I agree with everyone who suggests visiting Italy and Greece independently, and it will be much less expensive. However, you don't seem comfortable planning your own trip, and that is understandable. As Isabel says, it can be daunting. It also takes a lot of time, which us independent travelers enjoy doing, but some people don't. I have a few friends who don't want to plan anything, and want to just get on the bus, and all decisions are made for them. Because your trip is not until 2021, you might change your mind and decide to plan your own trip with the help of guidebooks and travel forums.

But if you still feel more comfortable with a tour group, I agree with the people who recommend Rick Steves Tours. I have never been on his tours, but they seem to be the most reasonably paced tours. We have friends who traveled to Spain with Globus Tours, and their itinerary sounded tortuous to me. They had only 1 and 2 night stays everywhere! Rick has a Best of Italy tour for 10 days, which includes Venice (3 nights), Florence (3 nights), and Rome (3 nights). He also has My Way Tours, which are a bit more independent. They provide the hotel accommodations and bus transportation to each destination. You decide what you want to see and do each day, and you also choose your own restaurants. The only drawback is that the bus rides are 3 - 5 hours. Not sure how you would feel about that.

Planning to me is a little different than experienced travelers to Europe we been just twice via Cruise ship. So I thought we would see hopefully a little more via guided tour. I picked Greece and Italy because they are countries we have never been to
I have checked out many tour companies Great Value Vacations. Cosmos, Trafalgar can't really tell one from another I read reviews and look at itteneries. I will check Rick Steves as well so many companies out there . Just want to make sure accommodations are good and we have the best time we possibly can.

Well, you have more than a year to get your boots on the ground for a new kind of adventure. No one expects you to be an experienced European traveler, but in that amount of time you can certainly learn a whole lot that would make your travels more interesting and fulfilling than what you might see from a bus window or in a port.

No one here has any idea what "having the best time we possibly can" means to you. You haven't even mentioned what most interests you about traveling in Europe, except that Greece and Italy are countries you haven't plopped down into off cruise ships. So are you just trying to check off countries you've not seen before? What else draws you to Italy and Greece? Architecture? Food? Art? Crafts? History? Scenery? Language? Climate?

The word is itineraries - 5 syllables, spelled just the way it sounds.

If accommodations are important to you, guided tours are hardly ever the way to go. On your own you can stay at exceptional properties all over Italy and Greece for far less than you'll spend at a ho-hum tourist hotel picked by the bus tour or cruise ship.

But this does require work on your part. If you're not up to it, that's fine, but do consider that, IF this is your last hurrah in Europe, you are responsible for whether you go out with a bang or a whimper.

oh what does interest us is the scenery and architecture of both countries

OK, great, well let's begin to narrow that down, then. What kind of scenery? Both countries are amazingly varied in that respect. Seascapes, mountains, plains, river gorges, forests, beaches, scrubland, orchards....what's your choice?

Architecture? Good. What period(s)? What styles? Do you know what you're seeing when you look at a building from the 17th-18th century? The 4th or 5th? The early Middle Ages? The Renaissance? The Gothic? The prehistoric? Or do you just like to look at "pretty buildings?" If you don't know, open a book or two and look at the pictures. It makes SO much more difference when you actually know what you're looking at and not just snapping photos and messaging back home that you're in such and such a place.

I'm tired. I just went foraging up the hill for dry twigs to start the fire this evening and I'm ready to settle in. I'm sure the OP is tired of me playing travel nanny. He lives in a completely different world from me, so I'm not sure anything I have to say will sink in or, even if it does, it will be worth it.

I wish him luck in his "travels."

Rick Steves is fine and better than a lot of options -- but they are certainly not budget tours.

I honestly don't think any tour company can manage what you seem to want out of a very short trip. Any that hit Italy and Greece will be longer than the time you have you would have no choice on which scenery or which types of architecture you'd see.

