36 Best Sights in Thessaloniki and Central Macedonia, Greece

Some of antiquity's greatest treasures await you at the Royal Tombs of Vergina, opened to the public in 1993, 16 years after their discovery. Today the complex, including a museum, is a fitting shrine to the original capital of the kingdom of Macedonia, then known as Aigai. The entrance is appropriately stunning: you walk down a white-sandstone ramp into the partially underground structure, roofed over by a large earth-covered dome approximately the size of the original tumulus (mounded grave). Here on display are some of the legendary artifacts from the age of Philip II of Macedonia.

This was the first intact Macedonian tomb ever found—imposing and exquisite, with a huge frieze of a hunting scene, a masterpiece similar to those of the Italian Renaissance but 1,800 years older, along with a massive yet delicate fresco depicting the abduction of Persephone (a copy of which is displayed along one wall of the museum). Two of the few original works of great painting survive from antiquity. On the left are two tombs and one altar that had been looted and destroyed in varying degrees by the time Andronikos discovered them. Macedonian Tomb III, on the right, found intact in 1978, is believed to be that of the young Prince Alexander IV, Alexander the Great's son, who was at first kept alive by his "protectors" after Alexander's death and then poisoned (along with his mother) when he was 14. To the left of Tomb III is that of Philip II. He was assassinated in the nearby theater, a short drive away; his body was burned, his bones washed in wine, wrapped in royal purple, and put into the magnificent, solid-gold casket with the 16-point sun, which is displayed in the museum. His wife, Cleopatra (not the Egyptian queen), was later buried with him.

The tombs alone would be worth a special trip, but the golden objects and unusual artifacts that were buried within them are equally impressive. Among these finds, in excellent condition and displayed in dramatic dimmed light, are delicate ivory reliefs; elegantly wrought gold laurel wreaths; and Philip's crown, armor, and shield. Especially interesting are those items that seem most certainly Philip's: a pair of greaves (shin guards), one shorter than the other—Philip was known to have a limp. To the right of the tombs, a gift shop sells books and postcards; the official gift shop is outside the entrance gate (across from Philippion restaurant), on the same side of the road. Macedonian souvenirs available here are scarce elsewhere.

The winding road to the site of Philip's assassination goes through rolling countryside west of modern Vergina, much of it part of the vast royal burial grounds of ancient Aigai. On the way you pass three more Macedonian tombs of little interest, being rough-hewn stone structures in typical Macedonian style; the admission to the Royal Tombs includes these. In the field below are the remnants of the theater, discovered by Andronikos in 1982. It was on Philip's way here, to attend the wedding games that were to follow the marriage of his daughter to the king of Epirus, that he was murdered and where his son, Alexander the Great, was crowned.

The unpretentious, single-story white structure gives no hint from the outside of the treasures within. A superb collection of artifacts from Neolithic times; sculptures from the Archaic, classical, and Roman eras; and remains from the Archaic temple at Thermi all reside under this roof. Objects discovered during construction of the Egnatia and Thessaloniki–Skopje highways were added in 2005 to the collection, which is displayed in eight galleries. Thessaloniki, the Metropolis of Macedonia traces the city's history through artifacts and a multimedia collection. Towards the Birth of Cities offers remains from settlements from Kastoria to Mt. Athos that date to as early as the Iron Age.

Being at the base of sacred Olympus, Dion was a sacred city for the Macedonians, devoted primarily to Zeus and his daughters, the Muses. A city was built adjacent to the ancient city during the reign of Alexander. Unearthed ruins of various buildings include the villa of Dionysos, public baths, a stadium (the Macedonian Games were held here), shops, and workshops. The road from the museum divides the diggings at the archaeological site into two areas. On the left is the ancient city of Dion itself, with the juxtaposition of public toilets and several superb floor mosaics. On the right side are the ancient theaters and the sanctuaries of Olympian Zeus, Demeter, and Isis. In the latter, which is a vividly beautiful approximation of how it once looked, copies of the original statues, now in the museum, have been put in place.

