ANZAC DAY – History, Food and Wine Tour in Greece

Athens–Corinth-Nafplion-Kalamata-Olympia-Chania-Rethymnon-Heraklion

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15 days, 14 nights

Highlights

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18 April-2 May (all year on request)

Itinerary

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15 Days Explore Greece and ANZAC Day

Commemorate Anzac Day in Greece

Join us to commemorate Anzac Day in Greece and learn about the 6th Australian Division’s role in the Allied withdrawal from Greece and the Battle of Crete. Visit significant battle sites and gain insight into the German attacks against the Greeks. Explore Athens’s informative War Museum and attend the ANZAC Dawn service. Don’t miss the opportunity to see the WW1 battleship, the Averoff.

Discover Athens and Experience Ancient Greece in the Peloponnese

Discover Athens, where you can enjoy a blend of flavors, cultures, and contrasts. Take the chance to admire the Parthenon and the Acropolis Museum. In the Peloponnese, you will be captivated by the splendor of ancient Greece.

Visit Ancient Olympia, the birthplace of the Olympic Games, tour the legendary Mycenae of Homer, and explore Epidavros, home to the world’s finest open-air theater and the Asclepieion, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. you will also have the opportunity to sample fine wines from one of the most diverse vineyards in the region while engaging in lively discussions and having fun.

Visit Kalamata – Last Evacuation Beach for ANZAC Troops

We also visited Kalamata, one of the last evacuation beaches for ANZAC troops.

While the term ‘Anzac’ has come to be defined by the Gallipoli campaign in 1915, history tells us that a second Anzac Corps was also formed a generation later to serve in the Battle of Crete and the Greek Campaign in World War II. Over 34,000 Anzacs fought in Greece in 1941 and about half were Australian. They fought and walked nearly 1,000 kilometers of Greece’s mountainous terrain and engaged in the Battles of Vevi, Tempe, and Thermopylae/ Brallos.

The Battle of Crete

The Battle of Crete, known as Unternehmen Merkur or “Operation Mercury,” took place during World War II on the island of Crete. It began on May 20, 1941, when Nazi Germany launched an airborne invasion. Greek forces, along with other Allied forces and Cretan civilians, valiantly defended the island in what is considered the most dramatic battle fought by ANZAC forces.

Over 12 brutal days, ANZAC and the Allies faced a massive German airborne assault, coming close to succeeding in their defense. Crete enchants every visitor with its impressive landscapes and rich history, as well as the warmth of its people. You will visit important sites in Greece, including the Minoan palace of Knossos and the historic Arkadi Monastery, along with magnificent 15th-century churches. Additionally, we will visit the Army Museum in Rethymnon.

Cretan diet

Discover the secrets of the Cretan diet, celebrated as the best example of the Mediterranean diet, which is internationally recognized as one of the healthiest and most complete dietary plans. The ambiance of Greece is legendary, characterized by its food, music, and the simplicity of its lifestyle. With a history spanning thousands of years, it offers one of the most fascinating and inspiring travel experiences you will ever encounter.

One lesser-known aspect is the story of the ANZAC Corps, which was formed to fight in Greece during World War II. This tour promises to be relaxed, friendly, and enjoyable.

Join Porto Planet on a journey of delightful tastes, culture, food, wine, and ANZAC history!

ATHENS

ARKADION MONASTERY

NAFPLIO

RETHYMNON

CHANIA

PHALERON WAR CEMETERY

SOUDA CEMETERY WAR

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We provide

Accommodation in 3*, 4* & 5* class hotels
ANZAC Day in Athens
14 breakfasts -14 dinner
All transport to and from the excursions and to the airport
11 days exclusively chartered minivan or car with English speaking driver
2 wine tours/tasting in the wineries and wineries entrance fee
Athens walking Food and tasting tours
Athens city tour including the Acropolis – Parthenon and the Archaeological Museum of Athens
Nauplion walking Food and tasting tours
Heraklion walking Food and tasting tours
All museum & archeological site entrance fees
A visit to the Museum and an archaeological site of the Mycenae and Epidaurus
A visit to the Museum and an archaeological site to the Olympia
A visit to the Museum and an archaeological site to the Corinth
A visit to the archaeological site of the Knossos
A visit to the Army Museum in Athens
A visit to the Army Museum to Rethymnon
Battlefield tours with historian
Visit Averoff Battleship
Souda Bay War Cemetery
Overnight ferry to/from Crete

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We do not provide

Air travel to/from Australia,
travel insurance,
personal expenses
laundry and alcohol
Tips for Drivers and Guide sips,
anything not mentioned above or below

UNFORGETTABLE EXPERIENCES

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Winery tours and wine tasting on the “wine routes” of Corinth and Argolis.

