697 Best Sights in Greece

Corfu's entire population once lived within the walls of the Old Fortress, or Citadel, built by the Venetians in 1546 on the site of a Byzantine castle. Separated from the rest of the town by a moat, the fort is on a promontory mentioned by Thucydides. Its two heights, or korypha ("peaks"), gave the island its name. Standing on the peaks, you have a gorgeous view west over the town and east to the mountainous coast of Albania—especially a spectacle at sunset. A statue of Count Schulenburg, an Austrian mercenary who became a local hero in 1716 when he helped to defeat the invading Ottomans, stands at the fort's entrance; a plaque beside the statue tells Schulenburg's story. Inside, there's an exhibition of Byzantine art and a shop with museum copies, while a second hall hosts changing events. Most of the old Venetian fortifications inside the fortress were destroyed by the British, who replaced them with their own structures. The most notable of these is the Church of St. George, built to look like an ancient Doric temple. Near it, overlooking Garitsa Bay, there is a shaded café where you can sit and enjoy the splendid view.

An air of mystery pervades this old Muslim and Jewish neighborhood, full of decaying monuments, fountains, hammam baths, and mosques, within the walls of the Kastro (castle) fortifications, built in the 10th century by the Byzantines and enlarged in the 14th century by the Genoese Giustiniani family. Under Turkish rule, the Greeks lived outside the wall, and the gates closed daily at sundown. Scattered among the precinct are several stone towers and, inside the old gate, the cells where the Turks jailed then hanged 75 leading Chiotes during the fight for independence in 1822, when Chios joined the rest of Greece in rebellion against the occupying Turks. The revolt here on the island failed, and the sultan retaliated: the Turks killed 30,000 Chiotes and enslaved 45,000. The event was written about by Victor Hugo and depicted by Eugène Delacroix in The Massacre of Chios. The painting, now in the Louvre, shocked Western Europe and increased support for Greek independence. Copies hang in many places on Chios, including in the Byzantine Museum. In Frouriou Square, look for the Turkish cemetery and the large marble tomb (with the fringed hat) of Kara Ali, chief of the Turkish flagship in 1822.

A bewildering maze of twisting cobblestone streets, arched porticoes, and towering doorways, the Old Town plunges you alternatively into cool darkness and then suddenly into pockets of dazzling sunshine. The Old Town is divided into the lower section, Bourgos, where the Greeks lived during Venetian times, and the upper part, called Kastro (castle), still inhabited by the Venetian Catholic nobility.

This entrancing little church with a commanding view of the city was supposedly built about AD 500 in honor of Galerius's daughter, who was secretly baptized while her father was away fighting. It was later converted into a mosque, and at some time its west wall—the traditional place of entrance (in order to look east when facing the altar)—was bricked up, so you enter Osios David from the south. No matter; this entirely suits the church's rather battered magic. You can still see the radiantly beautiful mosaic in the dome of the apse, which shows a rare beardless Jesus, as he seems to have been described in the vision of Ezekiel: Jesus is seen with a halo and is surrounded by the four symbols of the Evangelists—clockwise, from top left, are the angel, the eagle, the lion, and the calf. To the right is the prophet Ezekiel and, to the left, Habakuk. To save it from destruction, the mosaic was hidden under a layer of calfskin during the iconoclastic ravages of the 8th and 9th centuries. Plastered over while a mosque, it seems to have been forgotten until 1921, when an Orthodox monk in Egypt had a vision telling him to go to the church. On the day he arrived, March 25 (the day marking Greek independence from the Ottomans), an earthquake shattered the plaster, revealing the mosaic to the monk—who promptly died.

Part of the joy of this thousand-year-old monastery is its setting: wrapped by the green foothills of Mount Parnassos. It takes its name from Luke (Loukas) the Hermit—not the evangelist who wrote a book of the New Testament but a medieval oracle who originally founded a church at this site and lived here until his death in AD 953. The monastery was later founded by the emperor Romanos II in AD 961, in recognition of the accuracy of Loukas's prophecy that Crete would be liberated by an emperor named Romanos.

