This is a busy mainland circuit with several changes of base. It suits travellers who want ancient sites and monastery visits and are comfortable giving some days to transport. The Delphi–Kalambaka connection is the part to settle first.
Greece & Aegean · Published planning example
Open a day to read the plan and its spending notes.
Drop your bags and decide whether the Acropolis fits the arrival time and weather. Its standard site ticket is €30; book a suitable entry slot. If the journey has left you tired, walk around Plaka and move the site visit to tomorrow. Sleep in Athens.
€85.00 for one whole private room, €33.00 for meals, €5.00 for local travel and €7.00 for extras. Add the paid visits, excursions, intercity tickets and airport journeys you choose. These are allowances; replace them with your bookings.
Estimated day spending: €130.00
Choose the Ancient Agora (€20 standard admission), or the Acropolis if you moved it from yesterday. Keep the afternoon for a neighbourhood walk and a meal near your room. The Acropolis Museum (€20) is an optional separate purchase, not part of an old multi-site bundle. Sleep in Athens.
€85.00 for one whole private room, €33.00 for meals, €5.00 for local travel and €7.00 for extras. Add the paid visits, excursions, intercity tickets and airport journeys you choose. These are allowances; replace them with your bookings.
Estimated day spending: €130.00
Take the KTEL Fokidas coach from the correct Athens Liosion departure point. Leave your bag at your accommodation if possible, then visit Delphi’s hillside site and museum with the €20 standard ticket. Arrange tomorrow’s early departure before settling down for dinner. Sleep in Delphi.
€70.00 for one whole private room, €31.00 for meals, €4.00 for local travel and €7.00 for extras. Add the paid visits, excursions, intercity tickets and airport journeys you choose. These are allowances; replace them with your bookings.
Estimated day spending: €112.00
Use the weekday coach connection from Delphi towards Trikala via Lamia, then the onward bus to Kalambaka. Confirm both parts before this trip. Treat the day mainly as travel; add a viewpoint or one open monastery only if arrival time and transport allow. Sleep in Kalambaka.
€70.00 for one whole private room, €31.00 for meals, €12.00 for local travel and €7.00 for extras. Add the paid visits, excursions, intercity tickets and airport journeys you choose. These are allowances; replace them with your bookings.
Estimated day spending: €120.00
Choose a monastery visit that leaves enough time for your booked return. A Hellenic Train journey currently uses a bus between Kalambaka and Palaiofarsalos, followed by the Athens train; KTEL also lists an Athens coach. Confirm the connection and Athens arrival point. Sleep in Athens.
€85.00 for one whole private room, €33.00 for meals, €5.00 for local travel and €7.00 for extras. Add the paid visits, excursions, intercity tickets and airport journeys you choose. These are allowances; replace them with your bookings.
Estimated day spending: €130.00
Take a KTEL Argolida coach from Athens Kifisos to Nafplio. The published single fare is €15.70; compare the €29 return product if it fits both departures. Explore the old town after check-in. Palamidi costs €20, with a long staircase or a road approach; leave it out if the heat or your legs suggest a quieter afternoon. Sleep in Nafplio.
€80.00 for one whole private room, €33.00 for meals, €5.00 for local travel and €7.00 for extras. Add the paid visits, excursions, intercity tickets and airport journeys you choose. These are allowances; replace them with your bookings.
Estimated day spending: €125.00
Return to Athens Kifisos by coach. An airport-bound traveller can use X93 from the terminal area, with a separate €5.50 airport bus ticket. An evening walk or meal is possible only if your onward timing allows it. No overnight stay is included today; add one if you are flying tomorrow.
No overnight stay; €33.00 for meals, €5.00 for local travel and €7.00 for extras. Add the paid visits, excursions, intercity tickets and airport journeys you choose. These are allowances; replace them with your bookings.
Estimated day spending: €45.00
The order is Athens, Delphi, Kalambaka, Athens, Nafplio and Athens. You spend two nights in Athens at the start, one in Delphi, one in Kalambaka, one back in Athens and one in Nafplio. Day seven ends in Athens without another hotel night included.
KTEL Trikala publishes a weekday Delphi–Trikala coach via Lamia. You then need the onward bus to Kalambaka. There is no Delphi railway station and no direct train for this leg. Match the dates to the operator timetable before committing to the whole circuit. If it does not work, change the order or leave out a stop.
The Acropolis site costs €30 for a standard adult ticket; the Ancient Agora is €20. The Acropolis Museum is a separate €20 choice. Delphi's €20 ticket includes its museum, while Palamidi is another €20 admission. These paid visits sit outside the daily room-and-meal figures below.
At Meteora, choose a monastery that opens on your visit day. Do not build a short stay around visiting every interior. The Great Meteoron visiting page explains its closure days and dress requirements.
Nafplio coaches arrive at Athens Kifisos terminal. For an airport connection from there, the relevant airport express bus is X93, not the Syntagma X95. Add the coach ride, traffic, the bus wait and your airline's check-in time. If the flight is too early, return to Athens the previous day and adjust the overnight bookings.
The day figures add up to €792.00 for one traveller before paid visits and extra journeys. A private-room line buys the whole room; divide only that part when sharing. These are chosen spending allowances, not available room offers or measured averages. Replace the stay amount with the full booking cost, including taxes and cleaning.
Add paid visits, excursions, intercity or inter-island tickets and airport journeys. The day notes separate accommodation, meals, local travel and small extras. The final day has no extra overnight allowance. The city budget cards are an alternative plan, so do not add them on top of this subtotal.
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How to get from one stop to the next. Journey times are approximate; use the ticket and timetable links to choose a departure for your travel date.
Bus · About 3 hours; allow extra time for the station transfer
Travel from Athens Liosion with KTEL Fokidas to Delphi. Read the departure point on the ticket and allow time to get there from central Athens.
Compare this journeyBus · Allow most of the morning, with a change at Trikala
KTEL Trikala lists a weekday Delphi–Trikala service via Lamia. Continue on a separate Kalambaka bus. This is a road journey with a connection, not a direct train. Choose the travel date around both services.
Bus + train · Allow around 5–6 hours including the connection
The railway option uses a bus from Kalambaka to Palaiofarsalos and a train from there to Athens. Compare it with the direct KTEL Athens coach. Add time to reach your room from the actual arrival point.
Bus · About 2 hours 10 minutes
KTEL Argolida coaches run from Athens Kifisos terminal to Nafplio. Add your journey to Kifisos separately.
Compare this journeyBus · About 2 hours 10 minutes
Return to Athens Kifisos terminal with KTEL Argolida. X93 connects the terminal area with Athens Airport; its ticket is separate.
For an easier week, leave out either Meteora or Nafplio and keep those nights in Athens or Delphi. Reprice the shorter route after choosing the actual coach dates. Do not simply cut a night beside an early departure.
Compare your room and daily spending choices in the cost calculator. Check each journey fare, including local transfers, and count tickets covered by a pass only once.
Change the days in each city, leave out stops, and update the estimate without changing the published itinerary.