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You will visit the ancient theater of Epidaurus which, of all the ancient theaters, is the most beautiful and best preserved and renowned for its rare acoustics, and the Asklepieion – a Unesco World Cultural Heritage Monument and you will tour the “Mycenae” of Homer and mythical Atreides.

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You will visit Olympia, which was the most glorious sanctuary of ancient Greece dedicated to Zeus and was the venue for the ancient Olympic Games

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You will visit the Acropolis Museum and one of the most important monuments of the ancient Greek civilization – the Parthenon

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Visit Ancient Corinth and Canal of Corinth

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Visit Preveli Monastery where so many of ANZAC troops were given shelter prior to evacuation via submarine.

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Walking Foodie tours of Athens, Nafplio, Heraklion, with tasting

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The War Museum and the Averoff Battleship.

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Day 1. ATHENS – ARRIVAL

Accommodation-Athens (Dinner)

DAY 2. ATHENS – ATHENS CITY TOUR & ACROPOLIS MUSEUM

Accommodation – Athens (Breakfast / Dinner)

DAY 3. ATHENS – GUIDE and WALKING FOOD TOUR-ATHENS

Accommodation at Athens (Breakfast / Dinner)

Day 4. CORINTH-CORINTH CANAL-ANCIENT CORINTH-CORINTH WINE ROAD-NAFPLION:

Accommodation Nafplion. (Breakfast / Dinner)

Day 5. NAFPLION-MYCENAE-ARGOLIDA WINE ROAD-EPIDAUROS- WALKING FOOD TOUR –NAFPLIO

Accommodation Nafplion (Breakfast / Dinner)

Day 6. NAFPLION-KALAMATA-OLYMPIA

Accommodation Olympia (Breakfast / Dinner)

Day 7. OLYMPIA-ATHENS

Accommodation-Athens (Breakfast / Dinner)

DAY 8. ATHENS-ANZAC DAY-FERRY

Accommodation on Board (Breakfast / Dinner)

DAY 9. CHANIA-MALEME AREA-SOUDA BAY-CHANIA

Accommodation at Chania (Breakfast / Dinner)

Day 10. CHANIA-SFAKIA-PREVELI MONASTERY-RETHYMNON

Accommodation – Rethymnon (Breakfast / Dinner)

Day 11. RETHYMNON-ARMY MUSEUM

Accommodation Rethymnon (Breakfast / Dinner)

Day 12. RETHYMNON -BATTLEFIELD AT HERAKLION- GUIDED AND FOOD TOUR-HERAKLION

Accommodation Heraklion (Breakfast / Dinner)

Day 13. HERAKLION-KNOSSOS PALACE- FERRY

Accommodation on Board (Breakfast / Dinner)

DAY 14. ATHENS- WAR MUSEUM-AVEROFF BATTLESHIP

Accommodation Athens (Breakfast / Dinner)

DAY 15. ATHENS-FLIGHT BACK HOME

Transportation to the airport for the flight back home (Breakfast)

KALO TAXIDI!

Day 1. ATHENS – ARRIVAL

Arrival. Reception at the airport. Transportation and check into our hotel. You will have the rest of the day to relax or take a stroll along the streets of Athens to enjoy the flavor of the city.

Accommodation-Athens (Dinner)

DAY 2. ATHENS – ATHENS CITY TOUR & ACROPOLIS MUSEUM

From the Acropolis to Omonia Square and with a half-day sightseeing and Acropolis museum tour, you’ll see all the famous sites of ancient and modern Athens. The Athens half-day tour departs for a photo stop at Panathinaiko Stadium where the first Olympic Games took place in 1896. It is the only stadium built out of white marble. Proceed and pass by Zappeion and the Temple of Olympian Zeus. You will then pass the Athens Trilogy which includes the University of Athens, the Academy of Athens, and the National Library. Continue passing by the National Garden, Hadrian’s Arc, St. Paul’s Church, Parliament, Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, Schliemann’s House (Numismatic Museum), Catholic Cathedral, Old Parliament, Constitution Square, Russian Orthodox Church, and finally Acropolis. Visit Propylaea, the temple of Athena Nike, Parthenon, and Erechtheion with its Porch of Maidens. Continue the expert-guided Athens sightseeing and museum tour with a pleasant short walk, passing by Herodion and Dionysos Theater, to visit the Acropolis Museum.

