The Ultimate 8-Day Luxury Yacht Trip from Dubrovnik to Athens

Start your trip by exploring the Croatian capital of Dubrovnik with its 16th-century walls and plethora of castles and ruins. Come evening, a gourmet dinner will await you on your luxury yacht. Flights should arrive in Dubrovnik by late afternoon to settle in, drink a custom cocktail made by one of the many Emerald Cruises staff ready to help, and perhaps take a dip in the infinity-style Aqua Pool.

Cobblestone lanes, Venetian palaces, boutiques, and beautiful lookouts fill the UNESCO World Heritage–listed city of Kotor, nestled between mountains and the Adriatic Sea in Montenegro. More active visitors can climb the three-mile-long city walls to the well-preserved fortress of St. John. Or stroll the city and visit the baroque church while admiring the red roofs of surrounding homes.

Those wanting to get on another (even smaller) boat might opt to see the islets off the coast, including the stunning Our Lady of the Rocks. Legend has it that local sailors formed the islet by laying a rock in the bay as part of an ancient oath. You may see others continuing the tradition by throwing rocks in the water. (Pro tip: prebook this optional excursion.)

For years, Albania was an underrated Balkan gem, but its seaside city, Sarandë, lies on a crescent-shaped bay and is among Europe’s prettiest cities. A UNESCO World Heritage site, Butrint, is 11 miles south. Travel along the River Bistrica, meander through the rocky channels of Cuka, and cross the vast plans of Vurgu to get there. An included guided tour within its ancient walls will explain the significance of the temples, theaters, and remnants of a site inhabited from prehistoric times until the Ottoman era.

From Sarandë, it’s under an hour to Corfu, one of Greece’s most beautiful islands. Think dramatic cliffs, the bluest waters, a cove-filled coastline, picturesque villages, and citrus and cypress trees galore. Old Town Corfu is also a UNESCO World Heritage site, with roots in the 8th century C.E. when the three forts helped defend the trading interests of the Republic of Venice against the Ottoman Empire. For a more contemporary experience, try Liston, a pedestrian street lined with shops and cafés on the western edge of Greece’s largest square, the Spianada.

Optional excursions include a guided walking tour of Corfu’s Old Town. It includes the Jewish Quarter and its 300-year-old synagogue, the 17th-century Town Hall, and the red-domed bell tower of St. Spyridon Church. Or see charming seaside destinations and the stunning backdrops of other Greek islands, including Troubetta with its mountain range, by 4x4. The tour culminates at the surf-and-sand destination of Paleokastritsa Beach, known for its clear waters, white sand, and water activities for thrill-seekers.

Start your day in Parga, a carefree town on the northwest Ionian coast of mainland Greece. Once you’ve got your fill of the charming streets and colorful houses, try climbing to the top of the town’s Venetian Castle for an unparalleled view.

Those wanting to stay at sea level can take advantage of the turquoise waters of Ai Giannakis Bay, 5.5 miles from Parga by a paved road, to kayak to Aphrodite’s Sea Cave on an optional excursion. According to Greek mythology, the goddess of love and beauty once bathed in this cave.

Another opportunity to experience the divine, about 110 miles inland from Parga, is the spectacular UNESCO World Heritage site Meteora, which consists of six active monasteries perched atop dramatic rock cliffs. (Meteora means “suspended in the air.”)

Lefkada is another beautiful Greek island, reachable by car via a long causeway and floating, narrow bridge. Nicknamed the “Caribbean of Greece” for its turquoise waters, this beauty of the Ionian Sea is what some scholars think was Homer’s Ithaca in the Odyssey. For an optional excursion, visit the Faneromeni Monastery. A few miles from the main town, it has been the island’s center of religion for centuries.



You could also venture out of the main town to tour and taste the Fabbrica Olive Museum in Sivros, located in a 19th-century building complex. The optional excursion ends at the Winery of Lefkas Earth, a vineyard with tastings that makes wine using vardea and vertzami grapes, two varieties grown rarely outside Lefkada.

From the small port of Itea, you’ll head over to the archaeological site of Delphi, which ancient Greeks considered the center of the world, primarily because it’s where the ancient oracle delivered the prophecies of Apollo. (Fun fact: Delphi shares the same root as the Greek word for “womb.”)

The ancient sanctuary of Apollo is incredible, as is the nearby museum. (A guided tour of Delphi is available as an optional excursion.) The modern town of Delphi is just west of the eponymous archaeological site.

By afternoon, cross the 19th-century Corinth Canal, which connects the Gulf of Corinth with the Aegean Sea, a passageway established in 54 C.E. under the reign of Roman emperor Nero. Every year, 12,000 boats pass through the narrow canal.

By morning, it’s time to depart from Piraeus, the port city within greater Athens founded in the fifth century C.E. As with many prominent places in Greece, Piraeus has a rich history as well. Today, it’s home to the fifth-largest passenger port in Europe. After breakfast, it will be time to disembark with lifelong memories of this Mediterranean journey.