Our Private tour Journeys to some of the most impressive remains of Ancient, Classical & Byzantine Greece including 5 world heritage sites, spanning over 5000 years in the development of one of the world's great civilizations.
From the first healing centre at Epidaurus to the tombs of Mycenae, to breathtaking Olympia, and the centre of the ancient world at Delphi, as well as the impressive Corinth Canal, Ancient Corinth, Medieval Nafplio and Meteroa. No less impressive is the natural beauty of the accompanying locations as you sit back & relax along the way in the comfort in one of our new Mercedes E-Class Sedans or Luxury Class Minivans with WiFi and chilled bottled water.
In addition to our basic High Standard (Gold Package), choose the hassle-free option to add a 3-course Traditional Greek Lunch in one of the best local restaurants (Platinum Package), or further tailor your tour to include an Expert Archaeological Guide at one or more of the sites (on request)
Posted By : fayec534
Warm Penguin and our superb driver/guide, Yannis ensured that our journey through the extraordinary region of the Peloponnese was fascinating, comfortable and flexible in terms of being prepared to vary the daily schedule to meet the distinctive needs of each of the four, highly experienced travellers ( from the UK and from Australia). Not sure though, that Yannis will ever get over the fact that none of us wanted to see the Cave of Lakes(!) but he remained calm always as he deftly drove his spotless, spacious vehicle to avoid car-sickness, regardless of the winding roads up to the magnificent ruins of Mycenae, the Mani, Messini and up to Dimitsana ( to name a few of the areas we explored). Often he went out of his way to find us beautiful beaches for a quick dip on a number of days during our travels. Yannis' knowledge of, and passion for, Ancient ( and modern) Greek history was almost palpable. He judged perfectly how much information to convey as we wended our way through the varied landscapes. We had decided not to hire additional guides at each main site as we were well researched and Yannis never hesitated to fill in additional commentary as our questions arose. Each of the hotels we stayed in within the Peloponnese was quirky, atmospheric, spotless and each offered great beds. Breakfast at most of them offered us insight into delicious local cuisine and were lavish in their offerings. Each evening and at each place, Yannis gave us thoughtful recommendations for our evening meals all of which we enjoyed but we also had a hilarious meal or two as a result of not following his advice( because the places he recommended were full). The mother/ daughter tiny restaurant in Monemvasia( a little village carved into a sea rock) was a case in point. Diners were packed in so tightly that the grandma had to climb on the top of one of the chairs in which we were sitting to reach the wine behind us, and although we waited an hour and a half for one of our dishes ( maybe they had to go and catch the fish) it was huge, incredibly fresh and perfectly cooked. Highlights of this trip were numerous- everywhere we visited filled us with awe at the evidence of the incredible civilisations that have preceded us. The beauty of the mountains and the lowlands transported us fully away from our usual day to day concerns. The scenic railway ride (Odntotos railway) and the visit to the haunting Kalavrita museum which commemorates the slaughter of the villagers by heartless nazis in WW2) are also not to be missed. We really feel as if Warm Penguin have given us a wonderful gift in matching us with Yannis for our tour- we all highly recommend this company to others looking for a personally tailored adventure that will delight!
Rating :
Posted On : 2023-06-12 02:42:30 
Posted By : 319patriciae
The tour itself is well designed and includes must see sights. As an added bonus, we were fortunate to have Vasilis as our driver! He was extremely professional, personable, and knowledgeable. He gave us information on each stop we made and along the way as we drove. He went out of his way to make sure we were well taken care of and would pick us up any time we needed him. My husband had a medical issue and he went above and beyond to make sure everything was okay and adjusted to accommodate. He even texted several times after the trip was over to check in to make sure my husband was doing okay. He is truly a special individual.
Rating :
Posted On : 2023-05-06 21:37:02
Posted By : TMHBoston
We had a phenomenal experience with WarmPenguin’s private 4-day tour around Greece. Our driver Tolis was knowledgeable and superb. Not only was he incredibly professional and accommodating, but we also enjoyed his gentle humor, kindness, and informative insights.
He truly went above and beyond to help us have a great experience. He made our trip special far beyond our expectations. It is impossible for us to imagine a better introduction and guide to Greece. We certainly will highly recommend WarmPenguin and Tolis to all of our travel-minded friends.
Rating :
Posted On : 2022-10-13 01:58:24
Posted By : William_T
First of all, Warm Penguin was an absolute delight to work with. From the time we booked, they were amazingly prompt with replies to inquiries, and very accurate with clear and detailed information.
As for the tour itself, we knew from the moment we met our driver, Yannis, at the airport, that we were in for a fantastic four days with him. He treated us more like visiting family from out of town than clients, He speaks English well, and is very knowledgeable, entertaining, and has a terrific sense of humor, making conversations easy and laughter frequent. He made sure we made each stop on the itinerary, but gave us the flexibility to customize start and end times to our liking, as well as making suggestions for a few little extra surprises along the way. He would drive us from town to town, where a different local tour guide would take over to tour the archeological sites in each different city. Each of these guides were top-notch as well. Not a single disappointment in the whole trip.