The katholikon, a masterpiece of Byzantine architecture, was built in the 11th century over the tomb of Luke. It follows to perfection the Byzantine cross-in-a-square plan under a central dome and was inspired by the Agia Sophia in Constantinople; in turn, it was used as a model for both the Monastery of Daphni and Mystra churches. Impressive mosaics in the narthex and in portions of the domed nave are set against a rich gold background and done in the somber but expressive 11th-century hieratic style by artists from Thessaloniki and Constantinople. Particularly interesting are the reactions evident on the faces of the apostles, which range from passivity to surprise as Christ washes their feet in the mosaic of Niptir, to the far left of the narthex.

In the second niche of the entrance is a mosaic showing Loukas sporting a helmet and beard, with his arms raised. The engaging Nativity, Presentation in the Temple, and the Baptism of Christ mosaics are on the curved arches that support the dome. Two priceless icons from the late 16th century, Daniel in the Lion's Den and Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the Flames of the Furnace, by Damaskinos, a teacher of El Greco, were stolen a few years back from the white marble iconostasis in the little apse and have been replaced with copies.

The tomb of Osios Loukas is in the crypt of the katholikon; his relics, formerly in the Vatican, were moved here in 1987, making the monastery an official shrine. A highlight of the complex, evocatively clinging to a pine-scented hillside, is the Theotokos (Mother of God), a small communal church dedicated to the Virgin Mary, on the left as you enter. On the periphery are the monks' cells and a refectory, now restored, which has been used as a sculpture museum since 1993. To visit you must wear either long pants or a skirt. Bring a small flashlight to help see some of the frescoes.

This most amazing of archaeological sites once lay hidden beneath a huge mound hemmed in by low hills. Heinrich Schliemann, father of archaeology and discoverer of Troy, knew it was here, but Turkish obstruction prevented him from exploring his last discovery. Cretan independence from the Ottoman Turks made it possible for Sir Arthur Evans, a British archaeologist, to start excavations in 1899. A forgotten and sublime civilization thus came again to light with the uncovering of the great Palace of Knossos.

The magnificent Minoans flourished on Crete from around 2700 to 1450 BC, and their palaces and cities at Knossos, Phaistos, and Gournia were centers of political power and luxury—they traded in tin, saffron, gold, and spices as far afield as Spain—when the rest of Europe was a place of primitive barbarity. They loved art, farmed bees, and worshipped many goddesses. But what caused their demise? Some say political upheaval, but others point to an eruption on Thira (Santorini), about 100 km (62 miles) north in the Aegean, that caused tsunamis and earthquakes and supposedly brought about the end of this sophisticated civilization.

The Palace of Knossos site was occupied from Neolithic times, and the population spread to the surrounding land. Around 1900 BC, the hilltop was leveled and the first palace constructed; around 1700 BC, after an earthquake destroyed the original structure, the later palace was built, surrounded by houses and other buildings. Around 1450 BC, another widespread disaster occurred, perhaps an invasion: palaces and country villas were razed by fire and abandoned, but Knossos remained inhabited even though the palace suffered some damage. But around 1380 BC the palace and its outlying buildings were destroyed by fire, and around 1100 BC the site was abandoned. Still later, Knossos became a Greek city-state.

