Sailing to Athens Greece...

Sailing holidays to Athens Greece

Athens Greece yacht charter sailing holidays and Greek islands cruises on private yachts for hire: charter a crewed motor yacht, or mega motor yacht, or motor sailer, or sailing yacht, or catamaran, or bareboat / skippered sail boat for a fantastic boating holiday is our website's main focus.

 

A vacation in Greece always starts from Athens: It is the Capital of the Country, has the main airport, is only 6 miles from the Aegean Sea, has the biggest harbor and marinas where we keep our yachts so you can sail from Athens to the islands of your choice.

In the center of the city rises a tall rocky hill called the "Sacred Rock of Athens" on top of which is build the Acropolis (picture) with the Parthenon overlooking the Capital and everything else all the way down to the Saronic Gulf at the Aegean Sea.

 

Since the Ancient times Greeks have been great sailors and navigators with enormous fleets due to the fact that the Country has over 3000 islands, the necessity that the goods and services offered by the inhabitants be transferred back and forth between Athens and the islands but also war ships in order to protect the country from foreign attacks or the numerous nautical campaigns Greeks undertook as we all know from history.

 

The Parthenon (picture) is the most important site of the city and characteristic monument of ancient Greek history and civilization and still remains its international symbol. The Parthenon was dedicated to Athena Parthenos (Virgin), which as we said above is the patron goddess of Athens. It was built between 447 and 438 B.C. and its sculptural decoration was completed in 432 B.C. . During Pericles' Golden Age, ancient Greek civilization was represented in an ideal way on the Acropolis hill and some of the architectural masterpieces of the period were erected there.

The first habitation remains on the Acropolis date from the Neolithic period. Today on the Acropolis Hill apart from the Parthenon temple still are the Erechtheion , the Temple of Athena Nike and The Propylaea.

 

The Erechtheion (picture) was built in ca. 420 B.C. in the Ionic order. The main temple was divided into two sections, dedicated to the worship of the two principal gods of Attica, Athena and Poseidon-Erechtheus. A relief frieze, bearing a representation possibly of the birth of Erechtheus, decorated the exterior of the building.

 

 

The Temple of Athena Nike (picture) was constructed in 420 B.C. by the architect Kallikrates. It is built in the Ionic order and it is amphiprostyle with a row of four columns in front of each of its narrow sides. The relief frieze on the upper section of the walls depicts the conference of gods on the east side, and scenes from battles on the other three. A marble parapet decorated with the relief representation of Nikae (Victories), protected the edge of the Bastion on which the temple was erected.

 

 

The Propylaea (picture) is a monumental gateway of the Acropolis. It was designed by the architect Mnesikles and constructed in 437-432 B.C. It consist of a central building and two lateral wings. The colonnades along the west and east sides had a row of Doric columns while two rows of Ionic columns divided the central corridor into three parts. The walls of the north wing were decorated with painted panels or wall paintings and that is why it was called the "Pinakotheke". The ceiling of the Propylaea had coffers with painted decoration and a perforated sima around the roof. Greece is also the birth place of the Olympic games.

 

So when you travel to Greece after you spend a few days marveling the Ancient Greek antiquities in Athens consider a Greek island cruise on your own private yacht charter. Our Company Yachting Greece offers a wide selection of well maintained, clean, fully equipped luxury yacht rental charters for group or private chartering with courteous crew members and our competent office personnel is ready to assist on all your travel needs in Greece whether it is yacht chartering, luxury car rental, private Jet or Helicopter Chopper hire and even satisfy your real estate needs if you would like to buy a Greek island or other property in Greece.

Enjoy your Greek sailing yachting vacation setting sails from Athens for cruises to the Greek Islands Santorini, Mykonos, Corfu, Rhodes, Zakynthos, Cephalonia and more from our convenient yachting marina bases.