Eternal Greece Ltd

Archaeology in Eastern Attica for foodies – Amphiareion and Rhamnous

  • amphiarieon_eternalgreece-tours-archaeology Eternal Greece Ltd
  • rhamnous Eternal Greece Ltd

Some of the most fantastic inland and coastal scenery, two of the most important archaeological sites of Eastern Attica: Amphiareon and Rhamnous; traditional Greek cuisine, true to...

Introduction

This delightful and informative same-day programme focusses on two of the most important archaeological sites of Eastern Attica: Amphiareon and Rhamnous. Participants are afforded the opportunity to take in some of the most fantastic inland and coastal scenery of Attica whilst the tour culminates in the savouring of top-notch traditional Greek cuisine, true to the heritage of ancient Greek symposia.

The tour is accompanied by a licenced guide-archaeologist and includes irresistible food at a picturesque taverna featuring fabulous dishes.

Itinerary

The day is off to an early start with our visit to Amphiarieon, the extensive sanctuary of Amphiaraus (Amphiaraos), delightfully located in a dense forest of pines. Amphiaraus was a Bronze Age King of Argos, a mortal with the ability to predict the future, who was transformed after death into a healing divinity. Although he is one of the lesser known ancient Greek gods, his powers as a healer and a seer made him popular enough to have twelve temples and sanctuaries dedicated to him around the country.

There is much to see and to fire the imagination here. Amongst the many ruins of the sanctuary dedicated to the cult are the remains of a small amphitheatre and a Doric temple. One of the most distinguishing features of Amphiareion not commonly found on other sanctuaries of the time is an intriguing ancient water clock (Klepsydra), believed to be the first of its kind – a reminder of the geometric and mathematical skills of ancient Greeks.

We then proceed among the verdant hills of NE Attica south-east to Rhamnous, which of all the ancient towns of Attica, remains in the best condition – truly one of Attica’s hidden gems! Rhamnous lies just a few kilometres north of the site of the great Battle of Marathon, where the Athenians thwarted the Persian army’s attempts to invade their land in 490 B.C. Although less of a household name than Marathon even amongst modern day Greeks, Rhamnous was no less significant historically, for here was a major town with its own fortified acropolis looking out over its two harbours, strategically positioned across the strait from the island of Euboea to receive supply ships carrying grain and other resources for the city state of Athens. This was of utmost importance when the Athenians and their allies were at war with the Peloponnesian states.

Just over half a kilometre inland, we will see the further attraction of the site of the Sanctuary of Nemesis, the goddess of justice and divine vengeance. Dating back as early as the 6th century BC, this was the goddess’s most popular sanctuary in ancient times; hence, Nemesis was given the surname Rhamnous.

Our day of delightful exploration would never be complete without a hearty and delicious meal at our hand-picked venue, true to the Greek tradition where food and drink are central to community and help create bonds as well as foment discussions. After all, Greece is the birthplace of philosophy and a glass of good wine is certainly conducive to this noble quest ! Return via Lake Marathon to your central Athens hotel or other pre-agreed point as per the morning’s pickup.

Day’s total driving distance and indicative time: 156 km (97 mi) / 3 hours and 11 minutes. Routeing, distance and time subject to change depending on external factors.

Are you more independent-minded?
This programme is also available in a self-drive version!
Find out more on Self-Drive Tours

Map

Gallery

Included

  • Air-conditioned car, minibus or coach
  • Expert tour leader
  • Lunch
  • Entry tickets to archaeological sites and museums
  • Pick from and return to central Athens hotel or agreed meeting point

Not Included

  • Tips and gratuities to driver, guide and at taverna
  • Travel insurance

Points to note

The tour is accompanied by an expert tour leader who is fluent in English. Transport is by air-conditioned car, minibus or coach and lunch will take place at a picturesque seaside location.

The programme does not include flights to and from Greece and personal travel insurance. An example of how to obtain travel insurance can be found here.

Good and comfortable walking gear is a must. As the tours take place nearly all the year, waterproofs in non-summer months are recommended, even though they may well prove unnecessary. As the safety and comfort of all our travellers are of paramount importance to us, we might need to adjust at our sole responsible discretion the routeing and/or the activities should weather or other conditions so dictate.

Testimonials

  • An excellent tour of fortresses in the Peloponnese which also took in many of the classical sites.

    Our guide Eric organised the tour, hotel airport transfers, and advised on other sights so we really had nothing to do but enjoy the experience.

    Already looking forward to another trip with him again.

    Recommended on TripAdvisor Eternal Greece Ltd
    Peloponnese fortress tour, by Anhourused
  • Eric Cauchi, representing Eternal Greece Ltd, was one of the main people responsible for organising the tour for about 40 people.

    He paid great attention to detail both before and during the trip and on the tour nothing was too much trouble. I would not hesitate to go on future Eternal Greece tours.

    Recommended on TripAdvisor Eternal Greece Ltd
    Peloponnese fortress tour, by Auxfireman
  • We travelled through the Peloponnese with the Fortress Study Group on a 10 day tour organized by Eternal Greece Ltd. We visited a mix of sites from classical and pre-history, through Venetian and Ottoman times. This mix gave us a picture of the breadth of Greek history instead of just a single slice of time which we much appreciated. We had an excellent archaeologist guide and an excellent driver.

    Eric Cauchi, the proprietor of Eternal Greece, travelled with us as the tour director and trouble-shooter in chief. His own passion for archaeology and for his country added to the trip experience. The hotels he booked for us were excellent, all very clean and comfortable, with friendly staff and most on the sea with beautiful views. The restaurants he selected for our meals served delicious traditional Greek food family style, far superior to what one might expect for a group meal.

    Having never been to Greece before, we came into Athens 4 days early. We had many pre-trip questions which Eric always answered very promptly. He assisted us with several aspects of our planning before we set foot in Greece. He booked an Athens hotel in an excellent location for us and arranged airport transports which worked perfectly. When we decided to do a day-trip to Delphi and asked if he could recommend some companies for us to contact, he responded with the name and cost of a group tour company with pros/cons and the offer of arranging a private driver and guide for us with pros/cons. He also offered to, and subsequently did, email the rest of the group participants to see if anyone might be interested in sharing the private tour to bring down the costs. The driver and guide Eric arranged were very professional, tailored the day to our interests, and made the day a wonderful memory for us.

    When, as part of our planning, we decided that we might like to use our free time on the last evening of the Peloponnese tour to see an additional site some distance away from our hotel on our own, we emailed Eric to enquire as to whether time-wise this might be feasible and if we would have trouble finding a taxi to take us and wait. Eric advised that renting a car would be better. We expressed concern about finding a car rental place that would be open till 9:00 p.m. on a Sunday evening. Eric responded within hours with contact information for a rental location around the corner from our hotel that would be open till 9 p.m.

    Eric’s level of service was superb. We would travel again on a trip arranged by Eternal Greece and we definitely recommend Eternal Greece.

    Summerclouds053117
  • Dear Eric,

    Thank you so much for all the work you put in to organise such a wonderful trip. The time has flown and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I hope to come across Eternal Greece again.

    Recommended on TripAdvisor Eternal Greece Ltd
    Pamela M.
  • Dear Eric,

    Hope I am not disturbing you from your well-deserved slumbers, but just to thank you so much for organising an excellent programme for the FSG and looking after everyone so well.

    I hope our paths meet again some time.

    Recommended on TripAdvisor Eternal Greece Ltd
    Richard A.