Ancient Sparta, Mystras and Museum of Oil Day Tour from Athens

We will begin with a drive along the coast. On the way you will view of some Greek seaside villages and the island of Salamis (where the historical naval battle took place between the Athenians and the Persians). Our first stop the Corinth Canal. Opened in 1892 separating the Peloponnese peninsula from the rest of Greece and connecting the Saronic Gulf to the Corinthian Sea. You will have time to walk across on a pedestrian bridge to admire the canal closer, (if you’re game) on some days bungee jumping is an option.

Continuing we will pass in front of the stadium where the statue of King Leonidas stands marking the ending point of Spartathlon race (Athens – Sparta 245,3 km).

Walking in the site on the upper point you will reach the citadel and enjoy a magnificent view of the surrounding areas while walking down hill you will meet the palaces and the Royal courtyards. Although known as the ghost city most of the monasteries are still in use and the monks will gladly show you around their small society. Before you exit you will come across the chapel of St. Demetrios, on its floor survives a plaque depicting a two head eagle (the symbol of Byzantium). It was on this very plaque that Konstantine Palaiologos kneeled before he was crowned the last emperor of the Byzantium.

The Museum of the emblematic archaeological site of Mystras is located in the imposing archaeological site of Mystras, a monument declared as a World Heritage Site by Unesco. The exhibition is dedicated to the relations between the Byzantine world and the West. The presentation of selected artifacts and objects from Mystras, a late Byzantine urban center, aims to provide the visitor with a comprehensive understanding of the complex political and social reality, as well as the spiritual life and art of the Palaiologan era.

Following that we will spend the rest of our time in Sparta known as the eternal rival city of the Athenian Democracy. Sparta revolved around a different Cosmo theory for the ancient Greek standards. Initially known as the birth place of Helen of Troy and the Kingdom of Menelaus (in Mycenaean period), Sparta was organized as a purely military society in the ancient Greek period. It was the city of the two Kings were a few aristocrats ruled and of course the city where Leonidas and his 300 Spartans marched from to face the Persian army Thermopylae in 480 BCE.

Located in the heart of Sparta, the Museum of the Olive and Greek Olive Oil showcases the long history and cultural significance of the olive tree and olive oil in Greece — from prehistoric times to the early 20th century.