We also loved each of our more boutique-style guest house accommodations, with some amazing homemade breakfasts, and every day was fantastic fresh seafood lunch at a restaurant usually on the water with seaside views. Yannis also had terrific recommendations for dinner in each town, and we didn't have a single disappointing meal.
Our entire family loved this tour, and would recommend it without reservation.
Rating :
Posted On : 2022-07-26 12:13:38 
Posted By : David_G
We toured the mainland for 4 days with two families of 5. The van was very nice, clean, and comfortable. The hotels we stayed at were nice. All had swimming pools and free breakfast. We were able to see a variety of amazing historical sites and the tour guides at each were interesting and knowledgeable. Our driver for the 4 days, Vas, was beyond amazing. He was fun, personable, and very knowledgeable on many topics. He would allow us to stop at places that weren't officially planned. We enjoyed his take on Greek life as one who lives there. We even invited him our dinners while we were there. Overall, an excellent trip!
Rating :
Posted On : 2022-06-10 10:49:02
Posted By : darylosw
Having booked many private tours over the last 5 years, we still arent sure what we will get. Many tour operators say their drivers are also "guides"; but few deliver. Vasilis is 1 of only 3 amongst the many (over 20) drivers cum "guides" (i need to be careful how i refer to him) that i would honestly recommend!!!!
From Day 1, he shared with us a lot of good and accurate information on each site before we arrived. He often whipped out his map and tablet to supplement his information with visual aids
If you work with him and can be disciplined on timing, he often surprised us with small daily side trips that werent on the itinerary (eg view of the sunset on Day 3 at Meteora, etc)
He also looked after our meals each day by giving us great recommendations. But in this respect, what impressed us were the dinners on Day 2 and 3.
The drive from napflio to delphi is long and tiring. We arrived at our hotel in delphi at about 6.30 pm after a tough drive up the mountain. Vasilis was under no obligation to take us to town for dinner but he insisted on doing so as our hotel was a distant from the town
On Day 3, he recommended a restaurant a 15 min walk from our hotel in Meteora. He dropped us off and told us that at the end of the dinner, should we require, we could call him and he would drive us back to the hotel. We enjoy walking a new town; and also wanted him to rest after another day of tiring driving. So after dinner, we walked back to the hotel on our own. Unbeknownst to us, Vasilis had actually driven back to the restaurant; without us asking him to do so, to drive us back to our hotel
I cannot say enough about Vasilis. Warm Penguins as a company is truly fortunate to have a person like Vasilis working for them
If you ever book a tour with Warm Penguins, ask for Vasilis
Rating :
Posted On : 2019-12-17 15:52:39
Posted By : harryl1961
We toured as a party of 6. Yannis gave excellent commentary as we were approaching every major stop, and we quickly attained an understanding about how long we wanted to spend exploring the numerous sights. The small hotels were all very good, and his recommendations of restaurants were all excellent (including for Athens, after our tour). Could not have been better organised.
Rating :
Posted On : 2019-05-14 02:55:19
Posted By : Daniel_S
This was truly the most amazing tour we have ever been on 19 countries and counting. Yes, it is pricey, but it is worth every single penny. Our tour guide, Notis, was kind, generous, attentive, flexible, intelligent, well-spoken, and educated. He was professional and caring. He treated our children as if they were his own and my girls cried at the end of the trip when he had to leave us.
We saw the most beautiful sites and Notis added in a few things sunset over Meteora, ice cream rolls from a local shop, etc. that made the trip even better. He was knowledgable about local restaurants in every town and knew where to take us to eat wonderful Greek food. If you take this tour, you should ask for him if you can get him. His full name is Anagnostis Tsipros.
We saw Olympia, Corinth, Meteora, Nafplio, Epidavros, Delphi, and Mycenae. The hotels were charming be warned that the Meteoritis Hotel in Meteora does NOT have an elevator, nor a bellman to help haul the luggage up the stairs - but the view was SO worth it! and the experience is altogether a phenomenal one. Be prepared to lay out money for tips and meals, as they are not included in the price. The ride we had a VW Passat was comfortable and we stopped as often as we needed or wanted to.
We stayed at the Nidimos Hotel in Delphi my favorite town. If you stay in the front rooms, you will have a spectacular view, but you may have some street noise very small street, at any rate. The back rooms overlook an attractive courtyard with wall art - very quiet.
In Olympia, we stayed at the Arty Grand Hotel. We had high hopes for this one, as it was the only one that had an indoor pool, but the pool was closed. There was no explanation as to why. The rest of the hotel was fine, though. Hotels vary on this tour - you may not get the same ones we got, but we sure did like them all.
The only drawback we had was that Notis could not enter the historical sites with us - you have to arrange for different site guide for each area, which we did not do. Apparently, one has to be licensed to give a tour of historical sites and the drivers are not. This being said, Notis knew enough about each site that he told us about them, and any tips he had to offer, beforehand. Given the plethora of signage, we did not really need tour guides for the sites, but it would have been nice to know that beforehand.
Bring your walking shoes - there is a LOT of walking and much of it is uphill. Greece is a mountainous country and many sites are at the top of mountains. We averaged between 10,000 and 11,000 steps per day.
Pros:
excellent tour guide
nice hotels
wonderful sites
low stress
cons:
tour driver cannot enter sites