You enter the palace from the west, passing a bust of Sir Arthur Evans, who excavated at Knossos on and off for more than 20 years. A path leads you around to the monumental south gateway. The west wing encases lines of long, narrow storerooms where the true wealth of Knossos was kept in tall clay jars: oil, wine, grains, and honey. The central court is about 50 meters (164 feet) by 25 meters (82 feet) long. The cool, dark throne-room complex has a griffin fresco and a tall, wavy-back gypsum throne, the oldest in Europe. The most spectacular piece of palace architecture is the grand staircase, on the east side of the court, leading to the domestic apartments. Four flights of shallow gypsum stairs survive, lighted by a deep light well. Here you get a sense of how noble Minoans lived; rooms were divided by sets of double doors, giving privacy and warmth when closed, coolness and communication when open. The queen's megaron (apartment or hall) is decorated with a colorful dolphin fresco and furnished with stone benches. Beside it is a bathroom, complete with a clay tub, and next door a toilet, with a drainage system that permitted flushing into a channel flowing into the Kairatos stream far below. The east side of the palace also contained workshops. Beside the staircase leading down to the east bastion is a stone water channel made up of parabolic curves and settling basins: a Minoan storm drain. Northwest of the east bastion is the north entrance, guarded by a relief fresco of a charging bull. Beyond is the theatrical area, shaded by pines and overlooking a shallow flight of steps, which lead down to the royal road. This, perhaps, was the ceremonial entrance to the palace.

For a complete education in Minoan architecture and civilization, consider touring Knossos and, of course, the Archaeological Museum in Heraklion (where many of the treasures from the palace are on view), then traveling south to the Palace of Phaistos, another great Minoan site that has not been reconstructed.

After a long day at the archaeological sites you may feel like you've earned a drink. Follow the signposts to one of the numerous vineyards that surround the pretty village of Archanes, 9 km (5½ miles) south of Knossos, and enjoy tasting some of the world's oldest wines.

Just a short drive north of Pylos, you will find the site of an ancient Mycenaean settlement centered on the immaculately preserved palace of King Nestor. It’s the finest of all the surviving palaces of this era, and a few years ago a huge structure was created to protect what survives of the court of one of the most famous heroes of the Trojan war. It was not a fortified palace, such was the king's reputation for peace, and it was mysteriously destroyed by fire in 1200 BC. Ironically, this is what has helped to preserve so many of its treasures. The fire baked the clay tablets in the palace’s archives hard, ensuring their survival along with a wealth of information about language, religion, and life in the court of Nestor. It was a two-story building, and its ground floor once accounted for more than 100 rooms; today its walls stand up to a meter high and are surrounded by walkways. The largest room is, naturally, the throne room, but some exquisite details can be seen in some of the lesser vestibules—for example, in one of the bathrooms you can still see an original terra-cotta tub that stands in place. Many of the finds that survived the fire are housed in the Archaeological Museum in the nearby village of Chora, which is worth a visit along the way.

The Palace of Phaistos was built around 1900 BC and rebuilt after a disastrous earthquake around 1650 BC. It was burned and abandoned in the wave of destruction that swept across the island around 1450 BC, though Greeks continued to inhabit the city until the 2nd century BC, when it was eclipsed by Roman Gortyna.

You enter the site by descending a flight of steps leading into the west court, then climb a grand staircase. From here you pass through the Propylon porch into a light well and descend a narrow staircase into the central court. Much of the southern and eastern sections of the palace have eroded away, but there are large pithoi still in place in the old storerooms. On the north side of the court the recesses of an elaborate doorway bear a rare trace: red paint in a diamond pattern on a white ground. A passage from the doorway leads to the north court and the northern domestic apartments, now roofed and fenced off. The Phaistos Disk was found in 1903 in a chest made of mud brick at the northeast edge of the site and is now on display at the Archaeological Museum in Heraklion. East of the central court are the palace workshops, with a metalworking furnace fenced off. South of the workshops lie the southern domestic apartments, including a clay bath. From there, you have a memorable view across the Messara Plain.

This grand building, with its fairy-tale towers, crenellated ramparts, and more than 150 rooms, crowns the top of the Street of Knights and is the place to begin any tour of Rhodes. Unscathed during the Ottoman siege of 1522, the palace was partly destroyed in 1856 by an explosion of ammunition stored nearby in the cellars of the Church of St. John. The present structure—a Mussolini-era Italian reconstruction of the 1930s—is said to have remained fairly close to the original in its exterior, but inside was rebuilt with all the restraint of your typical fascist dictatorship. The building was, after all, reimagined as a holiday abode for King Vittorio Emmanuele III of Italy, and later Il Duce himself (Mussolini), whose name is still engraved at the entrance. Today the palace's collection of antiques and antiquities includes Hellenistic and Roman mosaic floors from Italian excavations in Kos, and in the permanent exhibition downstairs are extensive displays, maps, and plans showing the layout of the city that will help you get oriented before wandering through the labyrinthine Old Town.

