The site of Meteora, these impressive rocky peaks, which host monasteries on their top, is a sublime site to see at least once in his life and it is one of our favorites of our 3 months in Greece. We propose you to come with us to explore the site of Meteora in Klambaka inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List.
We give you below all our practical advices to enjoy 100% this exceptional site, time of visit, opening hours, what to see and what to do ? as well as how to get to Meteora from Athens and Thessaloniki… We wish you a nice visit to this magical place!
Where are the Meteors in Greece (map)?
The famous site of meteors is located in mainland Greece, in the region of Thessaly, in the north of the country. The town at the foot of the site is called Kalambaka, it is located 3 hours from the city of Thessaloniki and 4 hours fromAthens.
What to see and do in Meteora?
The meteors are a set of rocks on which monasteries were built, today 6 are open to visitors. If you stay only a few days, it is very difficult to visit all of them because each monastery has its own closing days and they are not the same for all of them (otherwise it would be too easy for the visitors!).
It is not very complex to plan a visit in advance. The advantage is that no matter what day of the week it is, you will always find one open. We were able to visit 2 of them and we went to the many viewpoints to enjoy beautiful panoramas of this site.
A mysterious place
You will certainly have heard a lot about it before coming to Greece, indeed, it is a fairy tale place, almost unique in the world, since several rocky masses, straight out of a science-fiction movie, will rise in front of you with monasteries perched on top.
The first hermits came to settle in this place where serenity reigns, nevertheless the mystery still persists as to how the constructions were made.
How to visit the monasteries of Meteora?
How much time is required?
We advise you to devote at least 2 days to the visit of the sites, to visit at least one monastery then to take time to admire this incredible decoration, several places are arranged to allow you to contemplate the site in its totality.
Also note that as each monastery is perched on top of its rock, access is after climbing a certain number of steps so you may not want to do more than 2 in the same day.
You can either visit the site by car, free parking is available in front of each monastery, by bus from Kalambaka, or by foot (we will talk about this below).
What are the visiting hours?
Each monastery has its own closing days, generally 2 days of affiliation, and its own schedule. By the way, in winter, they close very early (around 3pm) and some even close for a short period.
For example, for our part, we stayed 5 days on the spot, because we had to wait for the opening of the Grand Meteora which reopened after 3 weeks of closure and we had time, otherwise we would not have stayed so long.
Which monasteries to see in Meteora?
In Meteora, you can see and visit the following 6 monasteries:
- Monastery of the Great Meteor
- Monastery of Agios Nikolaos Anapavsas
- Monastery of Varlaam
- Monastery of Roussanou
- Monastery of Agia Triada
- Monastery of Agios Stephanos
We visited the Varlaam Monastery, climbing many steps before arriving in a lovely little courtyard with a beautiful little church featuring lovely frescoes (photos inside are not allowed.).
It culminates at more than 380 meters above the plain, it is supposed to offer the most spectacular view, nevertheless, we could not enjoy the superb view, because the weather was very foggy. Feel free to leave a comment if the view is really worth it!
Then we also visited the Great Meteor, located just across the street, it is the largest and most visited, its name helps sell it well, in any case, we wanted to see the BIG Meteor.
It will be necessary once again to climb many steps, all this effort is rewarded once in the enclosure of the monastery, it is a very rich and complete visit. The different areas and terraces are all interesting to visit, and the omnipresent wood brings warmth to the place.
As it is the most visited we advise you to go there early in the morning to avoid being in the middle of tourist buses.
Where to buy tickets?
The entrance ticket of a few euros can be bought directly at the counter, at the entrance of each monastery (about 3€). Remember to have enough change on you, as bank cards are not accepted. Believe us, you won’t want to turn back after climbing all the steps.
We were missing a few cents when we arrived, the person at the counter let us in anyway, she must have felt a little sorry for us with our daughter in portage.
➡️Si you wish to understand in depth the dimension of the site, you can opt for a guided tour including the visit of several monasteries, all the expenses are included and your local guide will wait for you at the entrance of the site.
How to visit Meteora on foot?
To visit Meteora on foot, a nice and easy path starts from the town of Kalambaka, you will reach the first monastery after 20 minutes. All the monasteries are next door to each other, and a single road links them all, so you won’t get lost.
What are the best photo and sunset spots?
