9-Day Ultimate Greek Experience: Peloponnese, Delphi, Zagori, Meteora, Vergina

Posted By : Passport40284759829
We recently took this multi-day tour with Eudaimonia Private Tours and we cannot say enough about the experience! Prior to the trip, Nikos was extremely responsive to all our questions and requests to ensure the agenda was planned according to our schedule and preferences. We were able to spend time with him on our first day in Greece and he was very professional, courteous, and educated on the sights we visited.

After the first day we spent the remaining days with our guide, Theo, who was top notch! Like Nikos, he is also very well versed in Grecian history and was able to provide great information at each of our sights. He is also professional, punctual (which is extremely important to us) and all around enjoyable to spend time with.

Regarding the agenda itself, we were very pleased with all the sights we visited. The pace and timing of the tour worked very well as we were able to experience many different areas of Greece but not feel rushed at any of them. The hotels in which we stayed were all top quality with either great views, unique ambiance, or a combination of both. And we cannot say enough about the food…every meal was delicious!

We highly recommend Eudaimonia if you plan to visit Greece! You won’t be disappointed!
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Posted On : 2024-04-24 09:11:57

Posted By : Connector30539
The 9-Day Ultimate Greece Tour is the best vacation that my wife and I have taken in the last 40 years. We both recently retired and after some discussion and based on previous experience with weather and crowds, we decided to visit Greece during the Fall of 2023. One of our friends had been to Santorini and took some incredible photos that kind of tilted us toward the islands as a focus. But after some reading and watching some youtube videos, we realized that Greece has a lot more to offer than just Athens and the islands.

We’ve already visited several countries in Europe and in 2021 we enjoyed a great trip with a private guide company in Portugal. We like history, walking, and prefer to not waste time shopping, which every bus tour we’ve been on in the past seems to require. We also did not want to rent a car because of the stress of driving in a foreign country with the new rules, signs, expected behavior, parking, navigating in narrow city streets, and so on. This led to the conclusion that a private guided tour in a car with a driver fit our needs.

We wanted to see some of Greece’s amazing archeological sites. Examples included the walled city at Mycenae, Olympia where the original Olympic games were held, the City of Corinth made famous in the Apostle Paul’s letters to the Corinithians, the incredibly well-preserved theater at Epidaurus, King Phillip’s tomb at Vergina, Messene, Delphi, and on and on. We wanted to visit as many of them as possible in about two weeks’ time.

Given the locations of these sites, the distances between them and our preference for a private guided tour, we did quite a bit of web searching for a company that could drive us around and provide local guides at selected locations. We were concerned about the trustworthiness of the agencies we read about. Dealing with someone over the internet, arranging a vacation, and paying in advance before one shows up in the country is inherently risky. You don’t really know for sure whether the companies you contact actually exist or whether they are just a website with no one behind it.

We researched several companies and eventually settled on Eudaimonia. We were especially attracted to their 9 Day Ultimate Greece Tour because it took us to many of the locations we wanted to visit plus some that we hadn’t even thought of before. As we were considering Eudaimonia, we set up a Zoom call with Nikos, the owner of the company, and chatted with him about the itinerary. Based on his recommendations, we added a one-day visit to Hydra Island so we could get a taste of the island experience and one day in the Arcadia mountain village of Dimitsana, for a total of 11 days. The Zoom call also allowed us to meet Nikos and allayed any trust issues we might have had. He came across as well organized and professional and we decided to go ahead and book the trip.

Nikos reserved the hotels in each town as well as guides we requested at Corinth, Delphi, Messene, and Olympia. Nikos personally vets each hotel and guide and we were totally impressed by all these arrangements. The hotels were clean, quiet, comfortable, friendly and provided great breakfasts. They spanned a range from unique boutique facilities in small towns such as Galaxidi that had a balcony overlooking a town square, a hotel room with a balcony view of monasteries in Meteora, and the five-star resort in Mystras. The hotels were all different from one another and were part of creating a unique experience on a daily basis.

The lunches were all wonderful. Nikos’s team has done this trip many times and they know the restaurants that provide consistently excellent quality food. Every day was something different and we eventually sampled most of the dishes that are on a typical Greek food tour. We had chatted briefly with our guide about our dietary preferences (low carb as much as possible), and asked him to go ahead and order for us. He did a great job. Every day we were stuffed and had no room for dinner. As a matter of fact, I was getting a bit worried that I might be gaining weight but I was pleasantly surprised when I returned home and found that I had actually lost two pounds! That was icing on the cake for this vacation 😊.

Since we would be spending 11 days with one person who would be driving, taking care of local arrangements, lunch, etc. we wondered about who would be our guide. We were extremely happy with Theo. He is a super safe driver and was respectful and professional throughout the trip. In addition to all of that, he has a Master’s degree in archeology! Considering that we would be visiting so many archeological sites, we considered ourselves lucky to have him with us and available for questions at any time. He was always diplomatic, calm, friendly, enthusiastic, well informed, and someone who we looked forward to spending time with every day. Without a doubt, he was the key factor for success in our over-the-top enjoyment of this vacation.

