After presenting our journey retracing Paul’s journey in Greece, I was asked what would be the best way to do such a trip. I struggled to respond as the answer was complicated with a big “it depends.” Janet and I were fortunate enough to go on a custom trip organized by Liberty University with a couple of its professors. However, my research has identified some commercial tours, open to anyone, that come close, which I discuss below.
Before getting to specific tour companies, I will highlight what I believe could be important on such a tour, depending on your priorities:
- As a minimum, the tour should visit the sites mentioned in Acts 16:11 to 18:18, i.e., Neapolis (now Kavala), Philippi, Thessalonica (it’s OK to skip Amphipolis and Apollonia), Berea (now Veria), Athens (especially the Ancient Agora, Acropolis, and Mars Hill), and Corinth. Cenchreae is a bonus: there is little to see there, but it completes the journey. Ideally, a tour would visit these sites in order, matching Paul’s chronology, but that appears to be rare as it is logistically difficult – we did not visit them in this order.
- Tour groups often add other sites that are “on the way”, are significant in explaining the ancient Greek culture, or have archaeological significance. These might include Delphi (links to Apollo, the oracle, the python, and the Gallio inscription is in the museum), Meteora (amazing monasteries “in the sky”), Vergina (burial site of Philip II, father of Alexander the Great), and other monasteries. Thermopylae was a fascinating place to visit, and while there was little to see, learning about the link between the Spartans and Queen Esther via King Xerxes was fascinating! Visiting sites associated with ancient Greece was important to understand the cultural background of the Greece that Paul visited.
- The focus of the tour group should be evangelical biblical understanding, which is reflected in the group’s overall mission. If you are doing an organized tour, you want the guide(s) to explain the biblical links. The tour we took had a Greek guide, who was aligned with the Greek Orthodox tradition, which provided fascinating insight, augmenting the evangelical position from the professors.
- The “land” part of such a tour will take a minimum of eight days. Some groups offer add-on packages like a cruise to islands such as Crete, Patmos, and to Ephesus. I have not done these so cannot comment from experience. I plan to return independently to Turkey to visit its sites, including Patmos, which is a Greek island right next to Turkey. However, if you expect to only ever do the one visit to this area, the extended itinerary is worth looking at.
- Another add-on package might be the Peloponnese, the peninsula south of Corinth. Janet and I spent a week touring this independently. There was lots of fascinating history and we had a great time in rural Greece, but there wasn’t anything biblical.
Going with a tour group has advantages and disadvantages. Advantages include the organization of all the details, arrangement of a local guide, and it might be made available through your church. If you are adventurous enough, I recommend touring independently by hiring a car, setting your own itinerary, booking your own hotels, doing your own research and buying great guide books. This saves a lot of money. Also, you can choose where to go, how much time to spend at each place, and how much time to spend with other people, all of which can be issues with group tours. This is how we visited Rome’s biblical sites and plan to visit Turkey, but I recognize it is not for everyone! Of note, Greek Bible Tours offers self-guided tours which look interesting and affordable! If traveling independently, you could buy day-tours at sites you would like more information about from a group like Key Tours.
Below is my quick assessment of a shortlist of tours I found through some quick internet research. I have not looked at prices. I should point out that my best research thread started by asking ChatGPT, “which tour group would be best for the most evangelical christian biblically focused tour of the mainland greek sites.”
| Tour Group | Tour | My Comments |
|---|---|---|
| Tutku Tours | Following in Paul’s Steps Through Greece | For Liberty University’s biblical trips to Italy and Turkey, they have gone with Tutku Tours. Tutku offers several options, including combined trips to Turkey and Greece. |
| Footsteps Ministries | 15 Day Tour including a 4 Day Cruise | Looked the most promising and worth investigating. |
| Christian Expedition | 10 days in Greece | Another great option to look at. |
| Pilgrim Tours | Footsteps of Paul Greece Tour: 11 day Package | A larger outfit with lots of options, also worth looking at. |
| EF | Go Ahead Tours | Footsteps of Saint Paul in Greece. | It looks more history than Bible-focused, so I would not recommend for a biblically-focused tour. |
| Bible Tours | Bible Tours in Greece | Organization is affiliated with Jehovah’s Witnesses. Check the theological position of a tour group or guide, looking for evangelical. |
I suggest you carefully consider what you want to do. The above discussion is for visits primarily focused on learning more about the sites Paul visited. Even with that focus, we had a lot of fun doing other things. However, it was not your typical vacation.
Finally, read my book suggestions for this trip. The most valuable book was A Biblical Tour of Greek Historical Sites: 77 Insights into Ancient Greek Culture that Make the New Testament Come Alive by Costas Tsevas, though each of these books was important.
I hope that helps! Don’t hesitate to contact me with any questions by leaving a comment below with your email address.
