Classical Greece and Her Island Jewels — Self-Launched

Fly into Athens (ATH) and take Metro Line M3 from the airport to Monastiraki or Syntagma (~€9/£8, 40 mins) — far cheaper than a taxi (~€40) or the X95 bus (~€5.50). Check into a hostel or budget hotel in Plaka, Monastiraki or Psyrri. Spend the evening wandering the streets below the Acropolis and eating at a taverna in Psyrri — grilled octopus, horiatiki salad and a carafe of house wine should set you back £12-15.

🚌Airport metro M3 ~£8

🛏Hostel dorm or budget guesthouse, Plaka/Monastiraki (£20-30)

• →Evening wander around Plaka and Anafiotika
• →Taverna dinner in Psyrri

Pre-book a skip-the-line Acropolis ticket with an optional licensed archaeologist guide via GetYourGuide or the official Hellenic Heritage e-ticket site (~£25-35 combined entry + guide) — this replaces the tour's included 'Ancient Athens Tour with an Archaeologist'. Visit the Acropolis Museum (€15, or free on certain dates) and the Ancient Agora (included in the combined ticket). For lunch, drop into Shedia Home, the non-profit cafe on Kolokotroni Street that the G Adventures group visits — same ethos, you just buy your own coffee and mezze.

🚌Walking

🛏Hostel dorm or budget guesthouse, Plaka/Monastiraki (£20-30)

• →Acropolis and Parthenon with licensed guide
• →Acropolis Museum
• →Ancient Agora
• →Lunch at Shedia Home non-profit cafe

Take the morning KTEL intercity bus from Athens' Liosion station to Trikala/Kalambaka (~€33, 4.5-5 hrs) — or the slower but scenic train from Larissa Station (~€25-30, 5 hrs). Break the journey at Thermopylae for the Leonidas statue and battle-site information centre (buses pass through; ask the driver or take a local connection). Alternatively pre-book a cheap shared day-transfer. Arrive in Kalambaka, the town beneath Meteora, and check into a family guesthouse.

🚌KTEL intercity coach Athens–Trikala/Kalambaka ~£28

🛏Guesthouse in Kalambaka (£20-28)

• →Thermopylae / Leonidas statue stop
• →Evening views of the Meteora rock pillars from town

Recreate the tour's truffle-hunting experience by booking a local truffle-hunt or mushroom-foraging walk directly with a small operator in the Pindus foothills near Kalambaka (search 'truffle hunting Kalambaka/Meteora' on GetYourGuide or contact local guesthouses; expect £45-70 including a tasting/meal). If nothing is running, trade it for a guided Meteora sunset tour (~£30) and a long lunch of truffle pasta in Kastraki village.

🚌Local minivan or taxi to the forest edge ~£10

🛏Guesthouse in Kalambaka (£20-28)

• →Truffle hunt with dogs and tasting
• →Wine and mushroom sampling
• →Kastraki village evening

Spend the morning at the monasteries of Meteora — a local bus from Kalambaka runs up to the Great Meteoron and Varlaam (~€2 each way, or a shared taxi ~€10). Entry is €3 per monastery (dress code: covered shoulders and knees). In the afternoon take the KTEL bus back towards Lamia and connect onwards to Delphi/Arachova (~£25-30, 5-6 hrs in total) — or stay a second night and travel early next morning if connections are tight. Check into a guesthouse in modern Delphi with valley views.

🚌Local bus to Meteora + KTEL connections to Delphi ~£28

🛏Guesthouse in Delphi (£22-30)

• →Great Meteoron and Varlaam monasteries
• →Panoramic viewpoints over the Pindus range

Explore the UNESCO-listed sanctuary of Delphi — Temple of Apollo, the oracle site, the treasuries and stadium — with a licensed guide or a solid audio guide/app (~£25 combined ticket + guide). Continue to the Archaeological Museum of Delphi (included in the ticket). In the afternoon, take the bus down to Patras via the Rio-Antirrio bridge (~£12), then a KTEL coach to Ancient Olympia (~£10). Arrive in the village and do an orientation stroll.

🚌KTEL coaches Delphi–Patras–Olympia ~£22

🛏Guesthouse or budget hotel in Ancient Olympia (£22-30)

• →Delphi archaeological site and oracle
• →Delphi Archaeological Museum
• →Rio-Antirrio bridge crossing

Visit the archaeological site of Olympia in the cool of the morning — Temples of Zeus and Hera, the ancient stadium where the Games began in 776 BC — plus the Archaeological Museum with the Hermes of Praxiteles (combined ~£15). Then take the KTEL coach to Tripoli and change for Nafplio (~£15, 3.5-4 hrs). Check into a pension in Nafplio's old town, do a self-guided walk past Bourtzi Castle views, Palamidi Fortress and Syntagma Square, and finish with gelato at one of the waterfront shops.

🚌KTEL coach Olympia–Tripoli–Nafplio ~£14

🛏Pension in Nafplio old town (£25-35)

• →Ancient Olympia site and museum
• →Nafplio old town walk
• →Bourtzi and Palamidi views
• →Gelato on the waterfront

Take the local bus or a shared taxi to Mycenae (~£8 round trip) and tour the citadel and Lion Gate with a licensed guide or audio guide (~£15 entry + guide). In the afternoon head to the Nemea wine country — Nemea is reachable by local bus/taxi (~£15) — and book a winery tasting with cheese and mezze directly (many Nemea estates charge €15-25). Alternatively join a small-group Nafplio day tour covering Mycenae, Nemea and Epidaurus (~£60) which is the easiest way to link all three.

