Driving route through Athens and surroundings: Five days in Ancient Greece

Greece is one of those destinations you must visit at least once in your life, its cultural influence has marked the destiny of our western civilization, it is an exciting place to drive through with your rental car. Ready for a 5-day road trip through Athens and Ancient Greece?

Day 1 and 2: Discovering Athens

We start our route through Classical Greece visiting Athens, its capital. Our first day begins with a visit to the Acropolis of Athens, the city’s most famous spot and one of the country’s most important places. There you will find some of the classical age’s most representative monuments: the Parthenon, its main building dedicated to Athena, the goddess of wisdom; the Erechtheion, the Temple of Athena Nike and the Propylaea.

Continue your route wandering through the old streets of the city; go see the Theater of Dionysus, the Ancient Agora, the Temple of Hephaestus and the Stoa of Attalos. This was the city’s heart, where the Athenians made their social, political and commercial life. Continue your walk through the city reaching to the Roman Agora and the Tower of the Winds, an old solar clock, or the Library of Hadrian, of which there is hardly anything left today.

During your second day in the city we recommend you to visit the Plaka neighborhood, known as the neighborhood of the Gods, one of the city’s most beautiful and lively areas. Go for a stroll through Anafiotika and visit the souk-like Monastiraki neighborhood, , one of the main shopping areas where you can buy assorted souvenirs. Walk through its alleyways and make sure to taste its delicious cuisine, we recommend the Mousakka and the Souvlaki

Día 3: Epidaurus, Mycenae, Lagkadia, Olympia

On the third day, get ready to do some driving towards the Peloponnese Peninsula, where two of Ancient Greece’s main cities are waiting for us: Epidaurus and Mycenae.

Visit the Ancient Theater of Epidaurus, one of the world’s most important and best preserved. From there, continue your journey to Mycenae, our next stop, where you can visit one of the most outstanding enclaves of the Greek legacy: The tomb of King Agamemnon and the Acropolis of Mycenae; pay a visit to its palace, with special attention to the Lion's Gate.

We continue driving to Lagkadia, an old mountain village. Lower your windows and enjoy the landscape until we get to Olimpia, just 1 hour drive away, where the Olympic Games were born, its main attraction is the original stadium where competitions were held almost 3000 years ago.

Day 4: Arachova, Osiou Louka Monastery, Delphi

On the fourth day we drive to Delphi, but not before making stops along the way to see some of the most important towns in Classical Greece. Our first stop will be the mountainous village of Arachova, on the slopes of Mount Parnassus, an perfect location for winter sports, as it has important ski centers. From there we go to the Osiou Louka Monastery, one of Greece’s most important Byzantine monuments, dedicated to a Greek hermit who died in 953 AD. The monastery has two churches, a large one called Katholikon and a smaller one, Theotokos, where you can see the impressive mosaics made during the golden age of Byzantine art.

We continue our road trip visiting the city of Delphi, an ancient spiritual retreat place that can only be accessed by road. The Greeks believed that Delphi was the center of the world, many of them made a pilgrimage there to visit the Oracle of Delphi and receive the advice of Pythia and her famous oracle , serviced by a group of women who had supernatural powers given by the God Apollo. Visit the Temple of Apollo and the Archaeological Museum of Delphi, where you can see the sculpture of the Auriga of Delphi.

Day 5: Lamia, Thermopylae, Kalambaka, Meteora, return to Athens

On the fifth day of our driving route through Greece, we visit Lamia, where you can see its Archaeological Museum and the thermal waters of Loutra Thermopilon. The road connecting this small town with Athens goes near the famous "Thermopylae Pass", especially known for the movie "300", where Leonidas and his 300 Spartans defended the location to death in order to stop the invasion of the Persian Empire during the Second Greco-Persian War.

From Lamia we get to Kalamba, two hours from Thermopylae, the gateway to the famous Greek region of Meteora, a natural valley with monasteries suspended in the sky. Among them, we recommend visiting the Agia Trias and the Agios Stefanos.

Get ready to enjoy a trip to the unparalleled past with your car rental in Athens, touring Ancient Classical Greece’s major cities.