Home to hundreds of tiny islands and a few major ones, the gulf of Saronikos is famous for its crystal clear waters, pristine beaches and traditional island life and architecture. The area has also been the epicenter for piracy in the Aegean archipelago for the past 11 centuries.
This sailing adventure, goes far beyond mere island hopping. It's a unique traveling experience that allows you to immerse in the local culture, learn a thing or two about the history of the places you visit and explore way beyond each island's marina.
Sail along the Peloponnesian coast, visit all major islands along the way, explore superb swimming and snorkelling locations and savor amazing food. Sailing experiences in Greece don't get much better than that!
Trip highlights
During the first day of your trip, you get a chance to explore the sights of downtown Athens. The world famous Acropolis hill, with the magnificent Parthenon, the Acropolis Museum, the Roman Agora and the Temple of Zeus are all within walking distance from your hotel.
For those of you who want to get a first culinary taste of Greece, the nearby neighborhoods of Monastiraki and Plaka are bustling with traditional tavernas and are popular year round.
If you feel like immersing yourself further into the history and culture of Athens, there is the option of joining a walking tour that guides you through the main archaeological sites and areas of cultural interest in the center of Athens. Alternatively you could take part in our Historical Athens Treasure Hunt , a three hour walk through history game that includes visiting the most iconic of Athenian landmarks.
In the evening a welcome dinner takes place at a local bistro. As the chefs prepare delicious interpretations of traditional Greek dishes, we introduce you to the detailed schedule of activities and sightseeing opportunities the rest of your trip holds.
Overnight: 3* - 4* Hotel in the historic center of Athens
Meals included: Welcome Dinner at a local bistro
Our day starts with a short stroll around the historic center of Athens, before we head to the marina and board the sailing boat that is going to be our home for the next week.
Late afternoon we set sails towards the island of Aegina, with its laid back character, plethora of archaeological sites and small gulfs with pristine waters.
As the sun sets we leave the sailing boat and get a chance to explore the island's main town on foot.
Overnight: Cabin aboard the sailing boat
Meals included: Breakfast
A beautiful beach is a short sail away, where we have the chance to unwind, have a swim and try local delicacies at one of the traditional tavernas on shore.
Early afternoon we head to stunningly beautiful Hydra, where we arrive late in the evening. Hydra is the most prosperous island in the region and the epicenter of many a naval battles during the Greek wars for independence.
A ban of motorised vehicles on the island adds to its charm and Hydra is the ideal place for hikes and exploration on foot. An array of traditional tavernas, some of them dating back to the 18th century, museums and historic mansions, as well as a vivid nightlife, provide us with countless options for explorations.
Overnight: Cabin aboard the sailing boat
Meals included: Breakfast, Light Lunch
Morning is dedicated to getting to know Hydra a bit more. Swimming and snorkelling opportunities are abundant, as well as exceptional examples of post independence architecture all around the old town. There are great hiking paths all around the island leading to some amazing viewpoints and the eating scene is great as well.
Late afternoon we leave Hydra behind us and set sails south, towards the evergreen island of Spetses, off the Peloponnesian coast.
Spetses, besides its rich history and prominent role in the war for independence, boasts some of the best restaurants in the south of Greece, as well as some stunningly beautiful beaches.
Overnight: Cabin aboard the sailing boat
Meals included: Breakfast, Light Lunch
The day is dedicated to getting to explore the island and its surroundings a bit more. Have a coffee at the historic Posidonion Hotel by the port, visit historic mansions and dwell into history, have some quiet time by the sea in one of its tiny coves, it's all up to you really.
In the afternoon we return to the sailing boat and make the short trip to the small town of Porto Cheli, on the Peloponnesian coast. Swimming and snorkeling are a must there and we have a relaxing afternoon, anchored in crystal clear turquoise waters.
Overnight: Cabin aboard the sailing boat
Meals included: Breakfast, Light Lunch
This day is dedicated to swimming and you are in for a real treat! After a lazy morning on and off the boat, we have a light lunch on board and head north this time, towards the tiny island of Dokos.
Dokos is pretty much uninhabited, unless you count a handful of monks and the occasional shepperd. It is also the site of the world's oldest shipwreck, dating back to 2500 BC. Not much remains of the wreck nowadays, but swimming and snorkelling opportunities abound, so take advantage of that!
As the sun sets, we prepare a delicious BBQ under the stars on the beach.
Overnight: Cabin aboard the sailing boat
Meals included: Breakfast, Light Lunch, BBQ dinner
After breakfast and a morning swim, it's time to leave Dokos behind us, as the island of Poros awaits, and this is where we head next.
Poros is tiny and easy to explore on foot. It is a place of rich history that spans over two millennia and one of the most important islands in the Gulf of Saronikos.