🚌Local bus/taxi Nafplio–Mycenae–Nemea ~£20

🛏Pension in Nafplio old town (£25-35)

• →Mycenae citadel and Lion Gate
• →Nemea winery tasting with mezze
• →Optional Acronafplia Fortress walk (free)

Visit the Sanctuary of Asklepios and the remarkably intact ancient theatre at Epidaurus (~£12 entry; reachable by KTEL bus or a shared taxi from Nafplio). Then return to Athens by coach via the Isthmus of Corinth, stopping briefly at the Corinth Canal for photos (~£15 total). Back in Athens by evening — check into a hostel and treat yourself to a farewell souvlaki dinner in Monastiraki.

🚌KTEL coach Nafplio–Athens with Epidaurus/Corinth stops ~£15

🛏Hostel dorm or budget hotel, Athens (£20-30)

• →Epidaurus ancient theatre and Asklepieion
• →Corinth Canal viewpoint

A flexible day: the National Archaeological Museum (~£10), the Panathenaic Stadium (~£5), Hadrian's Library, the National Gardens and Syntagma Square, or a street-art walk through Exarchia. Catch a rooftop sunset view of the Acropolis from a bar in Thissio. Book tomorrow's ferry online tonight via the Blue Star Ferries or Ferries.gr sites.

🚌Walking + metro day ticket ~£4

🛏Hostel dorm or budget hotel, Athens (£20-30)

• →National Archaeological Museum
• →Panathenaic Stadium
• →Exarchia street art walk
• →Acropolis sunset viewpoint in Thissio

Take the high-speed or conventional ferry from Piraeus to Mykonos (~£35-50, 2.5-5 hrs depending on service; book 2-3 weeks ahead in high season). Settle into a guesthouse in Mykonos Town or a cheaper spot near Platis Gialos, spend the afternoon at a beach, then do a self-guided sunset walk through the windmills of Kato Myloi, Little Venice and the Church of Panagia Paraportiani.

🚌Piraeus–Mykonos ferry ~£45

🛏Budget guesthouse or hostel, Mykonos (£35-50 in peak)

• →Mykonos windmills and Little Venice
• →Panagia Paraportiani
• →Beach afternoon

Book a half-day Delos excursion directly with a local operator (~£50-65 including boat, site entry and licensed archaeologist guide) — the same experience the group tour includes. Walk the Sacred Harbour, the Sacred Way lined with the famous marble lions, the Temples of Apollo and Artemis, and the site museum. Back on Mykonos by mid-afternoon for beach time or a lazy lunch.

🚌Delos boat included in excursion

🛏Budget guesthouse or hostel, Mykonos (£35-50 in peak)

• →Delos archaeological site with licensed guide
• →Delos museum
• →Afternoon beach time

Short ferry hop from Mykonos to Naxos (~£15-25, 45 mins-2 hrs). Naxos is noticeably cheaper than Mykonos — a good place to reset your budget. Self-guided walk from the Portara (the 6th-century BC marble gateway of the Temple of Apollo) through the old town's alleys, the 11th-century cathedral and the Ursuline School's Cycladic figurines. Afternoon on Agios Georgios or Plaka beach.

🚌Mykonos–Naxos ferry ~£20

🛏Guesthouse or studio in Naxos Town (£25-35)

• →Portara
• →Naxos old town and cathedral
• →Ursuline School collection
• →Agios Georgios beach

Recreate the tour's Naxos Wildlife and Conservation Awareness moment by contacting the Naxos Wildlife Protection Association directly (or the port's turtle-rescue volunteers) to ask about a donation-based visit, beach clean or awareness talk — these are small local NGOs, so email ahead. Alternatively take a small-group sea-kayak or snorkel trip (~£40) that covers turtle habitat and responsible wildlife-watching. Afternoon free for the villages of Halki and Apiranthos by local bus (~£5).

🚌Local bus to villages or trailhead ~£5

🛏Guesthouse or studio in Naxos Town (£25-35)

• →Sea turtle conservation visit / donation
• →Optional sea-kayak or snorkel trip
• →Halki and Apiranthos villages

Morning ferry Naxos to Santorini (~£25-35, 1.5-2.5 hrs). Check into a budget room in Fira or Karterados (avoid the caldera-view prices). Visit the Akrotiri Bronze Age excavation with an audio guide or small guided entry (~£15), then walk a section of the Caldera Trail from Fira to Oia (or Imerovigli) in the late afternoon — free, and the best sunset in the Aegean without paying for a cruise.

🚌Naxos–Santorini ferry ~£30 + local buses ~£5

🛏Budget room in Fira or Karterados (£35-50)

• →Akrotiri archaeological site
• →Caldera Trail hike Fira–Imerovigli/Oia
• →Sunset over the caldera

Optional morning catamaran sail (~£80-100 if you want to recreate the tour's optional Sailing Santorini add-on), or a cheap local-bus trip to Red Beach, Perissa or Pyrgos village. Fly out of Santorini (JTR) to Athens for onward connections, or take the ferry back to Piraeus if you have time — the ferry is much cheaper but adds 5-8 hours.

🚌Local bus ~£3; Santorini–Athens flight ~£45-80 (or ferry ~£35)

🛏—

• →Optional catamaran sail
• →Red Beach or Pyrgos village
• →Departure