Paleokastritsa Monastery, a 17th-century structure, is built on the site of an earlier monastery, among jasmine-terraced gardens overlooking the Ionian Sea. Its treasure is a 12th-century icon of the Virgin Mary, to whom the establishment is dedicated, and there's a small museum with some other early icons. Note the Tree of Life motif on the ceiling. Be sure to visit the flower-filled inner courtyard (go through the church), built on the edge of the cliff and looking down a precipitous cliff to the placid green coves and coastline to the south. There's a small gift shop on the premises.

The dirt road north of Troullos leads to beaches and to the small, now deserted, Panagia Eikonistria Monastery—now reachable by bus from Troullos. It was built in 1655 on the spot where a monk discovered an icon of the Virgin "miraculously" dangling from a pine tree. The icon spends most of the year in the church of Trion Hierarchon, in Skiathos Town, but on November 20 the townspeople parade it to its former home for the celebration of the Presentation of the Virgin the following day. You can enter the deserted monastery church any time, though its interior has been blackened by fire and its 18th-century frescoes are difficult to see.

The square above the port, to the northwest, was built to celebrate the church's 1,700th anniversary. From there note a white wall with two belfries, the front of the former monastic quarters that surround the magnificent Panagia Ekatontapyliani, the earliest remaining proto-Byzantine church in Greece and one of the oldest unaltered churches in the world. As such, it is a renowned pilgrimage church of the Aegean, second only to Megalochari on nearby Tinos.

The story began in 326, when St. Helen—the mother of Emperor Constantine the Great—set out on a ship for the Holy Land to find the True Cross. Stopping on Paros, she had a vision of success and vowed to build a church there. Though she died before it was built, her son built the church in 328 as a wooden-roof basilica. Two centuries later, Justinian the Great (who ruled the Byzantine Empire in 527–65) commissioned the splendid dome.

According to legend, 99 doors have been found in the church and the 100th will be discovered only after Constantinople is Greek again—but the name is actually older than the legend. Inside, the subdued light mixes with the dun, reddish, and green tufa (porous volcanic rock). The columns are classical and their capitals Byzantine. At the corners of the dome are two fading Byzantine frescoes depicting six-winged seraphim. The 4th-century iconostasis (with ornate later additions) is divided into five frames by marble columns. One panel contains the 14th-century icon of the Virgin, with a silver covering from 1777. The Virgin is carried in procession on the church's crowded feast day, August 15, the Dormition. During Easter services, thousands of rose petals are dropped from the dome upon the singing celebrant. The adjacent Baptistery, nearly unique in Greece, also built from the 4th to the 6th century, has a marble font and bits of mosaic floor. The church museum, at the right, contains post-Byzantine icons.

The Tinians built the splendid Church of the Annunciate Virgin on this site in 1823 to commemorate finding a buried icon in the foundations of an old Byzantine church that once stood here. Imposing and grand, framed in gleaming yellow and white, it stands atop the town's main hill, which is linked to the harbor via Megalocharis, a steeply inclined avenue lined with votive shops. Half Venetian, half Cypriot in style, the facade has a distinctive two-story arcade and bookend staircases. Lined with the best marble from Tinos, Paros, and Delos and green veined Tinian stone, the church's courtyards are paved with pebble mosaics. Inside the upper three-aisle church dozens of beeswax candles and precious tin and silver work votives—don't miss the golden orange tree near the door donated by a blind man who was granted sight—dazzle the eye. There is often a wait in line to see the small icon, encrusted with jewels, that is said to have curative powers. To beseech the icon's aid, a sick person often sends a young female relative or a mother may bring her sick infant. As the pilgrim descends from the boat, they fall to their knees, with traffic indifferently whizzing about them, and they crawl painfully up the faded red carpet lane on the main street—1 km (½ mile)—to the church. In the church's courtyards, they pray to the magical icon for a cure, which sometimes comes. This ritual is very similar to the ancient one observed in Tinos's temple of Poseidon. The lower church, called the Evresis, celebrates the finding of the icon; in one room a baptismal font is filled with silver and gold votives, while the chapel to the left commemorates the torpedoing by the Italians, on Dormition Day, 1940, of the Greek ship Elli; in revenge the roused Greeks amazingly overpowered the Italians.

