern Peloponnese was certainly one of the main highlights of our time touring the peninsula. In addition to its really scenic location, there were lots of relics showing how this place changed hands between Venetians and Ottoman Turks over the years. Since it’s a bit out-of-the-way of most tourist itineraries, it wasn’t overrun though it was by no means unknown.

Pylos Castle – This castle overlooking the quaint seaside town of Pylos sat at the mouth of Navarino Bay. From within the paid grounds, we managed to witness sea stacks (one with a natural sea arch), an acropolis of its own, and a few indoor museum displays. It was a surprisingly popular stop for tour bus groups, including students.

Kalamaris Waterfalls – This was another waterfall that defied my lowered expectations in terms of its flow due to the drought. However, it was surprisingly tall, and there were frogs that kept me company during my visit. Actually, the car got a bigger workout to visit this place than my own physical exertion (even though it was near the scenic lagoon-side town of Gialova and just minutes from Pylos, where we were staying). It was for that reason that this waterfall was also an adventure in its own right.

Neda Waterfalls – This pair of remote waterfalls deep in the mountains of the Western Peloponnese was really popular on the web. However, finding it involved sifting through a lot of differing opinions about the driving directions and road conditions. In our experience, it turned out to be not that bad, but perhaps we got lucky with the crowds. After all, our visit was quiet with only 2 other couples who were on their way out when we showed up!

Nemouta Waterfalls – This was perhaps the closest major waterfall group to Ancient Olympia. However, it took a key bit of advice from a local in town for me to find this place instead of trying to rely exclusively on GoogleMaps or some other navigation software. In fact, those devices tried to take me on a fruitless joyride, which surely reinforced to me that often times people trump technology for matters like this. As for the waterfall series, I was told there were at least 5 waterfalls (some sources say there’s 30), but I managed to find 3 and that was plenty for me.

Ancient Olympia – If you want to witness where the Olympic Games originated, you have to come here to see this place for yourself. While there were lots of ruins with not much intact here, having an audio guide definitely helped us to better understand how excellence in mind and body were celebrated in ancient times. Although this place was short of Insta-worthy photo ops, it was quite a popular place, and it definitely felt like we were strolling on hallowed grounds.

Delphi – Of all the archaeological sites in Greece, perhaps this one was most memorable because of its mountainous settings on the southwestern slopes of Mt Parnassos. Indeed, the scenery dotted with ancient ruins and restored buildings certainly evoked the imagination in addition to photo ops. In fact, I’d say the scenery certainly made this experience what it was, but the museum further supplemented the visual treat outdoors.

Eptalofos (Agoriani) – In every one of our trips, we always seem to be encounter an off-the-beaten-path spot that doesn’t see many foreign tourists (if any). Well, for this trip, that place with this mountain village on Mt Parnassos, which even had a waterfall in its village square. Even though the place was primarily a weekend or Summer spot, we definitely appreciated the quiet ambience, which contrasted mightily to the more well-touristed spots seen on this trip.

Valanari Waterfall – This could very well be the closest waterfall that we visited to the Athens Airport (let alone Athens City). That’s saying something because it’s not often you can say Athens and Waterfalls in the same sentence. Anyways, I got the impression that it was more of a locals spot as opposed to a tourist spot. Regarding our visit, we saw locals who were seemingly disappointed with its flow (due to the drought), but it still flowed well enough for us (i.e. it wasn’t trickling or dry) though it had definitely seen better days.

Mykonos – This island of the Cyclades Archipelago was one of the famous ones though it had a reputation of being expensive as well as being a party spot. Well, on our visit, only the former was true because we might have gotten lucky showing up before the holiday season, which was said to start in May this year. We enjoyed the maze-like lanes that reminded me of the medinas we saw in Morocco. Of course, we also enjoyed the well-touristed spots like the Little Venice part, the Old Harbor, and the signature row of windmills. Combine all that with the white buildings accented with colorful doors and shutters, and it certainly felt like a signature Greek Island experience, for sure.

Delos – Similar to how Delphi’s ruins combined with its mountainous scenery made that experience stand out, I felt that the ruins of this tiny island held its own due to its own scenery of ruins among blue-green seas. It was a convenient ferry ride from Mykonos to get here, and we easily spent a solid 3+ hours to fully experience this place before our returning ferry took off. In any case, we really enjoyed stepping back in time on this island, which was quite the contrast to the more commercial vibes you get on Mykonos.

Routsouna’s Waterfall – Although this waterfall didn’t perform quite the way I would have liked with its flow, it was still better than nothing. That was saying something since the Cyclades Islands were certainly hit with drought (on top of their typically hot and dry climate). I definitely had to earn my visit with a bit of a hot and sunny hike, but I did see mountain goats as well as frogs along the way, plus interesting rock formations and the interestingly rustic mountain village of Keramoti.

