The Argolid, citadel by citadel
A short, unhurried week based entirely in Nafplio, working outward each day to a single Bronze Age or classical site before returning for the evening square. No stop is more than forty-five minutes from the last.
- Length
- 5 days · 4 nights
- Months
- March – May, September – November
- Stops
- 4
The route on a map
1 · A day here
Corinth Canal
A brief stop on the drive south from Athens, before continuing to Mycenae.
2 · A day here
Mycenae
The Lion Gate and the Treasury of Atreus, walked in the cool of the morning.
3 · 4 nights
Nafplio
A Venetian port town with two fortresses, the single base for the whole itinerary.
4 · A day here
Epidaurus
The best-preserved ancient theatre in Greece, forty minutes from Nafplio.
Day by day
Day 1
Arrival via the canal
Sleep · Nafplio
Drive south from Athens, stopping at the Corinth Canal, and arrive in Nafplio for a walk around the harbour.
Day 2
Mycenae in the morning
Sleep · Nafplio
An early drive to walk the Lion Gate and the Treasury of Atreus before the heat, back for a late lunch.
Day 3
Palamidi and the old town
Sleep · Nafplio
The nine hundred and ninety-nine steps to the Palamidi fortress, and an afternoon in the old town.
Day 4
Epidaurus and the theatre
Sleep · Nafplio
Stand at the centre of the ancient theatre and speak in a normal voice; the sanctuary museum is worth the extra hour.
Day 5
Departure
Departure
A final market morning in Nafplio before the drive back to Athens airport; a departure day.