The founder of the last royal dynasty to rule Eygpt, Mohamed Ali, was born in this two-story, 18th-century konak-style house in the Old Town. Considered one of the best examples of Ottoman architecture in Greece, the home now functions as a museum and institute dedicated to intercultural dialogue and exchange between the Middle Eastern and Western worlds. Guided tours take place daily, while educational lectures, conferences, symposia, and exhibitions examine subjects like Islamic gardens, ceramic decoration, regional archaeology, and the origin of the number zero.

The stategic and geographical advantages that drew the first settlers to the Kavala peninusla in the 7th century BC made it the obvious choice for this largely granite Byzantine citadel. Modifed by successive Lombard, Frankish, Venetian, and Ottoman conquerers, the castle remains the heart and soul of the modern city. Today, the sloping north end has been transformed into an outdoor performance space, hosting musical, theatrical, and dance events. From the tower are fabulous 360-degree views of the city and surrounding hilly landscape.

Overhauled in 1922 by the architect Eli Modiano, this old landmark is basically a rectangular building with a glass roof and pediment facade. Inside, the rich aromas of food—fish, meats, vegetables, fruits, breads, and spices—compete with music and the noisy, colorful market characters, from the market owners to the bargain hunters. In the little tavernas nearby, ouzo and mezedes are sold at all hours. It is worth a visit—as is the generally cheaper open-air market (on the north side of Ermou)—even if you have no intention of buying anything.

Much of the country's finest Byzantine art—priceless icons, frescoes, sculpted reliefs, jewelry, glasswork, manuscripts, pottery, and coins—is on exhibit here. Ten rooms contain striking treasures, notably an exquisite enamel-and-gold "woven" bracelet (Room 4), and an enormous altar with piratical skull-and-crossbones. A mezzanine (Room 7) shows how early pottery was made. Check the museum's website for the current temporary exhibitions.

This entrancing little church with a commanding view of the city was supposedly built about AD 500 in honor of Galerius's daughter, who was secretly baptized while her father was away fighting. It was later converted into a mosque, and at some time its west wall—the traditional place of entrance (in order to look east when facing the altar)—was bricked up, so you enter Osios David from the south. No matter; this entirely suits the church's rather battered magic. You can still see the radiantly beautiful mosaic in the dome of the apse, which shows a rare beardless Jesus, as he seems to have been described in the vision of Ezekiel: Jesus is seen with a halo and is surrounded by the four symbols of the Evangelists—clockwise, from top left, are the angel, the eagle, the lion, and the calf. To the right is the prophet Ezekiel and, to the left, Habakuk. To save it from destruction, the mosaic was hidden under a layer of calfskin during the iconoclastic ravages of the 8th and 9th centuries. Plastered over while a mosque, it seems to have been forgotten until 1921, when an Orthodox monk in Egypt had a vision telling him to go to the church. On the day he arrived, March 25 (the day marking Greek independence from the Ottomans), an earthquake shattered the plaster, revealing the mosaic to the monk—who promptly died.

One of antiquity's most famous cities, Philippi, lies just 13 km (8 miles) north of Kavala. Expecially famous for the battle between the assassins of Julius Caesar, Brutus and Cassius, and his heirs Octavian and Mark Antony. The site retains a significant amount of remains, including the Via Egnatia, several Early Christian basilicas, a Roman cistern and forum, and massive ancient theater, built in 357 BC, which is still used for the annual Philippi Festival, the region's most important cultural event. Many of the artifacts are on display at the archaelogical museum nearby.