Naxos Chora – This was the main town of Naxos Island, and it had a laid back charm all its own (at least compared to Oia in Santorini or Mykonos Town in Mykonos). It featured a castle at its tight Acropolis and there were labyrinths of narrow alleyways flanked by shops and residences. In a way, I felt like this was a less commercialized Mykonos, and that was saying something considering we were here in the “off season” before May.

Apollo Temple on Naxos – The bookend to our Spring Break Trip was this spot at sunset where it felt like all the tourists staying in the Chora (there weren’t that many to be honest) coming to this ruin near the ferry docks witnessing the sun going down and the twilight lighting over the town and the backing mountains and villages. Similar to the sunset at the end of Oia, this was up there in terms of memorable sights or moments that lasted well past the trip was over.

Naxos Beaches – This island is quite well-known for its beaches. That said, we managed to experience two of them – one at St George’s Beach right where we were staying and another one at St Prokopis Beach. Even though the beaches weren’t crazy busy during our visit, the laid back atmosphere and the blue-green waters combined with the fine sand were undeniably alluring. In fact, our visit to St Prokopis Beach was fit in right before we had to catch our flight, which of course we were glad to have gotten this experience!

Trip Advice

During our 11 days in Italy, we still had lessons to learn despite being seasoned veterans of visiting Italy and travel in general. It just goes to show you that no matter how well-traveled you think you are, there are always things that happen and experiences to be had to demonstrate to us that you can never know it all. So here are some of those humbling lessons that we took away from this trip…

Off-season: Greece was pleasantly not busy because they celebrated Easter based on a different calendar. It just so happened that this year, their Easter was in May, which meant places like Mykonos didn’t live up to its “party island” reputation. And that was fine by me. The same can also be said of most other places around Greece except for Athens and Nafplio (where the latter we did on a weekend so it was busy with Athenians).

High checked bag fee: If going to the islands, it might work out better if you don’t bring a roller and put them in luggage storage. That’s because we were charged 25 euros per checked luggage on the way to Mykonos, but we were charged 45 euros per checked luggage when going from Naxos back to Athens (even though we did our international flights without needing to pay to check anything in).

Greece Waterfall Performance: We were pleasantly surprised by how resilient they were on this trip. It made me regret not visiting the Aidonia Waterfall when we were staying in Nafplio. I guess that will have to happen on a future trip to Greece that’s more extensive than just this one week.

Pursuing Waterfalls in the Peloponnese: One thing I realized about our waterfall chasing in the Peloponnesian Peninsula was that most of the waterfalls involved some degree of adventurous driving. Perhaps that was the main reason why Greece Waterfalls were quite unknown on our first visit back in May 2010, and they still felt off-the-beaten-path on this trip. All I know is that if you’re self-driving to pursue these waterfalls, you definitely have to be honest about your driving abilities and be very careful on the unpaved roads (many of which have potholes or water-damaged ruts and gullies).

Competitive Parking: Parking can be quite scarce in most European cities and towns, but it felt like it was even more haphazard throughout Southern Greece on this trip. We definitely had our moments when it came to parking on sidewalks or needing guidance from accommodation proprietors to know where to park (especially in Nafplio, Naxos, Pylos, and even Agoriani). I guess that just comes with the territory when driving in Greece, and it’s why you’re often better off just finding a public parking area whenever you can before walking around the rest of the time in areas not conducive for self-driving.

Travel Itinerary

Days 0-1: Flight from LAX to Fiumicino and then connect to Athens

Overnight: Electra Metropolis Hotel (Athens, Greece)

This was a basically brutally long travel day where we flew out in the mid-afternoon and then we had to catch a connecting flight before finally taking a bus into the city center of Athens. After getting to our hotel at around 8:30pm, we let our daughter sleep while Julie and I did some scoping out of the area near the Monastiraki District, where we got some takeaway food as our “dinner”.

Day 2: Touring Athens

Overnight: Electra Metropolis Hotel (Athens, Greece)

On this day, we did a tour of the Acropolis and Acropolis Museum before visiting the Ancient Agora. By the end of the day, jetlag was kicking in so we just briefly soaked in the ambience of the Monastiraki Square and District before dinner, and then I did a brief exploration of Syntagma Square and the sunset on the rooftop of the hotel before we all crashed for the night.

Day 3: Drive from Athens to Nafplio

Overnight: Agamemnon Hotel (Nafplio, Greece)

After having breakfast at our hotel in Athens, we then returned to the airport to pick up the rental car. From there, we self-drove to Nafplio, where we got to experience the Palamidi Fortress as well as the old town itself. I think jetlag was still having an effect on this day because we opted to skip other excursions we had planned for the day like Epidavros and the Aidonia Waterfall (though the latter I was concerned about it not flowing due to drought).

Day 4: Drive from Nafplio to Methoni and Pylos

Overnight: Karalis City Hotel (Pylos, Greece)

This was a full day that started off in the pre-dawn hours with a long drive towards Kalamata and eventually the Polilimnio Waterfalls. Then, we visited Methoni Castle before visiting Pylos Castle and finally settling in our accommodation in Pylos. I managed to fit in one more late afternoon excursion to Kalamaris Waterfalls before crashing for the night.