Patounis has been producing olive oil soap using the traditional stamped method since 1850, and the family's factory—the only one left in Corfu—is listed on Greece's National Inventory of the Intangible Cultural Heritage. Every weekday at noon, the current (fifth-generation) Patounis, Apostolos, runs an informative guided tour of the premises, during which you will see a demonstration of the traditional stamping and cutting process. You can also buy the soap and various other wares in the shop (where the entrance is), which is additive-free and hypoallergenic.

This collection displays costumes, handicrafts, and household furnishings, albeit without a huge amount of context. Many of the exhibits are precious heirlooms that have been donated by Peloponnesian families, and several exhibits are painstaking re-creations of 19th-century Nafplion homes. Top hats from the 1950s and contemporary fashion sandals are among the items that bring the overview into a later modern era. There is also some surprisingly good background on the post-revolution era, particularly on local figure Kalliopi Papalexopoulou, a woman who was a key voice in Nafplion's refusal to accept the rule of the much-disliked King Otto and played a leading role in his eventual deposing in 1862, after warships had been sent to the city to quell local discontent. The gift shop on the ground floor has some fascinating books and a good selection of high-quality jewelry and handicrafts, such as weavings, kilims, and collector's items such as roka (spindles) and wooden koboloi (worry beads).

The closest island to Alonnisos is also home to one of the marine park's travel highlights—the Peristera Wreck, discovered by local fisherman Dimitris Mavrikis in 1985. A cargo of some 4,000 wine amphoras can be seen half buried in the seabed, the bulk of which have been identified as having originated in Skopelos, and the ancient city of Mende, now incorporated into Central Macedonia. It's thought that the ship foundered toward the end of the Peloponnesian War, as evidence from burned remains of a wooden hull could be testament to. In 2020 the area became known as the Alonissos Underwater Museum, and it's possible to visit in the summer months only, on a currently trial basis by the Greek Department of Maritime Antiquities and tourism officials.

For many this is the best beach on the island. Its setting is Caribbean-esque: a semicircular ring of lush green-stubbled cliffs wrapping a white pebble-sand shore that gives way to waters that veer from emerald to cobalt blue. Umbrellas and sundecks fill only part of the beach, so there's room in the corners just to spread out. Its remoteness ensures this remains one of the few big shorelines yet to be overwhelmed on the island. Access is impossible without your own transport, so it's worth getting there early as parking is limited. Facilities do exist, however, in the form of a beach bar and a few restaurants. Amenities: food and drink; parking (no fee); showers; toilets. Best for: swimming.

Ancient trees fossilized by volcanic ash up to 20 million years ago stand stark on a hillside above Sigri. If you're expecting a thick woods, you might be taken aback by this seemingly barren site that at first appears as a collection of stumps leaning every which way among shrubs and rock. However, a walk along well-organized trails reveals delicate colors and a haunting, strange beauty. You can also study the specimens at Ipsilou, a large monastery on the highest peak in this wild, moonscape-like volcanic landscape, overlooking western Lesvos and Asia Minor across the Aegean.

One of antiquity's most famous cities, Philippi, lies just 13 km (8 miles) north of Kavala. Expecially famous for the battle between the assassins of Julius Caesar, Brutus and Cassius, and his heirs Octavian and Mark Antony. The site retains a significant amount of remains, including the Via Egnatia, several Early Christian basilicas, a Roman cistern and forum, and massive ancient theater, built in 357 BC, which is still used for the annual Philippi Festival, the region's most important cultural event. Many of the artifacts are on display at the archaelogical museum nearby.