Rather than trying to find a tour for both Italy and Greece, it may be better to book separate tours for each country. Athens based tour companies that offer many different group tours include:
https://www.chat-tours.com
https://www.keytours.gr/en
G.O. Tours - Greek Organized Tours - Greek tourism and travels
I’ve never used any of them myself, but these are long established companies actually based in Greece, and I’m sure there must be similar companies in Italy.

One more question and thank everyone for their responses. Is it even possible to do the Greek Islands without a cruise?

Yes, of course it is possible to do the Greek Islands without a cruise, and far better IMO. The vast majority of Greek Islands don’t even have cruise ship ports but are served by ferries. Even the smallest of islands has regular ferries, as that is how the inhabitants get their provisions.

I visited more than 70 Greek Islands, but NEVER by cruise boat.
But be aware that the more places you want to visit, the less you will see, as a lot of your time will be wasted in planes, ferries etc. and in taxis bringing you from them to your hotel and back to the port or railway station.
And be aware that in both, Italy and Greece, architecture varies from area to area.
Italy: wooden Swiss chalets in Aosta Valley, brick houses and churches in Lombardy, Austrian chalets, city houses, churches and castles in the Dolomites, medieval high rise buildings in Liguria, Renaissance palaces in Florence, Byzantine style churches in Venice, etc. etc.
Greece: white stone cube "postcard houses" in the Cycladic Islands, partly wooden Macedonian houses in the North, Italian architecture and mosques in the Dodecanissos, typical Captain houses at Symi, Kastellorizo and Chalki, Venitian city houses and churches at Corfu and other Islands.........

Patriot, as said before, you have plenty of time to get your ducks in a row if you decide to travel independently. Another advantage of traveling this way is not only a trip tailored to your specific interests, but you could possibly save money for more trips. For example, my brother tracked his entire spending for their “once in a lifetime” cruise. For that same amount, my husband and I travelled for 4 weeks in successive years to France, Italy and Great Britain. Three much longer trips for the price of one!

This year I am busy planning a trip to Greece. We have booked all of our mostly moderate (and off-season) lodging with some splurges, as well as our transportation on the mainland and flights to the islands for less than $3,000.00. Of course there will be more costs incurred,. However, knowing what the cost of the same trip for just one person on a similar tour is great incentive for doing my own research. This forum is an excellent and supportive way to help you plan as long you are not expecting to be spoon fed every step of the way. Good luck for whichever trip you decide is your personal style.

—Annie

@ patriots2020: If you want some insights into how one might travel to Greece without a cruise, I would strongly encourage to consult a good guidebook or two in your local library or bookstore. And you might look at some of the trip reports Fodorites have written over the years -- not because you would want to take the same kind of trip, but rather because it might give you some ideas about your options. Here's mine:
https://www.fodors.com/community/eur...reece-1460735/

What length of time for your trip? That might be important context.

I’m planning four weeks this summer in Europe (from NY) and recently did the math to try and determine what the expenses might add up to and came up with approximately $6500. That included r/t for two (traveling with my son) NY - Madrid, r/t for one Madrid - Athens (solo for Greece), accommodations for two for 14 nights and train travel between Madrid, Seville and Valencia, 3 nights in Athens, 8 nights on Paros, 2 nights in Nafplio for one, ferry travel Athens r/t Parikia, bus to Nafplio from Athens and return, and one final night in Madrid for one. The total includes meals, activities we might want to do and incidentals. That’s barely $1600 a week, which I think is pretty damn reasonable. We’re not staying in dumps or cutting drastic corners, just traveling practically and planning some meals, like breakfast, at home.

Is it summer yet?