Day 5: Drive from Pylos to Ancient Olympia

Overnight: Leonidaion Guesthouse (Ancient Olympia, Greece)

This was another long driving day, where after breakfast, we drove to the Neda Waterfalls then settled in the town of Olympia for some lunch. We divided-and-conquered where I did a solo run to the Nemouta Waterfalls before settling in to do a little shopping in town before dinner.

Day 6: Drive from Ancient Olympia to Delphi to Eptalofos

Overnight: To Balkoni tis Agorianis (Eptalofos, Greece)

This was yet another busy day of touring and long driving where we went to Delphi from Olympia. We toured Ancient Olympia and Delphi, and then we ended the day in Eptalofos or Agoriani. Before the day ended, we made sure to visit the waterfall in town.

Day 7: Drive from Eptalofos to the Athens Airport, then transport to Mykonos

Overnight: Semeli Hotel (Mykonos, Greece)

This was primarily a transit day, where after having breakfast in Eptalofos, we then made the long drive to the Athens Airport with a stop for the Valanari Waterfall. Then, once in Mykonos, we explored the main town for the rest of the day.

Day 8: Delos and Mykonos

Overnight: Semeli Hotel (Mykonos, Greece)

This was a day at leisure on Mykonos Island where we spent the morning visiting Delos before spending the rest of the afternoon exploring Mykonos.

Day 9: Transit from Mykonos to Naxos

Overnight: Ippokampos Beachfront (Naxos, Greece)

This was a busy day where we spent the better part of the morning ferrying from Mykonos to Naxos. Then, after getting the rental car, we divided-and-conquered where Julie and Tahia stayed at St George’s Beach while I did a solo excursion to the Routsouna’s Waterfall. Afterwards, we re-united and explored Naxos Chora while witnessing the sunset at the Apollo Temple.

Day 10: Transit from Naxos to Athens to Naxos

Overnight: Hilton Rome Airport (Fiumicino, Italy)

This was a brutally long day of spending lots of time in airports. After breakfast in Naxos, we then checked out St Prokopis Beach before transiting back to Athens via air. Then, we flew from Athens to Fiumicino late at night so we could overnight and do the long-haul flight first thing tomorrow morning.

Day 11: Flying Home

Overnight: Home (Los Angeles, California, USA)

On this day, we pretty much just walked to the airport, spent some time in the Priority Pass Lounge after having gone through a gauntlet of check-in, security, and passport control, and then did a long flight home.

Best Places We’ve Stayed At

Electra Metropolis Hotel (Athens) – This was a well-situated hotel between the Monastiraki Square and Syntagma Square in the city center of Athens. In addition to its location, it was a pretty high-end accommodation (so it wasn’t cheap), but it was comfortable as it helped us to get through our jetlag during our first days of the trip.

However, the biggest highlight of this stay was the rooftop, where we had awesome views of the Acropolis. In fact, every morning that we stayed here, we got to enjoy their excellent and varied buffet breakfast at the very rooftop restaurant where we could enjoy the views of the Acropolis as we ate. The freshly-squeezed orange juice was a nice touch, and it was no wonder that we made sure to enjoy the breakfast here (even getting us to skip lunch due to how stuffed we were)!

Karalis City Hotel (Pylos) – This low-key mom-and-pop accommodation was walking distance from the quaint town on the shores of Navarino Bay near its mouth with the Ionian Sea. We appreciated the kind hosts for recommendations as well as the breakfast, which they made sure to check on us making us feel as if we were their only guests!

That said, this place blew away our expectations when we checked into our room and found out that we had a corner room with a gorgeous view towards Navarino Bay as well as the town of Pylos. We had no problems opening all the shutters of the room and just let the natural light permeate everywhere. Even the furnishings were modern as well as comfortable, and it was definitely one of those times where the accommodation compelled us to not want to leave…

Ippokampos Beachfront (Naxos Chora) – This accommodation was more about the location and laid back atmosphere even though it was basic and there were some hiccups regarding the check-in. Nevertheless, it was enough for Julie to consider as one of her favorite stays on this trip mostly due to its proximity to St George’s Beach as well as the fully cooked breakfast (as opposed to the usual buffet fare), which was a nice touch.

Honorable Mention: Semeli Hotel (Mykonos City) -This place definitely wasn’t cheap since it’s on Mykonos, after all. However, we had to give this place its props because of the amenities (it was the only place where the situation was proper enough that we got to swim in a pool on this trip), the location (walking distance to the Old Harbor and the rest of the city), and the excellent buffet breakfast. The only thing Julie lamented was that it was not close to the water so the views were somewhat limited. I mean, in general, you get what you pay for, and this place certainly delivered for what we paid, which gives you an idea of how competitive it can get on this island as far as stays and restaurants are concerned.