The day-to-day experience of the trip was smooth as silk. Theo would tell us the night before when the breakfast began and when we would leave the hotel. We made sure we were ready to go on time, hopped in the car, and off we went. We had the same car throughout the trip and every day Theo stocked it with more than enough cold, bottled water. Nikos called Theo almost daily from mission control in Athens, got updates on our progress and provided information about future stops. That was nice. In one case, the train in Kalavryta was out of service because of a landslide the previous day and Nikos told Theo about it so that we didn’t waste time and could proceed with an alternate (which turned out to be some hikes and the totally cool Mega Spilaio monastery that’s built into the side of a mountain).

As we were finalizing our arrangements with Nikos before going to Greece, he encouraged us to place our deposit as soon as possible so he could book the best hotel rooms for us. That was totally understandable and resulted in us getting some amazing accommodations including a room in the castle at Monemvasia overlooking the sunrise on the Aegean Sea. There was an additional aspect of early payment that Nikos might deny and that was his arrangement of the weather 😊. We had perfect conditions between Oct. 11 and Oct. 22, 2023. It was sunny and about 70 degrees every day and there was no rain. This is shoulder season in Greece and was a great time for our trip.

We had many pleasant experiences that were not on our radar before we left. The thing that sticks out the most are the warm and friendly people we met. Some examples include the guides who made the sites come to life, the lady who prepared breakfast at Ioannina, the owners and staff of the hotel in Dimitsana who went out of their way to do our laundry and make omelets and apple pie for us, the owner of the restaurant at Areopoli who was eager for us to try her zucchini pie, etc., etc. These folks all contributed to creating pleasant memories about our trip to Greece that will last a lifetime.

Our incredibly positive experience is because of the hard work and preparation of Nikos and Theo. If you’re thinking about a similar trip, I can wholeheartedly and without reservation recommend Eudaimonia’s 9-Day Ultimate Greece Tour. It exposed us to the extremely rich and fascinating history and culture of Greece that we would have missed if we had only visited Athens and Santorini. We will be eternally grateful to Nikos and Theo for making this possible. They are a great team!

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Posted On : 2023-11-19 17:28:32

Posted By : S09-J03
We are ‘that couple’ who always reads the reviews of others before we book a trip but then we never take the time to write one ourselves, that is until now. We felt that our private 7-night and 8-day Peloponnese Tour with Eudaimonia went way beyond anything we had anticipated or were expecting. So much so that it most certainly warranted a review. Eudaimonia is a small local company that clearly has a mission to make their clients’ “Greek Experience” not only enjoyable, but also memorable. Our stress-free and worry-free experience was extraordinary and well-worth the cost. This was a first personal tour, and it will certainly not be our last. Having a local expert plan your itinerary to maximize your experience, drive us door-to-door to all the sites in comfort, simply enhanced our vacation and gave us the most bang for our limited time in Greece.

From the very beginning, when we read the company’s description it was clear that we had found the right match for our Greek holiday. Afterall, Eudamonia means “good spirit” or “happiness” and the key words on the company website that resonated with us were “authentic”, “off the beaten path”, and “culinary”. In all three cases, the tour was true to its promise.

The booking process was simple and straight forward. The communications with the owner (Nikos) were expeditious and thorough, as he worked with us to amend and fine tune our selections, providing input and suggestions as he built our itinerary. We took our time to discuss different options, and then opted for the 5-day Peloponnese Tour with an additional three days to include some customized features, like Delphi and Hydra Island.

Nikos hand-picks his tour leaders, who are very personable and all speak English fluently, have great local knowledge of the sites, are excellent drivers, and who can provide lots of tips and background on the various destinations. Our tour leader (Theo) also had studied Ancient History and Archeology at university, so he was able to provide lots of facts and figures on the way to each site we visited. In essence, we had a tour guide in the car highlighting the must-see items. But our tour was much more than just ruins, we saw caves, rode a mountain train, ate authentic Greek cuisine, and stayed in some amazing places.

In fact, one guarantee that Nikos provides is the well-being of his clients. He had pre-selected all the hotels and restaurants, based on our preferences, which we had discussed during the booking process. Breakfasts and lunches were part of the Tour costs, and Theo offered to order all our lunch meals, selecting the items that we preferred. Even though suppers were on our dime, Theo was able to provide excellent recommendations and actually drove us to and from the restaurant in the evening if our hotel was too far out-of-town. Theo has a calm demeanor, was always eager to please, and was always on standby ready to respond to our “WhatsApp” text.

Attention to detail is another feature were appreciated. The accommodations were top notch and obviously carefully picked for their vistas, their ambiance or their facilities, and often it was a combination of these. The car was CLEAN, spacious and comfortable, and we had ample bottled water available to us. The food was delicious. We went to what were more ‘off the beaten path’ places and ate until we were stuffed (sometimes more than we should have but it was so good).

