Greek Islands & Dalmatian Coast Retreat

After flying into Athens International Airport, look forward to a warm welcome and a private transfer to your hotel in the city center. After checking in, the day is yours, but we highly recommend taking our Unforgettable Greece Exclusive optional welcome tour, which also includes a dinner reservation at one of our favorite restaurants.

This exclusive experience is a great way to get you oriented to the city’s layout while your guide points out key sights and reveals insight into daily Athenian life. It’s like having a local friend or family member show you around, complete with insider tips and opportunities to ask questions, enhancing independent exploration.

You’ll have your own private guide for a tour that begins right from your hotel. Follow the local expert to the legendary Acropolis for an in-depth exploration. Ascending the hill, you’ll see magnificent landmarks like the Propylaea gateway, the Temple of Athena Nike, and the Erechtheion, but none may be as powerful emotionally as the iconic Parthenon.

Standing before this enduring symbol of democracy, imagine what it would have to say if it could speak, having watched over the Greek capital for nearly 25 centuries. Your guide will provide insight into the stories behind the world-class monuments, bringing them all to life.

Meals Included:

Breakfast

Experience Included:

Private Acropolis tour

Escape the buzz of the capital with a day tour from Athens to Hydra Island.

The excursion begins with a private transfer in a luxury vehicle to the Port of Piraeus. Hop aboard the ferry for a two-hour journey across the Saronic Gulf where you’ll arrive in Hydra Town, where you might feel as if you’re stepping back in time.

As motor vehicles aren’t permitted, locals and visitors alike travel on foot, by cart, donkey, or water taxi. Stroll the waterfront and winding cobbled lanes lined with their stately stone mansions, stopping to take in a panoramic view across the island out to the sea.

Meals Included:

Breakfast

Experience Included:

Private day trip to Hydra island

After checking out of your hotel in Athens, our driver will meet you to provide a private transfer to the port where you’ll catch your high-speed ferry bound for Paros. Upon arrival, another driver will be waiting to provide private transport to your hotel on the island, with the rest of the day yours. Paros is known for its long stretches of soft sand, perfect for relaxing with a spectacular view.

Book a dinner at one of Naousa’s top Greek restaurants and soak in the atmosphere, watching the world go by in a truly enchanting setting

Meals Included:
Breakfast

A private transfer brings you to Alyki village for a private half-day RIB boat tour with snacks and beverages provided onboard for the journey. Look forward to a trip that blends striking natural beauty with a bit of history in a serene setting far from any tourist crowds. Gliding across the Paros-Antiparos Strait toward Antiparos, you might pass the picturesque sands of Fameromeni Beach before stopping to snorkel or dive in the clear aquamarine waters found in sea caves and off the rugged coast.

If time allows, you’ll also enjoy secluded Despotiko before returning to Paros, taking a private transfer back to your hotel.

Meals Included:
Breakfast

Experience Included:

Private boat tour to Antiparos and Despotiko

Paros is renowned for its beaches, with some of the best in the Greek Islands. You might want to spend your day at leisure soaking up the sun on idyllic stretches like Golden Beach. It offers various watersports, loungers, and umbrellas for a day that can combine relaxation and activities.

Alternatively, get to know Paros more in-depth with an optional private island tour starting from Parikia, the historic capital. Highlights include the Frankish Castle, Old Agora, and the Byzantine Panagia Ekatontapyliani church.

Discover Naousa’s Venetian Castle, and venture into the mountains to Lefkes, concluding with a sunset over Parikia Bay from Agioi Anargyroi.

Meals Included:
Breakfast

Our driver will meet you at your hotel upon checkout for a private transfer to the port where you’ll board a high-speed ferry to Santorini. Get ready to marvel at one of the country’s most dramatic views on the approach to the port, where you’ll come face-to-face with the towering caldera cliffs, rising dramatically from the sea. After that awe-inspiring look, another driver will bring you to your hotel on the island via private transfer.

Once you’ve checked in, the remainder of the day is yours. Perhaps enjoy the stunning scenery with a glass of local volcanic wine like Vinsanto.

Meals Included:
Breakfast

A foodie’s dream, look forward to a unique culinary experience that links food, culture, and local life. It starts by exploring the narrow streets of Megalochori with its traditional architecture. Afterward, you’ll head to a local bio-farm to learn about Santorini’s farming practices, distinctly different from most due to the volcanic soil.

The highlight is your farm-to-table cooking class. Getting hands-on, you’ll use local ingredients, ranging from white eggplant, kapari, and fava to watermelon, depending on the season.

Next, guided instruction will allow you to prepare traditional island dishes that you’ll get to enjoy at the end of the experience, alongside other local bites.

Meals Included:
Breakfast

Experience Included:

Private Farm to table cooking class and traditional lunch

A day of leisure provides time to relax and unwind, perhaps heading to the black sands of Perissa and Perivolos, which form a long, continuous stretch of volcanic coastline with crystal-clear blue waters. Or get active by hiking the trail linking Fira and Oia, traveling the edge of the caldera cliffs.

Consider our optional private tour focused on the island sights, tastes, and aromas. It can be customized to your interests, such as visiting historic wineries where you can sample unique island wines alongside regional delicacies, exploring less-visited traditional villages, visiting historic sites like Akrotiri, and discovering Santorini’s most impressive views.

Meals Included:
Breakfast

It will soon be time to say farewell to Santorini. Return to the Greek mainland by taking a private transfer to the airport, where you’ll catch your flight to Athens, connecting to Split, Croatia. Upon arrival at Split’s airport, enjoy a private transfer to your hotel in the city center. The remainder of the day is yours, whether you prefer to unwind or explore.