During any Mount Olympus hike, you could take a lunch break or stay overnight at Spilios Agapitos. The refuge is run by the daughter of Kostas Zolotas, a venerable climbing guru. To bunk down for the night costs €13 per person (€11 with an international mountaineering card); there are blankets but no sheets. Bring your own flashlight, towel, and soap. Campers can pitch tents for €4.20 (€3.20 with card) per person and can use the refuge's facilities (note that cooking is not permitted in the refuge). The restaurant is open all day until 9 pm. It's 6 km (4 miles), about 2½–3 hours, from Prionia to Refuge A. From here it's 5 km (3 miles), about 2½–3 hours, to the Throne of Zeus and the summit. The trail is easy going to Skala summit (most of the way), but the last bit is scrambling and a bit hair-raising. Some people turn back. If you plan to hike up Mount Olympus, be sure to take a map; the best are produced by Anavasi. If you would prefer a guided hike up Mount Olympus, the staff at Refuge A can arrange a guide for you, and Trekking Hellas organizes treks for various-size groups.

The city's most famous landmark, and a symbol of Macedonia, the White Tower is the only medieval defensive tower left standing along the seafront (the other remaining tower, the Trigoniou, is in the Upper City). Now a part of the Museum of Byzantine Culture, its six floors offer a wonderful multimedia introduction to the city's history. Much of that history occurred within these walls—for centuries this was a prison—and on its walls: formerly known as "Blood Tower," it got its current name in 1896 when a convict exchanged his sentence for whitewashing the entire structure (which was removed in a 1980s renovation). The displays teach you that formidable seawalls and intermittent towers encircled the medieval city and were erected in the 15th century on the site of earlier walls. In 1866, with the threat of piracy diminishing and European commerce increasingly imperative, the Ottoman Turks began demolishing them, except for the White Tower. At the top of your climb of 96 steps you are rewarded with a lovely museum café, whose rooftop setting provides sweeping vistas of the city.

Of the many excellent beaches surrounding Kavala, Ammolofoi remains the most popular. Located about 16 km (10 miles) west of Kavala, just past the town of Nea Paramos, the Blue Flag beach is set in idyllic scenery, with soft green hills leading down to the sand dunes from which it takes its name, before disappearing into the clear, shallow waters. Rocky outcrops divide the beach into three sections, commonly know as first, second, and third Ammolofoi, which offer different levels of crowding and service; the third tends to be the busiest. Entrance and parking is free and beach bars decked out with umbrellas and sun loungers abound. Amenities: food and drink; parking; water sports. Best for: partiers; snorkeling; swimming; walking.

The imposing kamára (arch) is one of a number of monuments built by Galerius around AD 305, during his reign as co-emperor of Diocletian's divided Roman Empire. It commemorated the Roman victory over Persia in AD 297, and you can still see scenes of those battles on the badly eroded bas-reliefs. Originally, the arch had four pediments and a dome and was intended to span not only the Via Egnatia, the ancient Roman road, but also a passageway leading north to the Rotunda. Only the large arches remain.

The soldier and statesman who established the Republic of Turkey and became its president, Atatürk (Mustafa Kemal) was born here in 1881. He participated in the city's Young Turk Movement, which eventually led to the collapse of the sultanate and the formation of the modern Turkish state. About eight blocks east of the Ayios Dimitrios church, the modest pink house is decorated in Ottoman style. It has been turned into a museum, with personal items and documents of Turkey's founding father.

A warren of side streets around a tiny square with a fountain is filled with tavernas and crafts stores. The area is frequently referred to, but it rarely appears on street maps; everyone knows where it is: 200 m from the church of Ayia Sofia.

The founding date of this church, a UNESCO World Heritage site and the focal point of the city's Easter and Christmas celebrations, has been the subject of disagreements over the centuries. Ecclesiastics think it was built after the first Council of Nicea (AD 325), when Jesus was declared a manifestation of Divine Wisdom; other church historians say it was contemporaneous with the magnificent church of Ayia Sofia in Constantinople, completed in AD 537, on which it was modeled. From its architecture the church is believed to date to the late 8th century, a time of transition from the domed basilica to the cruciform plan. The rather drab interior contains two superb mosaics: one of the Ascension and the other of the Virgin Mary holding Jesus in her arms. This latter mosaic is an interesting example of the conflict in the Orthodox Church (AD 726–843) between the iconoclasts (icon smashers, which they often literally were) and the iconodules (icon venerators). At one point in this doctrinal struggle, the Virgin Mary in the mosaic was replaced by a large cross (still partly visible), and only later, after the victory of the iconodules, was it again replaced with an image of the Virgin Mary holding baby Jesus. The front gate is a popular meeting spot.