You have several spots to take from pretty, on the side of the road, we have indicated on the map below, our two favorite places, offering a beautiful unobstructed view of the site and with a small parking lot located next to. We advise you to go there at the end of the day to make beautiful photographs during the golden hours, the site is even more mysterious at the end of the day.
How to dress during your visit?
To visit the monasteries of Meteora, you will have to cover your shoulders and legs. We advise you to put some scarves in your bag, as the ones offered on site are not free. It’s always a shame to buy something you’re almost certain not to use again.
Where to sleep in Meteora?
We advise you to spend at least one night in the city of Thessaloniki or in Athens and back, as the round trip is a bit long in one day.
Some friends joined us from France to visit this part of Greece with us, so we left our camper for a few nights to sleep in an accommodation that could accommodate us all.
You can either stay in Kastraki (a small village of 1000 inhabitants), rather dead in the off season or in Kalambaka. We recommend that you spend the night in Kalambaka, so that you can enjoy the many restaurants and cafés the town has to offer after your visit to the site.
➡️Notre favorite : Alexiou Hotel a renovated hotel, nicely decorated, that’s why we chose it because many hotels are a bit outdated in this area, at the foot of the meteors, ideally placed to enjoy the city of Kalamka and especially to go to Meteors easily.
The staff will give you good advice on visiting the monasteries. Large parking lot (we parked our camper for several nights) free and nearby.
Where to eat and drink in rooftop ?
We advise you to prepare or buy your sandwiches if you wish to eat on the site, or to go back down to Kalambaka town. Here are our good addresses in Kalambaka, found by us, tested and approved:
- Fell the Rock, modern decoration (it’s nice because it’s not always easy to find in Greece) offering various dishes (burger, pizza…). Honestly, the most of this address is its roof top, from which you have a beautiful view on the meteors. We advise you to go there for a drink.
- Taksimi Taverne: this is a typical little taverna, offering well-cooked Greek specialties at excellent value for money. And the staff is adorable. We went there because it is extremely well rated on Google, we were absolutely not disappointed.
- Mekras Bakerhouse: a good bakery to fill up before exploring the site!
Our good addresses on our map
How to come to Meteora, to Kalambaka?
From Athens
The Meteora site is located at the foot of the town of Kalambaka, 3 hours from the city of Thessaloniki and 4 hours fromAthens. It is one of the most visited sites in mainland Greece, so it is easily accessible from both cities. There are several options available to you:
- By vehicle: we opted for this option, count 4 hours of driving to reach the meteor site from Athens. The route is not exciting, with a large part on fast lanes and highways. We were there in low season so we could easily park in Kalambaka near our hotel and in the different parking lots at each monastery.
To compare rental prices, we recommend the RentalCars website, which compares the prices of hundreds of car rental companies to find the best price. To give you an idea of prices, you can rent a car from €30 per day at Athens airport.
- By public transport: several buses and trains make the journey daily, count 3h30 – 4h of journey so if you wish to make the round trip in the day we advise you to take the first departures which leave around 7h.
- Excursion from Athens: if you want to visit the meteor site without taking care of the organization, you can book an all-inclusive excursion (pick-up from your hotel, bus or train ride, bus to the meteor site, entrance tickets to the monasteries and a French-speaking guide on site).
Two-day excursion to Delphi and Meteora from Athens: If you want to see the two emblematic sites of Greece in two days, you can inquire about this excursion.
From Thessaloniki
- By vehicle: we also made this trip, count 3 hours of road to reach the site of the meteors from Thessaloniki (we left the meteors to reach the city of Thessaloniki). It’s good roads again with a good portion of expressway and highway.
- By public transport: several buses and trains make the journey daily, count 3h30 – 4h of journey (with connection) so if you wish to make the round trip in the day we advise you once again to take the first departures which leave around 7h.
- Excursion from the city of Thessaloniki As from Athens, if you want to visit the meteor site without taking care of the organization, you can book an all-inclusive tour “(pick up from your hotel, bus or train ride, bus to the meteorites, entrance tickets to the monasteries and guide on site).
After visiting the Peloponnese, the city of Athens, the archeological site of Delphi and Meteora, we will explore the region of Thessaloniki.
is an ancient site nestled in a sublime natural environment, we loved writing this article to immerse ourselves in this visit and in our photos.
Feel free to leave us a note below to let us know if you are planning this trip, ask any questions or share on social media, our Instagram, we will answer you with great pleasure! If you liked this article, please rate it with 5 stars below.