Carved out of the limestone by the slow-moving underground river Vlychada on its way to the sea, the vast Pirgos Dirou caves—actually two main caves, Glyfada and Alepotrypa—are one of Greece's more popular natural attractions, and a visit is an entertaining and surreal experience. The eerie caverns, places of worship in Paleolithic and Neolithic times, were believed to be entrances to the underworld by the ancient Greeks, and served as hiding places millennia later for Resistance fighters during World War II.

Today you climb aboard a boat for a 25-minute tour of Glyfada's grottoes—with formations of luminous pink, white, yellow, and red stalagmites and stalactites that resemble buildings and mythical beasts. The cave system is believed to be at least 70 km (43 miles) long, with more than 2,800 waterways, perhaps extending as far as Sparta, though visitors explore just 1½ km (1 mile). At the end of the tour you walk for several hundred yards before emerging on a path above the crashing surf. The close quarters in the passageways are not for the claustrophobic, and even in summer the caves are chilly. During high season you may wait up to two hours for a boat, so plan to arrive early. In low season you may have to wait until enough people arrive to fill up a boat. Opening hours vary according to season.

Neokastro, the "new fortress" that dominates the town, was built by the Turks in 1573 to control the southern entrance to Pylos Bay, which was at the time the only way in. Neokastro's well-preserved walls enclose the Church of the Transfiguration (a former mosque), cannons, and two anchors from the battle. The highest point of the castle is guarded by a hexagonal fort flanked by towers. A prison in the 18th and 19th centuries, the fort was more secure than most other Greek prisons at the time because it sometimes housed convicts from the Mani, who continued their blood feuds even while behind bars. Tickets include access to the archaeological museum and an excellent permanent exhibition on underwater archaeology, with relics recovered from submerged settlements around the Peloponnese.

The city's commercial center from the 1st century BC to the 4th century AD, the Roman Market was a large rectangular courtyard with a peristyle that provided shade for the arcades of shops. Its most notable feature is the west entrance's Bazaar Gate, or Gate of Athena Archegetis, completed around AD 2; the inscription records that it was erected with funds from Julius Caesar and Augustus. Halfway up one solitary square pillar behind the gate's north side, an edict inscribed by Hadrian regulates the sale of oil, a reminder that this was the site of the annual bazaar where wheat, salt, and oil were sold. On the north side of the Roman Agora stands one of the few remains of the Turkish occupation, the Fethiye (Victory) Mosque. The eerily beautiful mosque was built in the late 15th century on the site of a Christian church to celebrate the Turkish conquest of Athens and to honor Mehmet II (the Conqueror). During the few months of Venetian rule in the 17th century, the mosque was converted to a Roman Catholic church; it is now closed to the public.

Surrounded by a cluster of old houses on the western slope of the Acropolis, the world-famous Tower of the Winds (Aerides) is now open to the public for visits. Located inside the Roman Agora, it is the most appealing and well preserved of the Roman monuments of Athens, keeping time since the 1st century BC. It was originally a sundial, water clock, and weather vane topped by a bronze Triton with a metal rod in his hand, which followed the direction of the wind. Its eight sides face the direction of the eight winds into which the compass was divided; expressive reliefs around the tower personify these eight winds, called I Aerides (the Windy Ones) by Athenians. Note the north wind, Boreas, blowing on a conch, and the beneficent west wind, Zephyros, scattering blossoms.