Magnificent and covered in mosaics, this five-aisle basilica is Greece's largest church and a powerful tribute to the patron saint of Thessaloniki. It was rebuilt and restored from 1926 to 1949, with attention to preserving the details of the original; the marks left by a fire can still be seen throughout. In the 4th century, during the reign of Emperor Galerius, the young, scholarly Dimitrios was preaching Christianity in the coppersmith district, in contravention of an edict. He was arrested and jailed in a room in the old Roman baths, on the site of the present church. While he was incarcerated in AD 303, Dimitrios gave a Christian blessing to a gladiator friend named Nestor, who was about to fight Galerius's champion, Lyaios. When Nestor fought and killed Lyaios, after having made Dimitrios's blessing public, the enraged Galerius had Nestor executed on the spot and had Dimitrios speared to death in his cell. His Christian brethren were said to have buried him there. A church that was built on the ruins of this bath in the 5th century was destroyed by an earthquake in the 7th century. The church was rebuilt, and gradually the story of Dimitrios and Nestor grew to be considered apocryphal until the great 1917 fire burned down most of the 7th-century church and brought to light its true past. The process of rebuilding the church uncovered rooms beneath the apse that appear to be baths; the discovery of a reliquary containing a vial of bloodstained earth gave credence to the idea that this is where St. Dimitrios was martyred. You enter through a small doorway to the right of the altar. Work your way through the crypt (which tends to close a little earlier than the church itself), containing sculpture from the 3rd to 5th century AD and Byzantine artifacts. The church's interior was plastered over when the Turks turned it into a mosque, but eight original mosaics remain on either side of the altar.

Noted frescoes here include the unusual Ayion Mandilion in the apse, which shows Jesus superimposed on a veil sent to an Anatolian king, and the Niptir, also in the apse, in which Jesus is washing the disciples' feet. The artist is said to have depicted himself in the right-hand corner wearing a turban and riding a horse. The 14th-century church, which became a dependency of the Vlatádon Monastery in the 17th century, has an intriguing mix of Byzantine architectural styles and perhaps the most beautiful midnight Easter service in the city.

A prime example of 14th-century Macedonian religious architecture, Ayios Panteleimon is an eye-catching church that draws you in to take a closer look. Restored in 1993 after an earthquake in 1978, the facade reveals the ornamental interplay of brick and stonework, and a dome displays typically strong upward motion.

This sunken church, part of which is (as the name would suggest) below ground level, is an example of 14th-century Macedonian ecclesiastical architecture, with a decorative mix of brick and stonework and a dome thrusting upward. Originally dedicated to the Virgin Mother, it was later dedicated to the Transfiguration of the Savior.

In modern times, this Byzantine fortress—its name means "the seven towers" even though there are ten towers—was an abysmal prison, closed only in 1988. There's not much to see here except wall ruins and a small museum that documents the building's history. The area is an untended green space, not an unpleasant place to sit and survey Thessaloniki below. The surrounding tavernas accommodate throngs of locals in the evening.

Among the displays in this museum dedicated to the history of the local Jewish community are tombstones from the city's ancient necropolis, which was on the grounds now inhabited by Aristotle University. Also on exhibit are objects rescued from the 32 synagogues that existed around the city, some of which were destroyed by the Nazis. The neoclassical building is one of the few Jewish structures that were spared in the great fire of 1917.

Now under the auspices of The Metropolitan Organisation of Museums of Visual Arts of Thessaloniki—MOMus, The Macedonian Museum of Contemporary Art has a large and expanding permanent collection of Greek and foreign works, as well as an eclectic selection of temporary shows, are on exhibit. You can unwind at the museum shop and the quirky art café.