We arrive late morning and you can walk through the old town, have a swim, unwind on deck and taste some of the best seafood in this part of Greece.
Overnight: Cabin aboard the sailing boat
Meals included: Breakfast, Light Lunch
We have breakfast onboard and have plenty of time for another swim. Late morning or early afternoon, we bid farewell to Poros and set sails north towards the island of Aegina. Our destination for the day is the seaside settlement of Agia Marina on the northeast tip of the island, a perfect place for yet another traditional taverna meal.
As the sun sets, we head back towards Athens.
Overnight: Cabin aboard the sailing boat
Meals included: Breakfast, Light Lunch
We wake up early in the morning, gather our bags and bid farewell to the sailing boat that has been our home for the past week. We head out to the marina and our adventure ends.
Accommodation/Single Room Booking
In order to guarantee a memorable overall experience throughout your sailing adventure with Bearing True South, we have carefully handpicked a fleet of 4 - cabin sailing yachts with a large sundeck and a comfortable indoor galley for meals and relaxing. There are four double bed cabins on the main deck of the yacht. There is also an extra inflatable boat and a boat ladder that facilitate our swimming and snorkelling activities.
In all our sailing trips, accommodation is operated on a twin share basis. This means that travelling as an individual, you will be sharing accommodation and room facilities with another person of the same sex or your partner, spouse, family, friend etc. There is also the option of booking a single cabin for an additional cost depending on availability at the time of booking.
Meals
When sailing with Bearing True South, you will experience a great variety of delicious food, based on traditional Greek cuisine. Emphasizing on the regional cuisine of our destinations, we can recommend carefully selected local, family run, restaurants for our groups.
On a day when a barbeque dinner is included in our itinerary, we usually buy local cheeses, vegetables, meat or fish and bread from local markets so you don't miss out on the specialities of the region. We always choose a quiet, beautiful island beach for our BBQs and you can either help with the grilling and marinating or, alternatively, you can opt to have a swim under the stars while we cook for you.
Generally meals on board the sailing yacht are included in the standard price of our tours. "Light lunch" and "breakfast" usually refers to fresh Mediterranean salads, sandwiches, omelets or fresh fruit and local cheeses. When a meal is not included feel free to ask your tour leader to suggest a local restaurant in the village or town you are staying.
For the meal plan of the tour please refer to the day to day itinerary and the extra info of the tour. If you are a vegan or vegetarian, have any food allergies or any special requests when it comes to food, please let us know at the time of booking.
The style of travel in our adventures provides us a great deal of excitement, however is dependent on several factors, such as weather, terrain conditions and technical problems of our transportation. These may create unexpected circumstances throughout our tours that we have to deal with by making minor changes to the tour itinerary or the activities included in a particular day. For that reason the described day to day itinerary is used as a guideline which gives us the flexibility to make changes when needed.
Some of the activities listed in the day to day itinerary are included in the standard tour price, while there are also optional activities at your own expense. When a guided tour at a historical/cultural site is mentioned, the costs of a professional guide is included in the standard tour price. In every outdoor activity we work with fully qualified operators whose safety track has been extensively assessed personally by us. The necessary equipment needed for every outdoor activity is always provided by the local activity operators. For your personal gear please refer to the "prepare for your trip" section below.
Please note that all activities are subject to availability, while due to the time limit in each destination, it may not be possible to do all the optional activities listed in the itinerary.
In the following list you can find the tour activities, included or optional as well as the approximate prices of the optional ones:
Optional activities at your own expense
Historical Athens Treasure Hunt (35 euros pp)
Acropolis Hill and Parthenon (12 euros pp)
Acropolis Museum (5 euros pp)
Temple of Aphaia (4 euros pp)
Historic House of Lazaros Kountouriotis (~5 euros pp)
Please refer to What's included/What's not included section for the services that are included or not in the standard price of your tour. For the optional activities of our tour, outdoor activities and cultural sites? entrance fees, take a look at the Tour Activities.
Tipping Your Tour Leader/Local Guides
In appreciation to the outstanding quality of services provided throughout your adventure, you may also consider tipping your Tour Leader and Local guides. Although tipping is not compulsory and it may not be customary to you, it works as a kind voluntary gesture to the people who will guide you throughout your adventure.
Spending Money
Each traveller is different when it comes to spending money while travelling. Take your spending habits and requirements into account and prepare your tour budget allowing for food, drinks, souvenirs and participation in activities not included in the tour price.
The Euro (EUR) is the official currency in Greece. You can exchange your currency for Euros at the airports or in major towns. Cash may also be drawn for ATMs available in most of our destinations. Credit cards are widely accepted in Greece. However, you should always have some cash on you, as in some remote villages no ATMs may be available.
