Today we depart for our overnight flight to Thessaloniki, Greece.

Upon arrival we will be met by your Perillo Tours representative who will give us an overview of the city and its Jewish history on the way to our hotel. Check in and leisure time until dinner. Overnight in Thessaloniki. (D.)

After breakfast we begin our walking city tour - visiting the Square of Jewish Martyrs and the ceremonial Synagogue followed by a presentation at the Jewish Museum where we learn about a community that once had 50 synagogues and was called Mother of Israel, home to famous Jewish mystics, legalists, poets and rabbis. Our coach takes us to quarters of the city that were once wholly Jewish and to archaeological sites going back to Roman and Hellenic times, villas once inhabited by prominent Jewish residents and the new Holocaust Memorial on the site of the cemetery destroyed by the Nazis, now the Aristotle University campus. We return to our hotel for dinner and overnight. (B.D.)

After breakfast, we depart for Vergina where the 1977 unearthing of the richly extravagant tombs of King Phillip 11, father of Alexander the Great, became as famous. We continue to Veria where the Jewish community existed in this Macedonian town as early as the first century. That was the case for the following two millennia, albeit with interruptions until 1943, when the Holocaust brought Jewish life in Veria to an abrupt end. Barbouta, the Jewish quarter of Veria  the town absorbed its Jewish quarter with its unique setting and the atmosphere that still prevails at the natural river Mikva. Today there are no Jews in Veria, a town of some 66.000 residents, but the quarter where they lived -Barbouta- still stands, and at his heart a synagogue that draws a small but steady stream of visitors yearly. Dinner and overnight in Ioannina. (B.D.)

After breakfast, visit Ioannina where we have a group lunch under the grand arches of the Stoa Louli restaurant, once a trade center for Jewish leather merchants. Inside the castle we stroll through the ancient cobbled streets of the former Jewish Kastro quarter and visit the Romaniot Kal Kadosh Yashan Synagogue where we are shown its unique artefacts. Our guide will show us around the medieval Jewish cemetery which is in a forest. We also have time to walk around the city’s beautiful lake or take a coffee at the lakeside before driving to the hotel for dinner and overnight accommodations. (B.D.)

After breakfast we take a picturesque drive to Meteora site of the famous 14th century Byzantine monasteries, suspended on granite rocks. As well as marveling at the views we visit two of the monasteries. We stop for lunch at Kalambaka. Dinner and overnight in Kalambaka. (B.D.)

After breakfast we set off for Volos which is surrounded by beautiful mountains and looks out to a charming bay. We have a group lunch at an excellent restaurant on the promenade and have time to stroll by the water’s edge. We then walk to a Holocaust memorial and through the Jewish neighborhood to the Synagogue and community center and learn about a community that dates back to the 6th century and still has weekly services. We dine and spend the night in Volos. (B.D.)

We leave Volos to head for Athens. We arrive late afternoon for a tour of the Acropolis. There is also time for our bus to tour the other remarkable sites of the city, Constitution Square with its picturesque guards, the Temple of Olympian Zeus, Hadrian’s Arch, the Theatre of Dionysus and the Olympic stadium. Check in to the hotel for dinner and overnight. (B.D.)

After breakfast, we see the Beth Shalom Sephardic Synagogue and the Romaniot Synagogue just opposite. Then we visit the Jewish Museum. Our tour guide will lead us through their excellent exhibits, enhancing our understanding of Greek Jewish history. After this, we will visit the Ancient Greek Agora, the place where was the ancient synagogue of Athens. Dinner and overnight in Athens. (B.D.)

After breakfast transfer to the Athens Airport for our flight home.  (B.)

                                                   OR

OPTIONAL CRUISE EXTENTION: 3 OR 4-DAY GREEK ISLAND CRUISE

DAY 10: PIRAEUS - MYKONOS

After breakfast we transfer to Piraeus (port of Athens) and board our cruise to Mykonos. Stroll at leisure through the white washed, flower decked alleyways of Mykonos,  along the waterfront to the famous windmills. (B.L.D.)

DAY 11: EPHESUS - PATMOS

Arrive at the port of Kusadasi, Turkey. Here we begin our included excursion to the ancient Greek City of Ephesus Its impressive Library will awe you as you witness the Star of David inscribed on the steps of the Library. We will also visit the Temples of Diana (Artemis), one of the seven wonders of the ancient world Upon our return for lunch on board we will cruise to the island of Patmos for your choice of 3 shore excursions to choose from. (B.L.D.)                                                                                                                             

DAY 12: RHODES

This old fortified city was built by the Knights of St. John upon their return from Jerusalem and has changed little since. Your included shore excursion takes you to the Acropolis of Lindos.  (Note: Rhodes is not included with the 3-day cruise). (B.L.D.)

DAY 13: CRETE - SANTORINI

Arrive in Heraklion, the capital of Crete. Our included excursion takes us to the Palace of King Minos at Knossos, the center of the Minoan civilization. Afterwards, cruise to Santorini, the Volcano island considered to be one of the 10 best islands to visit in the world. Your included excursion takes you to the town of OIA the most breath taking spot of Santorini. (B.L.D.)

DAY 14: USA

After breakfast on board we disembark in Piraeus and transfer to the Athens airport for our flight home. (B.)