South of Chania a deep, verdant crevice extends 16 km (10 miles) from near the village of Xyloskalo to the Libyan Sea. The landscape of forest, sheer rock faces, and running streams, inhabited by the elusive and endangered kri-kri (wild goat) is magnificent. The Samaria, protected as a national park, is the most traveled of the dozens of gorges that cut through Crete's mountains and emerge at the sea, but the walk through the canyon, in places only a few feet wide and almost 610 meters (2,000 feet) deep, is thrilling nonetheless. Reckon on five to six hours of downhill walking with a welcome reward of a swim at the end. Be sure to wear stout shoes and carry water. Buses depart the central bus station in Chania at 5, 7:45, and 8:45 am for Xyloskalo. Boats leave in the afternoon (5:30 pm) from Agia Roumeli, the mouth of the gorge, where it's an hour-long scenic sail to Hora Sfakion, from where buses return to Chania. Travel agents also arrange day trips to the gorge. Also from Chania, a couple of extremely scenic routes head south across the craggy White Mountains to the isolated Libyan Sea villages of Paleochora, the main resort of the southwest coast, and Souyia, a pleasant collection of whitewashed houses facing a long beach. Much of this section of the coast, including the village of Loutro, is accessible only by boat or by a seaside path.

What was once the most famous healing center in the ancient world is today best known for the Theater at Epidaurus, remarkably well preserved because it was buried at some time in antiquity and remained untouched until it was uncovered in the late 19th century. Built in the 4th century BC by the architect Polykleitos the Younger, the 14,000-seat theater was never remodeled in antiquity, and because it was rather remote, the stones were never quarried for secondary building use. The extraordinary qualities of the theater were recognized even in the 2nd century AD. Pausanias of Lydia, the 2nd-century AD traveler and geographer, wrote, "The Epidaurians have a theater in their sanctuary that seems to me particularly worth a visit. The Roman theaters have gone far beyond all the others in the world . . . but who can begin to rival Polykleitos for the beauty and composition of his architecture?" In addition, the acoustics are so perfect that even from the last of the 55 tiers every word can be heard. It's the setting for a highly acclaimed summer drama festival with outstanding productions.

The Sanctuary of Asklepios is dedicated to the god of healing, the son of Apollo who was allegedly born here. The most important healing center in the ancient world drew visitors from throughout Greece and the colonies in search of a cure. The discovery of a new building in 2020 even suggest the site was in use earlier than previously thought, possibly as far back as the 6th century BC. The sanctuary is in the midst of a decades-long restoration project, but you can see the ruins of the Sleeping Hall, where clients slept in order to be visited by the gods in their dreams and told which cure to follow, as well as the enormous Guest House, with 160 rooms, and the Tholos, where serpents that were said to cure with a flick of the tongue were housed in a maze of labyrinths. Some copies of sculptures found among the ruins are in the site museum (the originals are in the National Archaeological Museum in Athens) along with ancient medical instruments, votives, and inscriptions expressing the gratitude of the cured. Heading south from the isthmus on Highway 70, don't take the turnoffs for Nea Epidaurus or Palaio Epidaurus; follow the signs that say "Ancient Theater of Epidaurus."

Start your tour of Ancient Delphi in the same way the ancients did, with a visit to the Sanctuary of Athena. Pilgrims who arrived on the shores of the Bay of Itea proceeded up to the sanctuary, where they paused before going on to the Ancient Delphi site. The most notable among the numerous remains on this terrace is the Tholos (Round Building), a graceful 4th-century-BC ruin of Pentelic marble, the purpose and dedication of which are unknown, although round templelike buildings were almost always dedicated to a goddess. By the 2nd millennium BC, the site was already a place of worship of the earth goddess Gaia and her daughter Themis, one of the Titans. The gods expressed themselves through the murmuring of water flooding from the fault, from the rustle of leaves, and from the booming of earth tremors. The Tholos remains one of the purest and most exquisite monuments of antiquity. Theodoros, its architect, wrote a treatise on his work: an indication in itself of the exceptional architectural quality of the monument. Beneath the Phaedriades, in the cleft between the rocks, a path leads to the Castalian Fountain, a spring where pilgrims bathed to purify themselves before continuing. (Access to the font is prohibited because of the danger of falling rocks.) On the main road, beyond the Castalian Fountain, is the modern entrance to the sanctuary.