At Bearing True South, we operate "Land Only" based adventures. This means that flights to Greece are not included in the tour price. Travellers are responsible to make their own travel arrangements and make sure that they will be able to join the group at the joining point and time announced when booking, as described at the overview of the tour. Please note that the finishing point of the tour is always the same as the joining point
Our "Land Only" adventures provide you the flexibility to join one of our tours as part of longer holiday in Greece. You may spend a couple of days before or after your tour in Athens or even visit another Greek region, combining adventure, leisure and rest.
In Athens, you may also consider joining one of our day activities. Take a dive at one of Greece's numerous wreck sites, easily accessible from downtown Athens, or participate in our Historical Athens Treasure Hunt, a 'walk-through-history' game around Athens.
Health Information/ Travel Insurance
Bearing true South travellers are required to be in good physical health in order to be able to participate in one of our adventures. Please read through the day to day itinerary carefully and take into account the "Level of Difficulty" icon that appears on each one of our adventures, before booking your place.
If for any reason you are not able to participate in activities included in the tour itinerary, please inform us before booking. For any other important health issue please don?t hesitate to contact your tour leader.
Travellers with Bearing True South are required to hold valid travel insurance, covering a minimum medical expenses due to accident or sickness and 3rd party liability. We strongly advise you to ensure that your insurance covers you for all outdoor activities you intend to participate in during your adventure. There might be an additional charge for certain ones. Your travel insurance needs to be evident when you join our tours.
Visa Information
Holding a valid passport and visa in order to visit Greece is your responsibility. Generally EU citizens or citizens of Member-States of the Schengen Agreement do not need to display a visa in order to travel to Greece.
Visas are not required by holders of valid passports from the following non-E.U. countries if they want to visit Greece and remain in the country for up to 3 months (90 days): Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Uruguay, Malaysia, Singapore, Japan, South Korea, Australia, New Zealand, USA, Canada, Israel, Monaco, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland, Lichtenstein
For travellers not coming from the above countries, please contact your local Greek embassy/consulate for visa information. Please also note that most countries expect you to have at least 6 months validity on your passport in order to be issued a visa.
Before you travel, we encourage you to learn about the region you'll explore while on a tour. From local weather conditions to information on geography, local history and culture, all are essential in order to make the most out of you tour, while minimizing the possibility to face unexpected, unpleasant circumstances.
Weather Information
Greece in general has warm and humid summers lasting from May till October. In May and October weather can be less predictable with some rain and chilly temperatures being possible especially in the Greek mainland. Greek summers are generally hot, with temperatures rarely getting lower than 25 degrees Celsius in most of our destinations, while temperatures of over 40 degrees Celsius during the day are not unheard of in July and August. In the open sea, weather can be tough to predict all year round, but in the summer the seas are generally calm and ideal for sailing. Generally, cool temperatures and occasional rainfalls occur especially at night, a fact that you have to take into account when packing for your adventure.
Packing for your tour
Space is limited on board so, while on one of our sailing trips, you are expected to bring with you a backpack or suitcase that you should keep as light as possible, as well as a daypack for your personal items and valuables.
Travel documents: Passport, visa if required, valid travel insurance
Personal health care items: personal medication, sunscreen, insect repellent, travel sickness tablets, sunglasses, insect bite gel
Clothing/walking/swimming gear (depending on the season and tour): waterproof & windproof jacket, sun hat, long trousers (wearing shorts is not permitted in monasteries and churches), shorts, swimming costume,extra towel for swimming, t-shirts, hooded tops, trainers/walking shoes, personal mattress or a sleeping bag (should you choose to sleep on the yacht's sundeck), torch, snorkelling mask and fins.
Contact for information and pricing on our 2024 departures at info@bearingtruesouth.com
If our dates don't suit your plans, or if you want to experience one of our adventures with your family or group of friends, we can arrange a private tour just for you on the dates that suit you, based on one of our existing itineraries.
Furthermore, with a minimum number of 4 participants, all of our tours can be customised as far as date of departure, activities and itinerary are concerned, according to your group's requirements. For groups of less than 4 travellers, standard tour prices are subject to change. In that case, please contact us in order to get a new quote.
For more information don't hesitate to contact us with your ideas at : sales@bearingtruesouth.com and we'll get back to you shortly with detailed information and pricing.
Duration: 9 days
Level of Difficulty: 2/5
Group Size: minimum 4 persons - maximum 8 persons per yacht
Ages: 8 years and older, younger kids travel at their parents' discretion and responsibility
Accommodation: 7 nights sailing yacht cabin / 1 night 3* Hotel
Meals : 7 breakfasts, 3 light lunches
Transport: Sailing boat rental costs, all electricity and water port costs, petrol costs, Airport transfers, Transfers from/to the marina
Tour Staff: Bearing True South skipper, local guides
Airline tickets
Personal expenses
Travel insurance
Optional activities as listed in 'tour activities'
Local transport (such as taxis or buses on the islands)