9 h. tour (Private tour)
(transportation + local guided tour of the archaeological site and museum of Delphi + stop at Arachova village + optional stop at Hosios Loukas monastery + free time)
Being in Athens and enjoying all of its great history and monuments, you shouldn't leave without visiting the "navel of the earth", Delphi, a site that has played an extremely important role at the evolution and political situation of ancient Athens and the rest of Greece.
Departing Athens with your private vehicle and driver, you will start heading north towards Delphi. On your way to Delphi your driver will give you information about all the places you will drive by, such as the area where the Marathon battle was fought.
Continuing through the highway you will pass one of the largest planes near Athens and drive by modern cities of Thebes and Levadia, before you will start driving up the mountain of Parnassus. Just before reaching Delphi, you will pass through the traditional village of Arachova, famous for the hand woven flokati rugs as well as its dairy products.
Once in Delphi, you will meet your tour guide and you will enjoy a private local guided tour of the archaeological museum in which one can see among other archaeological treasures, the unique bronze statue of the charioteer, the sphinx of Naxos, the friezes of remarkable treasury houses as well as remainings of the gold and ivory statues of Apollo and Artemis. You will then continue to the archaeological site and start climbing to reach the level of the Agora, before you enter the sacred way to the Athenian treasury, the stoa of Athens, the rock of Sybil and the temple of Apollo, where the Oracle was. After the end of your guided tour you will be able to climb higher to the ancient theater or even to the ancient stadium which is at least a 20 minute hike uphill but it's really worth it.
On your way down you can stop and drink water from the ancient sacred Kastalia spring, where all visitors would get purified, before entering the Oracle. Nearby lies the ancient gymnasium, the palaestra and the site of Athena Pronaia, the view of which you will be having from many parts of the site of Apollo and your guide will provide you with information about its history as well.
After your visit in Delphi, for which you will need approximately 2 hours, you can either enjoy some free time for lunch in the town of Delphi or in the village of Arachova which is on your way back to Athens.
Optionally, on the way to Athens, you can extend the tour's duration by making a deviation and a stop to visit the famous monastery of Hosios Loukas, a UNESCO monument built in the 10th century AD.
Back in Athens, you will be dropped you off either at your hotel, or another location of your preference.
