GREECE: where sea, art and nature meet

Discover authentic Greece, off the beaten track and away from mass tourism: our itineraries are designed for those seeking unspoilt landscapes, breathtaking beaches, local traditions, encounters with art and architecture, and moments of true cultural immersion.

Come and discover the most beautiful sea in the Mediterranean, but that's not all

The common thread is the balance between time spent relaxing and enjoying the sea and time devoted to art and history, always with a focus on sustainability and respect for the communities that host us.

Each itinerary is designed to open different windows onto the same story — nature shaping the shores, architecture passing on influences, cuisine synthesising geographies and memories. The accommodation is authentic, such as cottages and other rural dwellings converted into charming hotels with all the comforts for a relaxing stay that is steeped in local history and culture. And, of course, the tavernas we recommend are authentic places where you can enjoy local specialities, far from the tourist traps.

Choosing one of these routes means accepting an exciting and curious pace of travel, relaxing but dynamic, with the aim not of seeing the Greek islands, but of experiencing them. Below are three distinct itineraries — Crete, the Cyclades and the Dodecanese — each with its own landscapes, stories and flavours, but united by the same promise: to bring home lasting images and memories that speak volumes.

Crete

Exploring the island allows you to lie on the most spectacular beaches and dive into the most turquoise waters of the Mediterranean, such as those of Elafonissi, surrounded by pink dunes, Balos, a lagoon of iridescent colours, and Chrissi, where pine forests and golden sand overlook a sea of tropical colours. But Crete is also art, history and architecture, such as the wonderful city of Chania, with its Venetian arcades and artisan shops, and the island of Spinalonga, a mystical and timeless place that was once a battleground between the Republic of Venice and the Ottoman Empire.

Cyclades

this itinerant journey allows you to enjoy an exploratory experience that you will never want to end: travellers move by hydrofoil from the first island to the second and then from the second to the third, but you could go on forever because each Greek island is a world unto itself, rich in charm, white sandy beaches, turquoise waters, dreamlike landscapes and villages that look like film sets. We are in the Cyclades, a world-famous archipelago of islands in the Aegean Sea, where the contrast between the blue of the sea and the white of the houses reigns supreme, and the landscapes seem to have been sculpted by the wind.

NAXOS
Naxos is an island with an ancient and layered heart. Chora climbs around its Venetian Kastro: narrow, cobbled alleys intertwine up to the top where the towers, noble palaces and the austere mass of the Temple Gate remain – a marble arch that stands as a reminder of an archaic past and offers memorable sunsets over the sea. Strolling aimlessly through the inner courtyards means encountering craft shops, shady cafés and churches with mosaics and icons, while the glimpses between the white houses and flowers tell the story of the Mycenaean period and Venetian and Genoese rule, right up to the lively contemporary port life. Naxos is also an endless strip of sand with miles of Caribbean-like sea.

MILOS
Milos is dominated by a lunar landscape: Sarakiniko is a coastline of white rocks sculpted by the wind and sea, a smooth expanse of pumice and tuff that creates natural architecture of curves, caves and hidden pools with deep blue waters; walking through it gives the feeling of exploring an extraterrestrial landscape, with photographic contrasts of rare power between the blinding white of the rock formations and the intense blue of the Aegean Sea, opening the door to the discovery of hidden coves and coloured sandy beaches.

AMORGOS
Amorgos is another triumph of enchanting beaches and extraordinary discoveries, first and foremost the Monastery of Panagia Hozoviotissa, a white miracle set in the rock, clinging to the eastern wall of the island like a brushstroke of lime on black rock: built on several levels, narrow and elongated, it is suspended about 300 metres above the sea and organised on terraces and staircases that seem to be carved into the mountain, offering glimpses of an almost impossible verticality and a path that is part of the spiritual experience. Inside, the small church houses a venerated icon and ancient manuscripts, while the view reveals the immense blue of the Aegean Sea and the contemplative solitude that has made Hozoviotissa a place of pilgrimage and architectural wonder.

Dodecanese

An archipelago suspended between East and West, the Dodecanese is a mosaic of islands where time has left visible traces: medieval walls, Byzantine churches, Venetian harbours and remains of Italian occupation coexist with quiet bays and cliffs that open onto an Aegean Sea of infinite shades.

Our itinerary includes two neighbouring but profoundly different islands.

PATMOS
Patmos, with the Monastery of St John the Theologian, which stands on top of the main hill of Patmos and dominates the Chora with its fortified profile: founded in 1088, is an extraordinary religious-fortress complex that combines monastic, defensive and administrative functions, and is part of the UNESCO site together with the Cave of the Apocalypse below, a place of pilgrimage linked to the tradition that John received his revelations there.

LEROS
Leros is the most striking example of Italian urban planning, with a layout that combines geometric volumes, minimalist façades and rationalist public spaces designed for the efficiency of military and civilian life at the time. The architectural language combines the avant-garde of Italian rationalism with scenographic and sometimes eclectic elements designed to represent colonial power; the result is an ‘island museum’ that appears suspended between functional modernity and monumental rhetoric.

What is included in our offer

Return flight
Customized itinerary curated by our travel experts, with a daily programme that you can follow in whole or in part; you decide the “pace” of your holiday
Car rental
Accommodation including breakfast, according to the criteria of the authentic travel experience
Recommendations for restaurants and other places to have lunch and dinner, according to the criteria of the authentic travel experience
Useful tools and materials for your trip, including themed brochures, narrative maps, food and wine recommendations, useful reading material, and music playlists

Not included:
Anything you freely choose to do, including admission tickets to museums and monuments.

How to receive a customized proposal

Write to us at travel@artwonders.it, briefly telling us about your interests, the period in which you would like to travel and the duration of your trip (from 7 to 21 days); we will send you a personalised proposal, which will be unique and designed just for you. We will refine it together based on your needs: the pace you want to set for your holiday – more time spent at the beach, more time spent exploring places of artistic interest, a 50/50 split – and how much travelling you want to do (more short stops or a few longer stays), until we have created the perfect trip for you.
La perfezioneremo insieme sulla base delle tue necessità: il ritmo che vorrai dare alla tua vacanza – più tempo dedicato al mare, più tempo dedicato all’esplorazione dei luoghi d’arte, una rotazione metà e metà – e quanti spostamenti desideri fare (più tappe brevi o poche basi più lunghe), finchè avremo costruito il viaggio perfetto per te.