Tours to Ancient Olympia
Greece
Tours to Ancient Olympia, Greece
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Our meeting place
will be the first exit from the Katakolon Port. I will always be
there on time, waiting for you. Since it’s always busy at the
port due to the arrival of the cruise ships , I will be holding
a board with your name written on it, so you will easily
recognize me. Katakolon will be our starting point of our tour. It is a small seaside village with 200 inhabitants but with a lot of tourist shops, cafes and restaurants. |
 Katakolon port . |
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The distance from Katakolon port to Ancient Olympia is about 40 km.,
about a 30 minute drive. My suggestion is to take the countryside roads
where you will be able to see a lot of small villages ( something you
will probably only see here). Besides the beautiful sightseeing, we will
avoid the highway traffic due to tour buses that take the same tour to
Olympia. At our arrival in Ancient Olympia, you will visit the Archeological Sites and the Museum. You need about 2 ½ hours to visit both of them. I think there is no reason to visit Olympia if you don’t visit both. You see Ancient Olympia was not a town but a sanctuary with buildings associated with games and the worship of the gods. Olympia was a national shrine of the Greeks and contained many treasures of Greek Art. The Museum of Olympia lies in a shady grove opposite to the sites. All the displayed findings are from the excavations of the area that started in 1875. You will be able to see and feel the sacredness of this place yourself. |
 Ancient Olympia . |
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The ticket for both costs 9 euro for each person, and 6 euro if you
decide to visit only one of them. The entrance for teenage visitors is
free. There is also the museum for the history of excavations. It will
take you about 20 minutes to see it and the entrance is free for all.
There are signs in English and in German which will help you understand
the history of the ruins and the exhibits. After you finish you can visit the small town of Olympia of 1200 inhabitants. There are a lot of good restaurants, coffee shops, tourist shops, and jeweler’s. You can have lunch or have a coffee or a drink or can do your shopping if you feel like you need to do shopping therapy. Another beautiful place that you can visit on the way back to Katakolon is Mercury Estate, if you are interested in vineries. Its only five km from Katakolon and besides tasting some really good greek wine you will see some very beautiful peacocks wandering around.
If your time schedule allows you, you can visit the Temple of
Epicurios Apollo in Vases. It is about 90 km from Katakolon Port and the
tour through the mountains is worth seeing. Another interesting place is
Castle Helmoutsi, near Kyllini port. It is a Frankish fort built in
1220. From this castle, visitors can enjoy an amazing view on the
surroundings and observe the vegetation and rocky formations which have
been witness of the history of the construction for many centuries. All
those tourists who are fond of architecture, design, and history, should
not miss meeting this construction while being in this area of
Peloponnese. But again I must remind you that you can take the last two
tours ( to Apollon and to Helmoutsi) only if you will be able to stay
here for at least 6 hours. |
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Private tours to OLYMPIA from cruise ships arriving in the port KATAKOLON GREECE