Climb Mount Olympus, the 2,918m-high home of the gods, as part of a 15-day trip with Exodus (020 8675 5550). Other highlights include hiking the canyon-size Vikos Gorge, seeing the stone village of Zagoria and climbing to monasteries perched atop rocky pinnacles. Groups from eight to 16 hike for up to eight hours a day. The price of £879 plus local payment of £115 includes flights and full-board accommodation, staying in guesthouses and mountain refuges.

At its narrowest, the Samaria Gorge, which descends from scented pine forests to the coast, has rock walls 600 metres high that are almost close enough to touch with both hands. Walk down the gorge on a seven-night hiking holiday in Crete, which includes visits to the tenth-century St Paul's chapel at Loutro and the ancient city of Lissos, home to the temple of Askipios, the god of health. The trip, with Guerba (01373 826611) has up to six hours' walking a day in groups of 12 or under for £595 full-board, excluding flights.

Stroll through Captain Corelli country in Cephalonia as well as Ithaca, home to Odysseus, on a self-guided two-island tour. Based in three-star hotels, the walks are between four and 11 miles a day, leading to bays, monasteries, and the Cave of the Nymphs as described by Homer. Sherpa Expeditions (020 8577 2717) has a week's B&B for £826 with flights.

Children are catered for on a 16-day Pindos Villages family trip in Corfu with Walks Worldwide (01524 262255). Though there is up to five hours' hiking a day, tired kids can get a ride by car. En route, there is plenty to keep them occupied, including natural swimming pools and mystical lakes. The price of £750 (£400-£650 children) includes flights and most meals and is in groups with a maximum of 16.