If you've read the 1966 novel Z by Vassilis Vassilikos or seen the 1969 Costas-Gavras film about the murder (clubbed to death) of Lambrakis, a left wing pacifist member of Parliament, by far right hitmen in 1963, this monument is especially moving. The murder precipitated the events leading to the 1967–74 dictatorship of the colonels. A dramatic bronze head and arm, above which flutters a sculpted dove, marks the spot.

The Vlatades Monastery, shaded with pine and cypress, is a cruciform structure that displays a mixture of architectural additions, from Byzantine times to the present. It's known for its Ecumenical Foundation for Patriarchal Studies, the only one in the world. The small central church to the right of the apse has a tiny chapel dedicated to Sts. Peter and Paul, which is seldom open. It is believed to have been built on the spot where Paul first preached to the Thessalonians, in AD 49. Go through the gate entrance to get a panoramic view of the city of Thessaloniki.

The splendid museum is an important stop to help you get an idea of the history and importance of the city to the ancient Macedonians. Be sure to see the video (in English) prepared by the site's renowned archaeologist, Dimitris Pandermalis, which describes the excavations, the finds, and their significance. (His efforts to keep the artifacts in the place where they were found have established a trend for the decentralization of archaeological finds throughout Greece.) The second floor contains a topographical relief of the area and the oldest surviving pipe organ precursor—the 1st-century BC hydraulis. The basement learning area has an Alexander mosaic, a model of the city, and ancient carriage shock absorbers.

During the Ottoman occupation, this area, probably the most picturesque in the city, was considered the best place to live. In addition to the superb city views, it catches whatever breeze there is in summer. More recently, it was the home of some of the poorest families in Thessaloniki. Now the area is gentrifying, thanks to European Union development funds (which repaired the cobblestones), strict zoning and building codes, and the zeal of young couples with the money to restore the narrow old houses. The most notable houses are on Papadopolou, Kleious, and Dimitriou Poliorkitou streets.

The name Achiropiitos means "made without hands" and refers to the icon representing the Virgin that miraculously appeared in this 5th-century Byzantine church during the 12th century. An early example of the basilica form, the church has marvelous arcades, monolithic columns topped by elaborate capitals, and exquisite period mosaics of birds and flowers. It is the second-oldest church in Thessaloniki and probably the oldest in continuous use in the eastern Mediterranean. An inscription in Arabic on a column states that "Sultan Murat captured Thessaloniki in the year 1430," which was the year the church was converted temporarily into a mosque.

The name Chalkeon comes from the word for copper, and the beautiful "Virgin of the Copper Workers" stands in what is still the traditional copper-working area of Thessaloniki. Completed in 1028, this is one of the oldest churches in the city displaying the domed cruciform style and is filled with ceramic ornaments and glowing mosaics. Artisans and workers frequently drop by during the day to light a candle to this patron of physical laborers. Inside the sunken walls is a pretty and well-tended garden. The area around Panagia Chalkeon has many shops selling traditional copper crafts at low prices.

The ancient village ruins and its museum—both best known for their intricate, artful, and beautifully preserved floor mosaics, mainly of mythological scenes—are on either side of the main road toward Edessa (where waterfalls invite a possible further trip). It's best to first get an overview at the Archaeological Museum, which contains a model of the 4th-century BC dwelling that stood across the road, as well as fascinating artifacts of Neolithic, Bronze, and Iron Age settlers, some as old as the 7th century BC. Note also the unique statuette of a horned Athena (apparently influenced by Minoan Crete), the statue of Alexander sprouting the horns of Pan, and the adorable sleeping Eros (Cupid), reproductions of which can be bought at the gift shop. Descriptions are sparse, but the attendants, pointedly not experts, are happy to share what they know.

In 1914, two years after the Turks' departure, the people who lived on the land were moved to a village north of here, and excavations of the archaeological site began. These include portions of the walls; the sanctuaries of Aphrodite, Demeter, and Cybele; the marketplace; a cemetery; and several houses. In 1987, on a small rise to the north, the remains of the palace came to light; at present there is a restoration program at the site.