I hope to bring some balance to some of the above posts which state that they hate cruises and hate tours because they do not let you spend enough time in each spot to appreciate it. I have come to reallize that lots of people simply do not wish to spend more than a smattering at a place to think/tell/brag that they've been there. Some only wish to "associate" with tour companies in which they think (read hope) they will meet "people like them" (read exclusive). Luckily for us, most of our 16 trips to Europe have been through our very own planning and they have been the most fun to do. They were not the least expensive because they were typically 2-4 weeks spent in one country at a time. But because we did all our own planning, the places we stayed, ate, visited are firmly in my mind's memories because we researched them extensively beforehand. On a tour, if you start out with no knowledge about your destination (town, village, museum and the like) your retention of same will probably be about next to nothing. Too much to assimilate. But over these thirty years, we had one cruise thru the Baltic 15 yrs ago -- ideal for hopping north and south of the Sea -- but on a large ship of 2500, with another couple. We stayed on pre-cruise for several days in Amsterdam. It was great fun. However, we only took two additional additional two cruises in 2017 and in 2018. Both on Azamara which is a superb line maxxing out on 685 passengers. One was to Greece where we spend 5 days in Athens, then toured the islands for 8-10 nts. Perfect. No crowds in the ports of Mykonos, Santorini, Crete, Rhodes, Ephesus. The only tour we signed up for anywhere on that trip was in Ephesus with Tours By Locals, which was great. Greece, Pelopponesse, and the islands were so easy to do on our own, again with one other couple. And we did exactly what we four wanted to do; there was no way a tourguide was needed on those islands for sure. You get a guidebook and familiarize yourself with it, and do what you wish. Yes, we had one full day on most islands plus lunch. Oh we did get down to Mycenae & Epidaurus which are fabulous. We loved Azamara so much, we went in 2018 to some of our favorite places where we had already been -- Venice (3d visit), Croatia (new), Sorrento (2d visit), Rome (3d visit), Florence (2d visit), Monte Carlo (2d visit), Cassis (new) and Barcelona (2d visit). Again extended for days in Venice & Barcelona. And this September taking Azamara from London, back to Bordeaux for 2 days (where we love), the Basque (2 days), to Lisbon (new). We'll then fly on our own to Brussels and Bruges, and fly home from Paris (7th visit but never enough). (Fodorites, yes, considered doing Belgium first from London, long story, this way works better even tho we wont sample the Chunnel) It's not hard. We will not take any tours on this upcoming trip, and are reading History of the Basque now (thanks St. Cirq). When we considered Brussels by river cruise, we discovered the duration is just over 100 mi, and Viking is so overpriced as to what it offers, BUT it offers organized tours off the boat, and apparently lots of people need them due to fear -- getting lost? not speaking the language? Don't get it, but they cost alot as do the tour buses. No thanks, so much better value w ocean cruise ship where the food, beverages, and entertainment are of a level that river cruises simply do not. We are in our 70s, but have no walking or health restrictions and enjoy 'relaxing' and 'packing once' that our last trip to France of 4 wks did not offer, but hey, it was fabulous on its own merits. But do look at Azamara for Greece, then fly to Venice and train to Florence & Rome and fly home from there IMHO. And travel agents cannot discount Viking as they can do other companies or cruiselines which is a joke; presume you know not to book directly w cruiseline, never the best price nor is air "free." Well, Italy and Greece are fabulous places to visit in any way, shape or form.

Most travelers to Greece do not take cruises. They take Greek ferries between islands. Since you do not seem to be comfortable planning an independent trip, contact Fantasy Travel in Athens and have them create your trip for you. You will be met at ferry docks upon arrival, have guides for antiquities in Athens, etc.
Tney will plan as much support for you as you desire.
We do not mix countries when traveling. It takes time to adjust to each countries’ style of living, dinner times, foods, customs etc.

I can recommend one tour company in Athens that is run by locals and takes you to places in the city you wouldn’t think to go to if you were on your own. Kostas Chatzivasileiou, the young owner, is an ex Evzone (presidential guard) and all his guides are locals who know the city intimately. He gets 5* reviews, and the gourmet food tour gets special mention. Even if you don’t like guided tours his are worth considering.
https://www.athens-walks.com

Re HappyTrvlr’s #35 post: Fantasy Travel, along with the three links I gave in post #27, is a good choice. Fantasy, Chat, Key and G.O. are companies that can put together an entire trip through mainland Greece and/or the islands for you, including booking hotels and ferries. For just a tour of Athens I would go for a private or group tour with Athens-Walks, as suggested above. Read through some of the reviews and you will see why.