Your pilgrimage begins as you depart the USA on your international overnight flight.

You will arrive in Thessaloniki, Greece, where you will be met by our representative and transferred to your hotel for dinner and overnight.

Follow in the footsteps of Paul and Silas to Amphipolis and explore the ruins of the many Christian basilicas there. In Philippi is a baptismal site commemorating where God opened the heart of Lydia (a seller of purple from Thyatira) to hear the words of Paul (Acts 16:13-15). Lydia and her household were the first Christian converts baptized on European soil. View the Roman-era crypt thought to have served as a prison for the Apostle Paul, and explore Philippi’s famous acropolis, marketplace, the Basilica of Paul, and theater. Today’s last stop is Neapolis (Kavala), one of Greece’s most picturesque mainland ports, where Paul landed with his disciples, Timothy and Silas. See the Roman aqueduct and acropolis before returning to Thessaloniki for dinner and your overnight stay.

Discover Thessaloniki, where Paul was accused of turning the world upside down with his preaching of Christ (Acts 17: 3-6). As you explore St. George’s Basilica, believed to be built over the synagogue where Paul preached, reflect on the two epistles the Apostle Paul wrote to the Thessalonian church here. Stroll through the archaeological museum and the beautiful basilicas of St. Sophia and St. Demetrios. Along the Via Egnatia stands the Galerius Arch. Here, you can look out over the second-largest city in Greece from the Old City Ramparts, some dating back to Roman times. Follow the path of Paul when he fled Thessaloniki for the safety of Veria (Berea), where Jews and some honorable Greeks accepted the new faith (Act 17: 10-12). Continue on to Kalambaka for dinner and your overnight stay.

As you visit the rock forest of Meteora (“in the heavens above”) in western Thessaly, imagine the Apostle Paul walking that treacherous terrain on his missionary journey. Gaze up at the breathtaking Byzantine monasteries spectacularly perched on soaring, sheer-sided grey sandstone pillars. In the 13th century, monks sought refuge in cliffside caves before fleeing higher to build the original wooden shelters that later became these monasteries. After a monastery tour, travel to scenic Delphi, the religious center of the ancient Greek world and marked by the conical stone called the omphalos (“navel”). Walk the Sacra Via to the Athenian treasury, theatre and the Temple of Apollo, where the oracle performed her prophetic rituals. As you consider the incredible amount of pagan influence just in Delphi alone, you will gain a new appreciation for the tremendous spiritual opposition the Apostle Paul faced in preaching the Gospel of Christ here. In the museum are many ancient treasures, including the fifth-century, bronzed charioteer so detailed you can see his eyelashes. Continue to Athens for your overnight stay.

Tour the city of Corinth, where the Apostle Paul met fellow tentmakers Aquilla and Priscilla and received a vision from the Lord saying, “I am with thee, and no man shall set on thee to hurt thee: for I have much people in this city” (Acts 18: 10). As Paul spoke, Crispus (chief ruler of the synagogue) and many others believed and were baptized (Acts 18:8), establishing the church at Corinth to whom Paul later wrote his two epistles. Discover the archaeological museum, marketplace and temples. As you walk among the ruins, stand on the Bema, where the Apostle Paul stood before Gallio to face charges brought against him by the Jews. Stop briefly at the port town of Cenchreae from which Paul later departed for Syria (Acts 18: 12 -18). Travel to the scenic port of Nauplion for dinner and your overnight stay.

Travel to the archaeological site of Mycenae. In the second millennium BC, Mycenae was a major center of Greek civilization. Here, walk under the impressive Lion Gate. Even headless, the lions convey a sense of the power and majesty that was Mycenae. Continue up to the citadel to Grave Circle A, a cemetery of royal tombs that dates from the 16th century BC. Finish your day at the ancient city of Epidauros. The theatre at Epidauros is the bestpreserved example of a classical Greek amphitheater in the Mediterranean. The theatre can hold 14,000 people, and it has been said that you can ‘hear a pin drop,’ in the center of the theatre stage from the top row. Return to your hotel in Nauplion this evening for dinner and overnight.

Start your day with a visit to Sparta. Stop at the ruins north of the modern city to see the remains of the once powerful city-state. Continue on to nearby Mystras, a center of Byzantine culture and art. In the 1200s, it was the site of the Latin Principality of Achaea after the conquest of Constantinople in the Fourth Crusade. When the Latins ceded the city back to the Byzantine Empire, it grew to become the second most important city in the empire, and the palace here was the second residence of the emperors. Frescos at the Peribleptos Church date to the 1300s and are a rare example of late Byzantine art. Check into your hotel in Olympia for dinner and overnight.

Walk the streets of ancient Olympia, the site of Olympic Games in ancient times (the Pythian Games held in Delphi were comparable in importance). The Olympic Flame continues to be ignited here and transported to the site of the next modern games. Explore the remains of the game sites, and if you wish, jog a lap in its famous stadium. The ivory and gold statue of Zeus crafted by the sculptor Pheidias stood here in ancient times and was one of the ancient Seven Wonders. Return to Athens for dinner and your overnight stay.

Enjoy the rich architectural splendor of the ancient city of Athens as your guide introduces you to the world-renowned Acropolis, the Propylaea, the Parthenon and the Erectheum. Stand on Mars Hill as the Apostle Paul did when he proclaimed, “I found an altar with this inscription, TO THE UNKNOWN GOD. Whom therefore ye ignorantly worship, him declare I unto you” (Acts 17:23). As you stroll the agora, the ancient marketplace and center of Athenian public life, recall that this was where the Apostle Paul preached “Jesus and the resurrection” (Acts 17:18) to the skeptical Athenians. Also, see the House of Parliament, the Presidential Palace, and the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. This afternoon is free to explore Athens on your own. Dinner and your overnight stay are spent in Athens.