The Riva (waterfront promenade) is lovely for strolling, providing scenic harbor views on one side with a variety of vendors, wine bars, and eateries on the other. This is also an ideal area for people watching and stunning sunset views.

Meals Included:
Breakfast

This afternoon, join a local gourmet guide to visit some of the city’s top gastronomic spots while strolling the ancient streets of Diocletian’s Palace. It’s the perfect opportunity to sample some of Split’s tastiest eats and marvel at some of the world’s most magnificently preserved Roman architecture, including St. Dominus Cathedral, the world’s oldest Catholic cathedral still in use. While consecrated in the 7th-century, its roots date to 295 AD.

Savor handmade pasta and fresh seafood at a traditional konoba restaurant, enjoy tastings of local red and white wines, and pop into the city’s oldest pastry shop to try the traditional pastries and creamy gelato.

Meals Included:
Breakfast

Experience Included:
Private Split Tour with food tasting

This afternoon, enjoy a leisurely day in Split, exploring at your own pace. Wander the ancient, winding streets of Diocletian’s Palace, popping into artisan shops, local markets, and charming cafés.

Take time to stroll along the Riva promenade, feel the sea breeze, watch boats drift by, and perhaps relax at a café with a cup of Dalmatian coffee. If you like, explore hidden corners of the palace, discover quaint courtyards, or sit in one of the lively squares to watch street performers and local life unfold.

For a scenic touch, climb the bell tower of St. Domnius Cathedral for panoramic views of the city and the sparkling Adriatic.

Meals Included:
Breakfast

After checking out of your Split hotel, our driver will meet you for the private transfer to the port where you’ll board the ferry to sunny Hvar Island. Not only is it known for its frequent sunshine, but beautiful landscapes, with everything from postcard-perfect sands lapped by turquoise water to lavender fields and lush hills covered in olive groves, vineyards, and pine forests. Upon arrival by ferry, our driver will provide a private transfer to your hotel, where the remainder of the day is yours.

Hvar Town is particularly renowned for its world-class dining and nightlife, but you’ll also find centuries-old landmarks in the historic center.

Meals Included:
Breakfast

A private tour around the island will bring you through the picturesque countryside to enjoy views of the vineyards and lavender fields as you make your way to some of Hvar’s most charming villages. That includes Stari Grad, founded by the ancient Greeks in 384 BC. Croatia’s oldest town, it’s home to a 16th-century Renaissance fortress, and many restored historic stone homes providing a glimpse of its past.

A visit to Vrboska, or “Little Venice” as it’s often called due to its narrow, winding canal crossed by numerous stone bridges. Discover more scenic villages on your return, stopping for authentic Dalmatian cuisine along the way.

Meals Included:
Breakfast

Experience Included:

Private Hvar villages tour with traditional lunch

A day at leisure is all yours. If you haven’t explored Hvar Town’s historic highlights, you might visit the early 17th-century St. Stephen’s Cathedral, with Venetian paintings inside and a bell tower with a 2nd-century stone relief of a Roman ship. It’s one of the island’s most important historical buildings.

The 1612 community theater is the oldest in Europe, while the Spanjola Fortress not only provides a panoramic view, but hosts a small museum with an amphora collection and various exhibits from antiquity and the Middle Ages.

If you want to swim, Pokonji Dol beach is ideal and within easy reach of the port.

Meals Included:
Breakfast

Journey to the final destination on your itinerary by catamaran. You’ll check out of your Hvar hotel and take a private transfer to the harbor for the scenic ride to Dubrovnik. Another driver will be waiting at the city’s harbor to provide a private transfer to your hotel, where you’ll have the rest of the day to yourself.

Perhaps enjoy the facilities at the hotel or find a vantage point for enjoying Aegean views with Dalmatian wine and an authentic Dalmatian meal. Some of our favorite traditional dishes include fresh seafood with pasta, black risotto, and peka, slow-cooked octopus, lamb, or other meat. 

Meals Included:
Breakfast

Look forward to one of the highlights of any Croatian itinerary – touring the medieval, walled Old Town. You’ll join our local guide to step through one of the imposing gates where a wealth of centuries-old landmarks await.

Check out everything from the Onofrio fountains that supplied drinking water to residents for over 600 years, to Renaissance-Gothic palaces and the Franciscan Monastery, home to Europe’s oldest still-active pharmacy, established in the 13th century. You’ll have free time after your tour, ideal for walking the city walls, with a view of the sea and nearby islands on one side, and the red-tiled rooftops on the other.

Meals Included:
Breakfast

Experience Included:

Private Dubrovnik Tour

With a day at leisure, you can indulge in anything you like. Those who want to get active might join a kayaking tour that paddles the crystal-clear blue waters to nearby Lokrum Island. You’ll get an awe-inspiring view of Dubrovnik’s massive walls from this vantage point before exploring the island with a lush nature reserve and places to swim or sunbathe.

A bird’s-eye view of Dubrovnik and well beyond can be enjoyed with little effort by riding the cable car to the top of Mount Srd. It’s also the perfect spot for witnessing the burst of red, orange, pink, and purple hues of a sunset.

Meals Included:
Breakfast

After 16 nights in Greece and Croatia, exploring many of the highlights from Athens with its iconic Acropolis and the Greek Islands, to ancient Split, Hvar Island, and medieval Dubrovnik, it will soon be time for this epic adventure to end. After checkout at your Dubrovnik hotel, our driver will meet you to provide the private transfer to Dubrovnik’s international airport. 

From here, you can start your return trip home or take advantage of the opportunity to explore more destinations in the Mediterranean or beyond, from Slovenia to Italy, should you wish to continue your travels, with a little help from our travel specialists.

Meals Included:
Breakfast