We strongly recommend Eudaimonia and in particular our great tour leader Theo to anyone looking for the ultimate Greek experience.
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Posted On : 2023-05-22 16:39:35

Posted By : patricke953
We took the 9 day tour which we extended to 10 days after some excellent input from Nikos.
The whole trip was superb. Everything about it was great. Before we went we found your website easy and informative, and you went to so much trouble to find out what we liked and then to advise us what to do - it was easy for us to make a decision to travel with you. We also appreciated your attention to detail; for example the itinerary booklets you provided and the excellent hotels you chose including showers with screens rather than curtains! It felt as though you really wanted us to enjoy our travel with you.
The itinerary you recommended enabled us to see some of the best of Greece - historical sites, wonderful country, geographic wonders and probably most of all your friendly and so welcoming fellow Greeks. We felt as though we were the most welcome guests at the hotels, restaurants, bars and sites, and this all made our trip really enjoyable.
I must make some comments about Theo, our guide and driver. He was the best guide we could hope for. Helpful, knowledgeable, and always considerate for what we wanted to do (or not do) - bearing in mind my advancing years! For us, it was as if we were being escorted by a friend not a guide. One of the things we enjoyed most was his enthusiasm for Greece - its culture, history, food, landscape - he clearly loved his country and wanted to share his love with us. And we really appreciated it. He is a credit to your company.
For anyone considering a tour in Greece I can recommend Eudaimonia - you will not be disappointed!!
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Posted On : 2023-05-09 10:05:59

Posted By : raymondbT6816TO
This trip is a fantastic way to see a large portion of mainland Greece. The itinerary covers a number of historical sites and small mountain villages and offers authentic Greek experiences at every stop. I would highly recommend this tour and Nikos my guide was fantastic. He worked hard to ensure that each day was a new adventure, and the meals were a real highlight. The places we stayed were all excellent and the people that we met along the way were always friendly and helpful and I had so many opportunities to take some great photos. I would definitely do this trip again.
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Posted On : 2022-10-10 02:44:11

Posted By : evelynpT7567WN
My husband and I recently did the nine day private tour of the Peloponnese and northern Greece with Theo as our guide/driver. It was an absolutely wonderful experience and I would highly recommend this tour. We were able to experience the highlights of Greece in a relaxed manner, without the stress of driving, or needing to book hotels, etc. We saw places I had near heard of & enjoyed the mix of the Peloponnese and northern Greece. The hotels were very clean and provided unique experiences. We ate delicious authentic Greek food at lunch. Nikos, who organized the trip, took into account our interests and paid meticulous attention to detail, which made the trip all the more special. Theo, our guide/driver, was wonderful! He was informative and provided insight into Greek culture. He was flexible, personable, had a great sense of humor, and was overall great company. We had always thought we would never do a private tour, however, this trip has changed our minds. A big thank you Nikos and Theo for a vacation in Greece that we will always remember as one of our best.
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Posted On : 2022-05-18 14:55:24

Posted By : Dine616
Thank you Nikos! Your personal attention to detail and comprehensive knowledge of Greece resulted in an epic experience.

Nikos helped us to organize this trip through several Emails and calls in an effort to get to know us. This was so he could understand our needs, likes, dislikes and develop a wonderful itinerary that included so many special places and experiences all over Greece. Most importantly in addition to his knowledge, Nikos loves his homeland and this is reflected in everything his does.

Nikos expertly drove us approximately 5000 km (3100 miles) through all kinds of terrain and weather- even snow while always being safe and sensitive to our comfort as passengers. During our time with him, we visited so many special and unique places where he shared with us the culture, history and cuisine of this amazing country. We travelled all over Greece and loved so many places especially Meteora, Vergina, Ioannina, Mystras, Nafplio, Dimitsana and, our personal favorite, Monemvasia.- just to name a few!

This trip took us north to Macedonia and south to the Peloponnese and we visited many important archaeological sites including Mycenae, Olympia, Delphi, and Epidaurus. With his guidance we separately visited the lovely islands of Hydra and Spetses. Nikos also helped us organize our own visits to Santorini, Corfu and Athens as well.

When with him, Nikos made sure to provide an authentic experience in Greece with his choice of lodging and restaurants avoiding the tourist traps. He has an in depth knowledge of the countryside and again he always demonstrated expert handling of the roads when driving making sure we felt safe and comfortable. Nikos showed attention to every detail by calling ahead to ensure that everything would be arranged and ready for us. He did whatever he could to keep us safe and protected during this difficult time with Covid and the Omicron variant raging globally, always providing hand sanitizer and reminders about masks and social distancing. He even arranged and followed up on our Covid testing requirements for the remainder of our travels.

Our experience in Greece would not have been complete without our new friend Nikos. Thank you so much for everything! Memories and photos will always remind us of how truly special our adventure was with Eudaimonia Tours.
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Posted On : 2021-12-26 04:18:41