Meteora Full Day Private Tour from Athens including Lunch
Description
Explore the UNESCO World Heritage Site at Meteora, a rock formation in central Greece hosting one of the largest and most precipitously built complexes of Eastern Orthodox monasteries on this private, full-day excursion from Athens. Travel in private, air-conditioned vehicles and get around all the sites your group is interested in visiting within the extensive mountain complex before returning comfortably to Athens. • Walk around the rock formations and visit up to three of the monasteries for an up-close look at ancient hermit life • Take photos and create lifelong memories at this picturesque yet imposing natural beauty • Enjoy authentic Greek food in Kastraki village • Return to Athens via Thermopylae, hearing battle tales along the way where 300 Spartans fought 100,000 Persians
Tour Options
Itinerary
We start our tour early in the morning from Athens till Meteora. Our driver will pick you up from your hotel/ apartment or the airport/ port. The travel time is about 4,5 hours.
Kalabaka is a town and seat of the municipality of Meteora in the Trikala regional unit, part of Thessaly in Greece. The population was 12,000 at the 2011 census, of which 8,330 in the town proper. The Meteora monasteries are located near the town.
We arrive at Meteora and visit up to three Monasteries. Breathtaking at first site, the Monasteries are of great cultural and natural importance. Split from earthquakes, weathered from the wind and the water over millions of millions of years, these immense rocks are an authentic masterpiece of mother nature. The Meteora is a rock formation in central Greece hosting one of the largest and most precipitously built complexes of Eastern Orthodox Monasteries. The six (of an original 24) monasteries are built on immense natural pillars and hill-like rounded boulders that dominate the local area. Meteora is included on the UNESCO World Heritage List and the name means "lofty", "elevated", and is etymologically related to meteor. Please be modestly dressed. Women are suggested to wear long skirts & long sleeves. If you do not have, you will be given a skirt on your way in.
Free time for lunch at a traditional Greek tavern with your friends and family or shopping at Kastraki, a picturesque village near Meteora.
Thermopylae is a place in Greece where a narrow coastal passage existed in antiquity. It derives its name from its hot sulphur springs. In Greek mythology the Hot Gates is one of the entrances to Hades. Thermopylae is the site of a battle between the Greek forces and the invading Persian forces, commemorated by Simonides of Ceos in the famous epitaph, "Go tell the Spartans, stranger passing by, That here obedient to their laws we lie." Thermopylae is the only land route large enough to bear any significant traffic between Lokris and Thessaly. To go from north to south along the east coast of the Balkan peninsula requires use of the pass, and so Thermopylae has been the site of several battles.
As we leave the magnificent Meteora behind us, let us not overlook the Battle of Thermopylae of 480 BCE, which has long been the topic of cultural motivation, as it is perhaps the most famous military last stand of all time. The monument of the Great Leonidas, King of Sparta, in Thermopylae, will grace our path on our way back to Athens in the late afternoon. Thermopylae is world-famous for the battle that took place there between the Greek forces (notably the Spartans, Lakedemonians, Thebans and Thespians) and the invading Persian forces, commemorated by Simonides in the famous epitaph, "Go tell the Spartans, stranger passing by, That here obedient to their laws we lie."
Leonidas was a king of the Greek city-state of Sparta, and the 17th of the Agiad line, a dynasty which claimed descent from the mythological demigod Heracles and Cadmus. Leonidas was son of King Anaxandridas II. He succeeded his half-brother King Cleomenes I to the throne in c. 489 BC. Leonidas had a notable participation in the Second Persian War, where he led the allied Greek forces to a last stand at the Battle of Thermopylae (480 BC) while attempting to defend the pass from the invading Persian army; he died at the battle and entered myth as the leader of the 300 Spartans. While the Greeks lost this battle, they were able to expel the Persian invaders in the following year.
We start our way back to Athens late in the afternoon. The drive is about 4,5 hours.
Highlights
What's included
Pickup Locations & Times
This private tour is exclusively for your group, ensuring a personalized and flexible experience. Pickup time can be adjusted upon request. Your driver can pick you up and drop you off either at the same location or at different locations of your choice within Athens. * Hotel pickups: Your driver will be waiting in the hotel lobby. * Apartment pickups: Your driver will be waiting outside the building entrance. * Cruise port pickups: Your driver will meet you at the disembarkation gate, holding a sign with your name for easy identification. * Airport pickups: Your driver will be waiting in the arrivals hall holding a sign with your name. We monitor all incoming flights to ensure a timely pickup, even in case of delays.
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- Infants are required to sit on an adult’s lap
- Specialized infant seats are available
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
- Our drivers are not official tour guides, but they are knowledgeable and can provide fascinating commentary in fluent English. Although they will not enter the sites with you, they can answer all of your questions about the places you visit with this tour.
- Third party activities and especially extreme sports are not allowed during the tour. This can be a cause for immediate cancellation of the tour.
Reviews(137)
We were prepared for an incredible experience, which is exactly what we got. The bonus we were not expecting was our fantastic guide Dimitris Tabone! He was extremely knowledgeable and was kind enough to answer a barrage of questions. Dimitris made and amazing experience exceptional. I would highly recommend this trip as well as our guide to everyone!!
Thank you very much for your wonderful review! We are delighted to hear that you enjoyed your experience with us. Your kind words truly mean a lot to our team and motivate us to continue providing the best possible service to our guests. It was our pleasure to be part of your trip to Greece, and we hope to welcome you again in the future! Thank you once again for choosing us.