Accommodation – Athens (Breakfast / Dinner)

DAY 3. ATHENS-GUIDE and WALKING FOOD TOUR-ATHENS

Begin your walking culinary tour with traditional sweets and finger food like the koulouri (a circular bread encrusted with sesame seeds) and the famous bougasta (a pastry consisting of either semolina custard, cheese, or minced meat filling between layers of phyllo).

Head to the Athens Agora and see the amazing range of spices, cheeses, olives, meat, fish, and fruit on offer. Here, find a plethora of traditional tavernas. After you visit the market, enjoy a brief break for a cup of traditional Greek coffee in one of the oldest coffee shops in Greece.

Next, visit a folklore art shop and the beautiful Kotzia Square, situated just outside the ancient Archarnian Gate of Classical Athens. Stop at one of the oldest and best souvlaki houses in Greece for a taste of real souvlaki.

End the tour by admiring the astonishing Acropolis in one of the most authentic restaurants in the city.

Accommodation at Athens (Breakfast / Dinner)

Day 4. CORINTH-CORINTH CANAL-ANCIENT CORINTH-CORINTH WINE ROAD-NAFPLION:

We will visit the Canal of Corinth. On 25 April, the Germans staged an airborne operation to seize the bridges over the Corinth Canal with the double aim of cutting off the British line of retreat and securing their way across the Isthmus. The 1st SS Motorised Infantry Regiment (LSSAH), crossed over to the Peloponnese at Patras to gain access to the isthmus from the west. Australians in 1942 were preparing to evacuate to Crete in the face of German rapid advancement.

After we will visit ancient Corinth. Ancient Corinth was an important city-state of the ancient Peloponnese and was considered the richest city in the ancient world.

We will visit the Corinthian Wine Route The Corinthian Wine Roads cover most of the wine-growing zone of the PDO Nemea wines, which is the largest in Greece, both in the area of vineyards and in production (2nd on a geographic area).

We will visit a winery and taste local and foreign varieties. The vineyard of Nemea is the kingdom of Agiorgitiko, but it is also planted elsewhere in the Peloponnese, Greece, and … in the world. Nemea, with the homonymous PDO Nemea wine, is the largest wine red wine designation zone in Greece. After the wine tours, we will head to Nafplion the first capital of Greece.

Accommodation Nafplion. (Breakfast / Dinner)

Day 5. NAFPLION-MYCENAE-ARGOLIDA WINE ROAD-EPIDAUROS- WALKING FOOD TOUR -NAFPLION

We will visit Mycenae, one of the largest centers of Greek civilization, forming a strong military fortress that dominated most of southern Greece. The period of Greek history between 1600 BC and around 1100 BC is called “Mycenaean,” referring to Mycenae. You will admire it(most of the gold and are characterized by their marvelous art), the treasure of Atreas (vaulted tomb), the vaulted tomb of Clytemnestra, the Lions Gate, the Royal Palace, the temple, the North Gate as well as the Underground Tank, etc .;

Then we will take the Argolida wine road and visit the local winery.

After the wine tasting and tour, we will visit Epidaurus and the Asklepieion. The theater of Epidaurus is considered the finest ancient Greek theater in terms of acoustics and aesthetics. With a maximum capacity of 13,000 – 14,000 spectators, the theater hosted the musicians, song, and drama struggles included in the worship of Asklepios. The Asclepieion of Epidaurus became the most famous of all aspicides in ancient Greece because of the many serious cases that were cured there. In this, they arrived from all over Greece and the Mediterranean basin sick, begging for divine mercy. Its area was very large and it had hostels, a gym, a stage and the famous, for its acoustics, Theater, for the entertainment of the people. Return to Nafplion and take a walk through the local tastes of the area.

Accommodation Nafplion (Breakfast / Dinner)

Day 6. NAFPLION-KALAMATA-OLYMPIA

After breakfast, we travel to Olympia with a deviation to Kalamata. Driving from Argos to Kalamata from where most Allied units had already begun to evacuate, they reached the south coast on 29 April, where they were joined by SS troops arriving from Pyrgos. The fighting on the Peloponnese consisted of small-scale engagements with isolated groups of British troops who had been unable to reach the evacuation point. The Germans captured around 8,000 Commonwealth (including 2,000 Cypriot and Palestinian) and Yugoslav troops in Kalamata who had not been evacuated while liberating many Italian prisoners from POW camps. Arriving, Olympia.

