Athens Itineraries: Day Charters and Multi-Day Routes
The Saronic Gulf is perfect for short charters – compact distances, sheltered waters, and a different island personality at every stop. The itineraries below are designed to cover different ground so they can be combined into longer voyages. Day charters depart from Athens’ marinas and return the same evening.
Day Charter Routes
Athenian Riviera and Cape Sounion Day Charter
Depart Alimos or Flisvos Marina in the morning and cruise south along the Athenian Riviera, passing the beach clubs of Glyfada and Vouliagmeni. Stop for a swim at a quiet cove near Varkiza, then continue to Cape Sounion. Anchor below the Temple of Poseidon for lunch on the aft deck with the ancient columns visible above. Swim in the turquoise shallows, explore the rocky shoreline by paddleboard, and cruise back to Athens in the late afternoon as the temple catches the golden-hour light. Total distance: roughly 50 nautical miles round trip, 6–8 hours.
Aegina Day Charter
Cross the Saronic Gulf to Aegina – 16 nautical miles, about an hour. Visit the Temple of Aphaia in the morning (one of the best-preserved ancient Greek temples, built around 500 BC, with views across to both the Acropolis and Sounion on a clear day). Return to Aegina Town for pistachio ice cream and fresh-roasted Aegina pistachios at the harbour. Cruise south to the fishing village of Perdika for a seafood lunch with tables on the water, then anchor off the nearby islet of Moni for a swim in sheltered turquoise water before heading back to Athens. Total: roughly 40 nautical miles, 6–7 hours.
3-Day Athens Yacht Charter Itinerary: The Saronic Islands
Day 1: Athens to Aegina and Poros
Board at Alimos Marina by mid-morning. Cruise to Aegina (16 nm, roughly one hour), visit the Temple of Aphaia and sample the island’s famous pistachios. After a chef-prepared lunch onboard, continue south to Poros (15 nm, 50 minutes). Enter the narrow strait between Poros and the Peloponnese mainland – barely 250 metres wide, lined with pine trees on both sides – and anchor in the calm harbour. Climb to the clock tower for panoramic views, then dine at a waterfront taverna with the lights of Galatas twinkling across the channel.
Day 2: Hydra
A short 16-nautical-mile cruise south to Hydra. Spend the morning exploring the car-free harbour: art galleries, jewellery workshops, the Historical Archives Museum, and a coffee at a harbourside café watching donkeys carry supplies up the cobbled lanes. After lunch onboard, cruise to Bisti Bay – a hidden, pine-fringed cove on the south coast, accessible only by boat. Swim, snorkel and paddleboard in crystal water. Return to the harbour for dinner at Omilos, where tables sit right at the water’s edge and the evening promenade creates a gentle theatre of island life.
Day 3: Spetses and Return to Athens
Cruise 12 nautical miles south to Spetses. Visit the Bouboulina Museum, stroll the elegant waterfront, and have a coffee at the Poseidonion Grand Hotel. Cruise to Zogeria Bay for a farewell swim in turquoise water beneath pines, and a gourmet lunch on the aft deck. Depart mid-afternoon for the return to Athens (50 nm, roughly three hours at cruising speed), arriving as the city lights up for the evening.
4-Day Athens Yacht Charter Itinerary: Saronic Gulf and Peloponnese Coast
Day 1: Athens to Hydra via Cape Sounion
Board at Flisvos Marina. Cruise south past the Riviera to Cape Sounion (25 nm). Pause for a swim below the Temple of Poseidon and a chef-prepared lunch. Continue south-west to Hydra (35 nm from Sounion), arriving by late afternoon. Explore the harbour, visit the Historical Archives Museum, and dine at a waterfront restaurant as the sun sets behind the Peloponnese hills.
Day 2: Dokos and Spetses
Cruise to the uninhabited island of Dokos, just 4 nautical miles west of Hydra. Dokos is home to one of the oldest known shipwrecks in the world – dating to approximately 2200 BC – and its sheltered bay offers superb snorkelling over rocky reef in pristine water with no other visitors. After a morning swim, continue 10 nautical miles south to Spetses. Explore the old town by horse-drawn carriage, visit the Bouboulina Museum, and anchor off the elegant waterfront for dinner at On the Verandah, with tables overlooking the harbour.
Day 3: Nafplio and Epidaurus
Cross the Argolic Gulf to Nafplio – roughly 25 nautical miles from Spetses. Nafplio was the first capital of independent Greece (1829–1834), and its Venetian fortress of Palamidi, with 857 steps leading to the summit, offers one of the most spectacular views in the Peloponnese. Anchor in the picturesque harbour, stroll the neoclassical old town, and take a short drive inland to the ancient theatre of Epidaurus – one of the finest preserved theatres of antiquity, seating 14,000 and famous for acoustics so perfect that a whisper on stage carries to the last row. Return to the yacht for dinner in Nafplio’s old town, where tavernas fill the cobbled lanes beneath the fortress.
Day 4: Poros and Return to Athens
Cruise north to Poros (30 nm from Nafplio). Pass through the narrow strait between Poros and the mainland, anchor for a morning swim in a sheltered bay, and visit the ruins of the Temple of Poseidon in the island’s pine grove. Enjoy a farewell lunch on the aft deck as your captain sets course for Athens (31 nm, roughly 90 minutes), arriving in the early evening.
Guests looking for a longer voyage can combine the 3-day Saronic Islands route with the 4-day Saronic–Peloponnese route for a comprehensive 7-day charter covering all four major Saronic islands, the Peloponnese coast, and the archaeological treasures of Epidaurus and Nafplio – without repeating a single stop.