Alex was a fantastic host, driver, and communicator. He is extremely knowledgeable and helped us understand the history behind each location we visited. Would highly recommend!
Thank you very much for your wonderful review! We are delighted to hear that you enjoyed your experience with us. Your kind words truly mean a lot to our team and motivate us to continue providing the best possible service to our guests. It was our pleasure to be part of your trip to Greece, and we hope to welcome you again in the future! Thank you once again for choosing us.
Driver Alex was awesome! Very clean and comfortable car and had cold bottled water available He is very knowledgeable about Greece/Athens history and happy to answer our questions. Would definitely recommend him to others.
Thank you very much for your wonderful review! We are delighted to hear that you enjoyed your experience with us. Your kind words truly mean a lot to our team and motivate us to continue providing the best possible service to our guests. It was our pleasure to be part of your trip to Greece, and we hope to welcome you again in the future! Thank you once again for choosing us.
We really enjoyed spending the day with our wonderful driver, Alex. We couldn’t have had a better experience. Alex was professional, courteous, and knowledgeable on Greek history and had an impressive collection of music to entertain us on the drive. We also stopped at the Battle of thermopylae Museum and Memorial on the way to Meteora. Pictures don’t do justice to the sights of the monasteries. We were so impressed by Alex that we scheduled a tour to the Temple of Poseidon with him for the next day. I highly recommend My Athens Transfers.
Thank you very much for your wonderful review! We are delighted to hear that you enjoyed your experience with us. Your kind words truly mean a lot to our team and motivate us to continue providing the best possible service to our guests. It was our pleasure to be part of your trip to Greece, and we hope to welcome you again in the future! Thank you once again for choosing us.
Be prepared for lots and lots of stairs. Did I mention stairs? Oh yes, there are stairs but the views are almost magical.
Thank you very much for your wonderful review! We are delighted to hear that you had a great experience with us. Our team works hard to provide memorable transfers and tours, and excellent service, so your kind words truly mean a lot. We hope to welcome you again in the future and wish you many more great travels ahead!
Scenic beautiful drive to Meteora in a comfortable vehicle with George. There were 4 of us but we paid just a little more to get a Large Van since we knew we’d be on the road for 4 hours each way. George picked us up at 6:30am and we arrived to Meteora about 4 hours later with a bathroom and coffee/breakfast pickup in between. George recommended 2 monasteries and gave us an opportunity to visit another one or add more panoramic stops; we chose the panoramic stops as it’s absolutely beautiful there. There were many large buses at the Monasteries and we were glad that we had George and our private vehicle as we could pick how long we wanted at each stop vs a set schedule. Lunch was a good selection and reasonably priced. Overall tour was about 12 hours and worth it.
Thank you very much for your wonderful review! We are delighted to hear that you had a great experience with us. Our team works hard to provide memorable transfers and tours, and excellent service, so your kind words truly mean a lot. We hope to welcome you again in the future and wish you many more great travels ahead!
Scenic beautiful drive to Meteora in a comfortable vehicle with George. There were 4 of us but we paid just a little more to get a Large Van since we knew we’d be on the road for 4 hours each way. George picked us up at 6:30am and we arrived to Meteora about 4 hours later with a bathroom and coffee/breakfast pickup in between. George recommended 2 monasteries and gave us an opportunity to visit another one or add more panoramic stops; we chose the panoramic stops as it’s absolutely beautiful there. There were many large buses at the Monasteries and we were glad that we had George and our private vehicle as we could pick how long we wanted at each stop vs a set schedule. Lunch was a good selection and reasonably priced. Overall tour was about 12 hours and worth it.
Thank you very much for your wonderful review! We are delighted to hear that you had a great experience with us. Our team works hard to provide memorable transfers and tours, and excellent service, so your kind words truly mean a lot. We hope to welcome you again in the future and wish you many more great travels ahead!
Our driver was very attentive, very knowledgeable and courteous.
Thank you very much for your wonderful review! We are delighted to hear that you had a great experience with us. Our team works hard to provide memorable transfers and tours, and excellent service, so your kind words truly mean a lot. We hope to welcome you again in the future and wish you many more great travels ahead!
Worth making this trip to Meteora!! Sceneries was nice and amazing! The Driver ~ Πανος Κολοβος is nice and friendly.
Thank you very much for your wonderful review! We are delighted to hear that you had a great experience with us. Our team works hard to provide memorable transfers and tours, and excellent service, so your kind words truly mean a lot. We hope to welcome you again in the future and wish you many more great travels ahead!
Well worth the time. Beautiful scenery.Tour was on time and a comfortable drive. Dimitris was a pleasure to deal with and made sure we had everything we needed.Restaurant we went to for lunch was good but the service left much to be desired -starters served before the drinks and the main served at the same time as drinks - all within 5 min. Restaurant is a pass and was not a nice end to the tour - felt rushed and waiter was not interested in providing service. Food was good - service ruined it.
Thank you very much for your kind review and for rating your experience 4 out of 5 stars. We’re really glad to hear that you enjoyed the beautiful scenery and found the tour comfortable and well organized. It’s also great to know that Dimitris took good care of you and helped make your day enjoyable. We truly appreciate your feedback regarding the restaurant. While we’re pleased that you liked the food, we’re sorry that the service did not meet expectations and affected the overall experience. This is certainly not the standard we aim for, and we will take your comments into account when reviewing our recommendations. Please also note that as this is a private tour, the itinerary — including lunch stops — can always be adjusted based on your preferences, and we’re more than happy to suggest alternative options. Thank you again for your feedback, and we hope to welcome you back for an even better experience in the future.