Accommodation Olympia (Breakfast / Dinner)

Day 7. OLYMPIA-ATHENS

We will admire the archaeological site of Olympia as the cradle of the Olympic Games. Olympia was the most glorious sanctuary of ancient Greece, dedicated to Zeus. It was the venue for the Olympic Games that took place during the Olympic Games, the most important celebration of Greeks during most of antiquity and is one of the UNESCO cultural monuments.

We will take the way back to Athens. After we arrive in Athens and the necessary rest, you will have the opportunity to admire through a gastronomic excursion the incredible flavors and perfumes from the capital of Greece.

Accommodation-Athens (Breakfast / Dinner)

DAY 8. ATHENS-ANZAC DAY-FERRY

ANZAC Day is a very special day on the 75th Anniversary of the battles that were taking place near Athens as the Australians were gathering to evacuate to Crete. This will be, we believe the 5th actual Dawn Service as many ANZAC Day Services in the past have been at 1100. An early wake-up call before coffee and tea in our hotel lobby then off to the Service. On arrival, you will be ushered into an area towards the front of the Service area. After the Service, there will be time at the Cemetery to inspect the area before our coach arrives to take us into Athens for our special breakfast. In the afternoon we have dinner and we board the ferry for our overnight trip to Crete.

Accommodation on Board (Breakfast / Dinner)

DAY 9. CHANIA-MALEME AREA-SOUDA BAY-CHANIA

Early arrival in Chania, early breakfast before we meet our guide for our tour of the Chania/Maleme Area. In the early afternoon, we tour Souda Bay War Cemetery before settling into our hotel in Chania.

Accommodation at Chania (Breakfast / Dinner)

Day 10. CHANIA-SFAKIA-PREVELI MONASTERY-RETHYMNON

Today we head across the island where we will traverse the evacuation route and visit the evacuation beach at Sfakia. We then proceed east along the coast past small villages until we arrive at Preveli Monastery where many of our men were given shelter before evacuation via submarine.

Accommodation – Rethymnon (Breakfast / Dinner)

Day 11. RETHYMNON-ARMY MUSEUM:

Breakfast in our hotel, before being able to use this extra day here on Crete to look more closely at the battlefield of Rethymnon. A visit to the Army Museum before a free afternoon in Rethymnon to complete some shopping in this quaint old pirate town.

Accommodation Rethymnon (Breakfast / Dinner)

Day 12. RETHYMNON -BATTLEFIELD AT HERAKLION- GUIDED AND FOOD TOUR-HERAKLION

We enjoyed breakfast at your hotel before we set out to visit the battlefield at Heraklion.

Walking the streets of the city and experiencing unique flavors that will elevate your palate to heaven!

Heraklion has a unique foodie culture and an irreverent charm. Walking food tour allows you to experience local epicurean vibes by tasting delicious food, combined with fascinating culture, history, and ancient architecture.

This food and cultural walking tour is suitable for all ages – it is an easy 1.5-mile walk, so you can enjoy a stroll through the heart of Heraklion city while learning about the unique history and culture of this historical town.

By joining this walk you will sample the fantastic array of multicultural dining that Crete has to offer. We will take you to several unique ouzo and raki places, plus pastry, cheese, and coffee shops so you can try a variety of delicious foods while learning about their cultural background. Immerse yourself in the daily life of the locals of Heraklion, and you will enjoy the most authentic local cuisine

Accommodation Heraklion (Breakfast / Dinner)

Day 13. HERAKLION-KNOSSOS PALACE- FERRY

Early arrival in Heraklion battlefield and visit the Palace of Knossos – the center of Minoan civilization also visit Archanes, where the kidnapping of General Kraipe took place

In the afternoon we take dinner before boarding the ferry for our overnight cruise back to Athens.

Accommodation on Board (Breakfast / Dinner)

DAY 14. ATHENS- WAR MUSEUM-AVEROFF BATTLESHIP

This morning you visit the War Museum and the Averoff Battleship. Return to the hotel and the remainder of the day is free to relax go souvenir shopping or continue your sightseeing.

Accommodation Athens (Breakfast / Dinner)

DAY 15. ATHENS-FLIGHT BACK HOME

Sadly your ANZAC Day Greece Tour ends and transportation to the airport for the flight back home. You may wish to extend your travels. (Breakfast)

KALO TAXIDI!

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