Our conservative estimate, not knowing the ferry schedules, is that we only have two days/one night to visit Meteora from Athens. I've been wanting to go there for as long as I can remember, and I worry that if we go on an organized tour, we'll be rushed and won't see very much. On the other hand, if we don't, we'd have to rent a car and drive ourselves, which is a lot of driving. Has anyone been on a tour, and if so, which one? How many monasteries did you see? Has anyone driven? How's the drive? I'd love to hear some opinions!

Details: this would be late May 2009, and if all goes well, we'll have a third day to make this a more leisurely trip! Thanks!

If you can stretch it to two nights would be better. We did it ourselves this past summer. Landed in Athens immediately rented car and took off. Stopped in Delphi; saw a bit late afternoon then overnight. Saw more very early in a.m. On to Meteora for late lunch + one monastery . Up again early saw 2 more monasteries. Then out of town as we were keen to reach east coast of Pelion before nightfall. Perhaps if you skipped Delphi could squeeze it all in to one night and just leave late the next day. Not necessary to see every monastery but it is breathtaking and by doing it yourself you could pick and choose the ones that are most interesting to you; each has its own personality.

Tours work best for my teenage daughter and me. Tours that I have been on are the following:

2005 - Italy and Greece - EF Tours - I do not recommend this tour company for adults, but they are fine for high school students. I was rushed, exhausted, and there are a dozen other reasons that I do not like this tour company.

2007 - France - Rick Steves' Tours - Loved every minute of it.

2008 - England, Scotland, and Wales - Rick Steves' Tours - Liked the tour.

I am going on a Rick Steves' tour this year to Germany, Switzerland, and Austria.

I avoid renting cars in foreign countries. I will spare you the details of the time I rented a car and drove in Nice and Monaco (in a standard). I took it back one day early.

Some people love tours and some people hate them. If you have any questions, feel free to e-mail me.

We did a drive similar to winnie's -- one night in Delphi, one night in Meteora. We saw only one monastery, on our own, at our own pace, and it was fantastic. We ran into a couple of young girls who did much the same itinerary by public transportation (bus) and with their youthful vigor were able to see four monasteries and catch a bus (long trip I think) back to Athens. An organized tour would, I think, be less hectic but, as you said, it's on the tour schedule, not yours.

we went on a tour
an overnighter - we were picked up from our hotel in athens G.O Tours

it was fine

we got a night in kalambaka ( stopped in delphi for a couple of hours but we had already been so we just hung around and had a meal in the village which was nice)

id go tour if youre limited for time
the driving back to athens was awful in peak traffic once we hit the city outskirts on a friday afternoon

try to stay in the nicer hotel ( its a chain the amalia - theres one in olympia and delphi too and theyre really nice- we were put into the older one - sakalleridi-(general spelling only cos for the life of me i couldnt decipher it!) ...it was quite shabby and the meals were really below standard for the greeks who normally give a great breakfast - any meal for that matter)

nothing remarkable to see along the way - a lot of pretty patchwork of mountains and fields
the countryside is full of olive trees and hills but it's not made for exciting snapping
so a bus is fine
kalambaka is a really nice town so make sure you make the effort and have a good look around

the monasteries are great and the rock formations are awesome
do bring a skirt - or else you will need to hire a onesizefitsall at the monastery

we saw two monasteries
that was enough
but the scenery is spectacular
we stopped at a place in byzantine ( on the way ) where they showed you how icons were made
nice turkish delight provided lol
a trip to meteora however you decide to do it is a must for all travellers to greece
people seem to concentrate on the islands and athens but it was thanks to a colleague that we altered our plans and squeezed in meteora

We did a four day tour of the Peloponnese in 2006 and as it was our first trip to Europe we were happy to join a tour. Our guide was a pain in the a.. as far as personality, but to be fair she knew her Greek history and provided a great deal of information that we would otherwise not have known. The annoying part was planned stops for 'retail' opportunities and the guide would stay for as long as she thought that there was even a slim chance of another sale.

A word of warning, the monasteries tour was the only time in four days that the guide warned us against using the toilets. She was most insistent that no one should even attempt it..

We only saw one and it was beautiful - completely covered in Byzantine artwork and the location itself is breathtaking. A pulley system is still used to bring goods from the road across to the monastery and we walked through a cutting in a rock face to get to the monastery.

I think you could do it on your own, from memory the actual drive was fairly straightforward. I like the idea of renting the car at the airport and then head straight to Meteora.

Hope you go and that you also love it!!

we used the toilet in the monasteries
it was a hole in the floor

you just got to learn the nosplashtechnique!

Have you considered taking the train to Meteora? I did this trip in June 08 with my daughter. It was hassle free, comfortable, saw much great scenery and was met by hotel owner at the station. We stayed in Kastraki rather than Kalambaka. We were very close to the mountains and hiked up to the Grand Meteoron (about 2 hours) thru the most amazing trail imaginable. We later walked back down to Kastraki along the road. All in all a most unforgettable experience in a fantastic place. Message me if you need more details.

You don't have to use either a tour or a car. I arrived by KTEL bus from the north and went on to Athens by train. You can travel to/from Athens by bus or train. I walked from the bus station to my hotel, although I think I used a taxi to get to the train station. To visit the monasteries I used a taxi hired off the street - he named a price and I thought it was reasonable and didn't even bother to bargain. May is a great time to go - although earlier would be even better. I can't imagine trekking up the stairs to the monasteries in July or August!

Thanks, everyone. In the end we got our extra day and rented a car. Thanks to those who suggested public transport -- we did consider it but we like to explore, and this will help us do that on our way to and from.

Cheers.