Chef George Calombaris will host up to 20 travellers in Athens for seven days in June 2027, calling the Greek capital “the new Berlin”.

The George Calombaris Athens journey is run with Melbourne-based travel platform Quro Collective. Prices start from AUD $8,999 per person, twin share, with a $500 deposit to secure a place, Quro said.

As a result, travellers will meet the chefs, bartenders and producers in the former MasterChef Australia judge’s circle. Calombaris will make the introductions.

“Athens is a city that, for me, is the new Berlin, but there’s still a lot of people out there who don’t know Athens through my lens,” Calombaris said.

Inside the George Calombaris Athens itinerary

The first full day begins with a souvlaki crawl led by Calombaris and Greek food creator IKON5. Stops include Kapsa, the shop of chef Christoforos Peskias.

Next, Peskias joins the group at Varvakeios Market, which has supplied the city’s kitchens since 1886. He then hosts lunch at his restaurant, Dopios.

Chef Polychronis Damalas will also take travellers to a farmers’ market. Afterwards, they lunch at Raw Bata, where Greek ingredients meet Japanese influences.

Pastry chef Stelios Parliaros welcomes the group into Sweet Alchemy, the shop he opened in 1982. At Ergon House, guests move from the ground-floor food market into the kitchen for a hands-on cooking class with Calombaris.

At the Metaxa cellars in Kifisia, travellers enter barrel rooms normally closed to the public. They then create their own blend alongside the Metaxa Master and Calombaris.

In the evenings, the George Calombaris Athens trip turns to cocktails. At The Clumsies, the group meets co-owners Vasilis Kyritsis and Nikos Bakoulis. Their bar reached No. 3 on the World’s 50 Best Bars list in 2020.

The same pair are also behind Line, named number one in the inaugural Europe’s 50 Best Bars list in June 2026.

“I can’t wait for you to meet these boys,” Calombaris said. “They have the number one bar in Europe right now. And you get to come inside with me.”

Price, hotel and island extension

Travellers stay six nights at the Perianth Hotel on Agias Eirinis Square, with daily breakfast. A local guide and coach transfers on scheduled days are included.

However, international flights, travel insurance and airport transfers are not included. Optional paid add-ons, such as an Acropolis visit or a Greek wine masterclass, cost extra.

After the George Calombaris Athens week, an optional extension adds three nights each on Milos and Paros. It costs from an additional AUD $4,999, including ferries and transfers.

Calombaris opened his first restaurant, The Press Club, in Melbourne in 2006. Since then, he has competed at the Bocuse d’Or and published five cookbooks. He also runs Auto Greek, an annual Melbourne pop-up based on his trips to Athens.

Greek City Times reported on his Gold Coast venture earlier in October. He is now Culinary Director for new hospitality projects across Sydney.

Bookings for the George Calombaris Athens journey opened on 30 October through Quro Collective.