The reason that many people visit Milos, Sarakiniko is the eerily sculpted inlet whose bone-white rocks lie in the sea like vast Henry Moore abstract forms. The limestone and diatomite moonscape made up the seabed 2 million years ago and fish and shell fossils can often be seen in the rocks. Try to get there before 7 am as the sunrise is spectacular and you will be largely alone. Explore the right-hand side before settling down on the left for sunbathing, swimming, and cliff diving—past the cliffs on the right is a shipwreck half submerged in the sea, and there are abandoned mine tunnels to explore. Beware though, there is no shade and the light reflecting from the white rocks is mesmerizing and intense. There is parking at the top that also serves as the bus stop. Amenities: parking (no fee). Best for: sunrise; sunset.

The best public beach in the north of Attica, just beyond Marathon, is this long, sandy, pine-backed stretch called Schinias. It's crowded with Athenians on the weekend, has a few simple tavernas along the sand and quite a lot of beach bars, and is frequently struck by strong winds that windsurfers love in summer. A dirt-and-sand track skirts the pine groves behind the beach, providing access to some relatively remote stretches. Campers like to settle in the Schinias forest during the summer, taking care not to disturb its precious natural habitat, which is environmentally protected. Amenities: food and drink; free parking; showers; toilets; water sports. Best for: sunset; swimming; walking; windsurfing.

Internationally renowned modern art collector Dakis Joannou acquired this former Hydra slaughterhouse, a leisurely 10-minute walk from the town (toward Mandraki), in 2009 to host artistic events and projects organized by his budding DESTE Foundation. Surprisingly, this is not what you might expect a chic and modern art gallery to look like: housed in an unassuming small building on a cliff by the sea, it can be missed if you don't actively look for it. But perhaps that is exactly the point that Joannou wanted to make with the Slaughterhouse, which has already acquired a leading role in Hydra's cultural life. Starting with the 2009 multimedia project "Blood of Two" by Matthew Barney and Elizabeth Peyton (which paid homage to the space's morbid past), every summer the space is now assigned to a different artist who is invited to stage a site-specific exhibition. Since then Doug Aitken, Urs Fischer, Paul Chan, Pawel Althamer, Jeff Koons, and Kara Walker, among others, have had works and installations exhibited there.

A fine and impressive late 18th-century archontiko, owned by the locally renowned Hatziyianni-Mexi family and built in an architectural style that might be termed Turko-Venetian, contains the town's municipal museum. Its modest interiors hold articles from the period of Spetses's greatness during the War of Independence, such as the famous revolutionary flag with "Freedom or Death" written on it. Sadly, both the flag and the remains of the heroic revolutionary general, Bouboulina, whose statue graces the harbor, are not given the honor they deserve. A small collection of ancient artifacts consists mostly of ceramics, Neolithic arrowheads, statuettes, and coins. Also on display are representative pieces of furniture and household items from the period of the Greek revolution.

During any Mount Olympus hike, you could take a lunch break or stay overnight at Spilios Agapitos. The refuge is run by the daughter of Kostas Zolotas, a venerable climbing guru. To bunk down for the night costs €18 per person (€13 with an international mountaineering card); there are blankets but no sheets. Bring your own flashlight, towel, and soap. Campers can pitch tents for €8 (€5 with card) per person and can use the refuge's facilities (note that cooking is not permitted in the refuge). The restaurant is open all day until 9 pm. It's 6 km (4 miles), about 2½–3 hours, from Prionia to Refuge A. From here it's 5 km (3 miles), about 2½–3 hours, to the Throne of Zeus and the summit. The trail is easy going to Skala summit (most of the way), but the last bit is scrambling and a bit hair-raising. Some people turn back. If you plan to hike up Mount Olympus, be sure to take a map; the best are produced by Anavasi. If you would prefer a guided hike up Mount Olympus, the staff at Refuge A can arrange a guide for you, and Trekking Hellas organizes treks for various-size groups.