DAILY ITINERARY
                   The Southeastern Synod - ELCA

DAY-BY-DAY ITINERARY: 

Depart from Atlanta (ATL) for an overnight flight to Thessaloniki, Greece.

With our arrival in Thessaloniki, we have entered into the world of the New Testament where St Paul and his companions established the first Christian communities throughout his four missionary journeys. On arrival, we will be met at the airport for a transfer to our hotel. Dinner and overnight in Thessaloniki.

This morning we drive to Berea (Veria) to see the ancient wall where Paul spent many hours sharing the Gospel. You can visit some of the small churches built during the 17th and 18th centuries, and celebrate the Eucharist. Dinner and overnight in Thessaloniki.

Begin the day in the port of Kavala where Paul landed with his disciples, Timothy and Silas.  This port was also a destination for Luke the evangelist when he sailed from Troas. See a Byzantine castle, the Roman Aqueduct, and the ruins of an acropolis. Follow the Via Egnatia, a remnant of Rome’s highway system, viewing Roman and Greek tombs and ruts of ancient chariot wheels. Next, stop in Philippi, where Paul preached his first evangelical sermon and baptized the very first Christian convert on European soil. Among the ruins located on the rocky ledge above the town’s main road is the prison into which Paul and Silas were thrown. It was in Philippi that Octavian and Anthony defeated Brutus and Cassius in 42 BC. Return to Thessaloniki to explore the ancient city where Paul planted a church that would later receive two New Testament epistles. View one of the most beautiful basilicas in the city, St. Demetrius. Continue along the waterfront to the massive White Tower and nearby triumphal Arch of Galerius.  Dinner and overnight in Thessaloniki.

We spend some time today marveling at this unique phenomenon of nature – 24 perpendicular rocks where 600 years ago Byzantine monks chose to worship God and build their cave-like Monastic community of Meteora. Take in the striking monasteries that crown the summits of these pinnacles with their wooden galleries and corniced rooftops. Dangerously hanging over the stunning abysses, these primitive dwellings compose one of the most fascinating sites on earth.  Overnight in Kalambaka.

A special treat awaits with a visit to two timeless monasteries in Meteora to see the exquisite specimens of Byzantine art on display. On to Delphi, an ancient religious sanctuary dedicated to the Greek god Apollo. Developed in the 8th century B.C., the sanctuary was home to the Oracle of Delphi and the priestess Pythia, who was famed throughout the ancient world for divining the future and was consulted before all major undertakings. Dinner and overnight in Delphi.

Breakfast at the hotel and we continue our exploration of the ancient site of Delphi. We then travel directly to the center of Athens to start our half-day panoramic city tour of Athens. Then we’re off to see the Panathenaic Stadium where the first Olympic Games of modern times were held in 1896. Continue and pass by the Temple of Olympian Zeus, then Hadrian’s Arch. Dinner and overnight in Athens.
 

We start the day at Mars Hill. Rising some 377 feet above the land below and not far from the Acropolis and Agora (marketplace), Mars Hill served as the meeting place for the Areopagus Court, the highest court in Greece. Mars Hill is the location of one of Paul’s most important gospel presentations at the time of his visit to Athens during his second missionary journey (Acts 17:16–34). It was here where he addressed the religious idolatry of the Greeks who even had an altar to the “Unknown God." Then we will visit the ancient roman Agora (marketplace). On the Acropolis, we will visit the Architectural Masterpieces of the Golden Age of Athens: The Propylaea, the Temple of Athena Nike, the Erechtheion, and finally the Parthenon. Return to the hotel. Free evening in Athens. Overnight in Athens.

Depart for a full-day tour to Ancient Corinth. Departure to Ancient Corinth, the city, which was the center of trade for many centuries. To begin, we will stop at the famous channel, called the Isthmus in Greek, the place where the Peloponnese and central Greece meet, as well as the Aegean and Ionian seas. The canal was completed at the end of the 19th century by the government of Charilaos Trikoupis and saves ships the more than 400 km it takes to go around the Peloponnese peninsula. We will visit Ancient Corinth with its amazing artifacts, some of which date back to 6000 B.C. The remains of the city, which include the Agora (market) and the temple of Apollo (6th century BC) clearly show how rich and important Corinth was in antiquity. The Romans rebuilt the city in 44 B.C. to later make it the provincial capital of Greece. On our way back to Athens, we will make a brief stop at the site of the ancient port of Cehries, where Saint Paul disembarked from Thessaloniki. For Christians, Corinth is mentioned in the New Testament, when Saint Paul addressed the residents of the city in his two epistles, First and Second Corinthians. It is mentioned again in the Acts of the Apostles during the evangelical work of Saint Paul. At the end of the tour, return to Athens. Overnight in Athens.

Cruise to the Aegina Island (lunch on board the cruise ship), dinner and overnight in Athens.

Enjoy a free day in Athens for walking tours, downtime in a cafe, shopping, spa treatments, etc. Farewell dinner and overnight in Athens. 

Following breakfast at our hotel, we are met by our English-speaking concierge for our private transfer to Athens airport (ATH). We fly home and arrive the same day.

NOTE: The schedule is subject to change due to various factors and the tour guide’s discretion.