Anyone used a tour company to see Mainland Greece, suggestions please?
 

I am interested in a four or five day tour of Greece's mainland but not sure which is the best company to go with. Also I would like to stop a few days in Napflio, how best to incorporate this in to the tour. Driving is not an option and I don't feel like tackling bus schedules for this.
So far I have sussed out Cosmos and Chat Tours but maybe there are a few other choices as well. Thank you.

I traveled in the Peloponnese with Rick Steves, although it is a much longer tour than you are requesting it does include Napflio. The guides (aside from Mystras) were excellent and the accommodation comfortable and well located. I also had no difficulty traveling by bus and train on my own in northern Greece.

See http://www.ricksteves.com/tours/greece-turkey/greece for the tour.

See http://wilhelmswords.com/eur2006/index.html for my visit to Greece - no driving.

Hi

I took a 10 day tour with Cosmos. I have used that company 3 times and can't fault them. If you want 5 star accommodation I also recommend Insight but I don't know whether they have Greek tours to suit your schedule.

Check the websites for Fantasy Travel and Dolphin-Hellas Travel, both in Athens and both very reliable.

The major companies that offer organized tours are :

Key Tours http://www.keytours.gr/

Chat Tours http://www.chatours.gr/

G.O Tours http://www.gotours.com.gr/

If you contact any travel agency in Athens, they will make your booking through one of these companies.

Thanks everyone, have a few selections now.

If you're interested at all in private tours, I can highly recommend PK TRAVEL,www.pktravelgreece.com based in Athens. We just used them late May/early June for transfers and a tour to Cape Sounio. They do tours and transfers all over Greece. Great drivers, very reliable and funny!

We have used Chat tours a couple of times while in Greece and were Satified.

Fantasy Travel

We're interested in the same question - which tour company to use for a mainland Greece tour. Wondering why Globus Journeys, Trafalgar are no in the above list? There's also Insight. Has anyone used these places for Greece?

All those tours run more or less identical tours. I have not use them as I live here, but talking with hundrends of people who visit with them, I can not see they have any different experience. Globus and Cosmos and occasionaly Trafalgar even use the exactly same bus company to roam around Greece and stay at the very same hotels. I guess you have to check their price policy and request in case you have specific needs in mind, eg if specific group seems to be large or small on specific dates.

But all that said, it is a question of wanting to book with one company through your country with other things like flights and the like included or book localy too.

Personaly although I understand the time and money restrictions, I would check carefully if a tailor made trip from a local travel agency or a DIY trip is a feasible option on your specifics.

I have no doupt people's guides are very good and all and nop insult intended, but a large percentage of visitors I have encounter on those tours, take no much interest other than ticking places off a list. I get to talk with people who just visited Delphi site for example and take so major things wrong, that I wonder why they bothered to visit. You can not just have visit Delphi and think it is a sanctuary of Zeus or think the statue of Chariotter represents Pythia. Oh, please!

Forgot to mention Insight, the same to Cosmos and Globus applies.

My wife and I have recently returned from our 8th tour with Insight Vacations.

We went on Insights 'Grecian Dreams' tour in 2009. One week was spent on the mainland the other week on a cruise. It was very well organized. The local guides were certainly well informed.

I have posted a trip report for this tour.