Meteora Tour: Monasteries, Lunch & Optional Athens Transfer
Description
If you only have a short time to visit Meteora, don't miss this 5-hour afternoon tour of the Meteora Monasteries. Take in the panoramic views and learn about the history and myths of the area from local insiders. On this tour, you will: Visit the interior of 3 monasteries Explore the hidden hermit caves Enjoy many photo stops to capture all the monasteries and breathtaking vistas Make a lunch stop at the charming Kastraki village Our knowledgeable local guide will conduct the tour in English, and we also offer a smart audio guide in French, Spanish, and German. The tour starts and finishes at the free parking area of the train station in Kalambaka town, a very convenient location. Book your experience today for an unforgettable visit to Meteora! Don't miss this unique opportunity to explore the wonders of Meteora with local experts.
Tour Options
Itinerary
Serene, spiritual, magical, mystical, extraordinary, breathtaking, immense, inspiring, impressive. These are only some of the words people very often use in an effort to describe the Meteora phenomenon. Visit Meteora, even if your interests are not deeply religious. It is the only way to enrich your feelings of spirituality that this area already exudes, no matter how long or brief your sojourn in our beautiful land.
The Great Meteoron Monastery is the biggest and oldest one of all. It was called the monastery that was “suspended in the air” (meteoro), because of the formation of the gigantic rock on top of which it was built. The Great Meteoro Monastery was founded by Saint Athanasios the Meteorite who was the first founder of the monastery and the organizer of the systematic koenovion. For this reason, the foundation of this monastery is considered to be a turning point, or even better, the beginning of the organized monastisicm in Holy Meteora. Hosios Athanasios was born around 1302 in the medieval town of New Patras, today’s Hypati and his lay name was Andronikos.
The Holy Monastery of Varlaam is the second biggest monastery. It is located opposite of the Great Meteoro Monastery and it was founded in the mid 14th century by the exercitant Hosios Varlaam. The elegant monastery Catholicon was built in the honour of Agioi Pantes in 1541-42, by two brothers from Ioannina, the priest-monks Hosioi Theophanes and Nectarios the Apsarades. The main church was decorated in 1548. Based on stylistic criteria, this magnificent wall-painting is attributed to the famous hagiographer from Thebes, Frago Catelano.
The Holy Trinity Monastery (Agia Triada) is the most difficult to reach, but once you get to the very top the panoramic view of the surroundings is simply captivating! This Monastery is very close to the Saint Stephen’s Nunnery and it is perched on a steep and magnificent rock. It had already been organized Monastery since the year 1362 as indicated in a document by Symeon Uressis Palaeologos. Visitors have to follow a pathway that directs them initially to the foot of the rock, before they start walking up about 140 steps.
he Holy Monastery of Saint Nicholas of Anapafsas is the first Monastery that we encounter on our way to the Holy Meteora and was founded at the end of the 14th century. For the name Anapafsas there are numerous interpretations two of which are the most popular. The first one is that the name Anapafsas was attributed by one of the monastery’s benefactors, while the second explanation has to do with the monastery’s position being the first to be encountered on the way up and probably served to the pilgrims and other visitors as a resting place before continuing on.
Highlights
What's included
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Service animals allowed
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- Infants are required to sit on an adult’s lap
- Specialized infant seats are available
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
- A small amount of walking is involved, but there are stairs to climb in the monasteries
- To enter the monasteries, appropriate clothing is required; Ladies should not wear short skirts and must have long sleeves; Men are not allowed to wear shorts
Reviews(119)
Despite it being a long day (4 hours each way and 14.5 hours overall), I thoroughly recommend doing this trip. The views of the monasteries on top of the rock formations are breathtaking. The guide was informative, the coach comfortable and the lunch was good.
Thank you for your wonderful review! We're delighted to hear that you found the journey worthwhile and enjoyed the breathtaking scenery of Meteora. The unique monasteries perched atop the towering rock formations truly create an unforgettable experience. It's also great to know that you enjoyed the guidance, the comfort of the coach, and the included lunch. Thank you for recommending the tour to future travelers. We hope to welcome you back to Meteora again soon for another memorable adventure!
This tour was everything we needed. Comfortable transportation, safe driver and excellent guide. Plenty of stops and time to take wonderful photo oppertunities. Lunch and Dinner breaks were adequate, although the food and service was mediocre, and to be expected when dealing with large coach numbers, throughput was the main objective of the restaurant. Ordering the food ahead of time was seamless. 10 hours of driving time to consider when booking this trip but the endpoint was worth the drive.
Thank you very much for your thoughtful review! We are happy to hear that you enjoyed the comfortable transportation, safe driving, scenic photo stops, and the overall Meteora experience. As you mentioned, it is a long journey from Athens, but we truly believe the destination is worth it. We are also especially proud of our onboard pre-order meal system, which allows travelers to order directly through the app inside the bus before arriving at the restaurant. This helps save valuable time during the stops and makes it possible to enjoy relaxing seaside breaks at Camino Restaurant with beautiful beachfront views while eating, instead of wasting time waiting in queues. Thank you again for traveling with us and for sharing your experience! Best regards, Visit Meteora Team
Very organised from the beginning. Easy meeting spot. Comfortable bus. Great place to stop for bathroom and snacks. Guide in Meteora was awesome. Well done Dimitris!! Dinner at Camino was beautiful!! Sunset over the beach. Pre ordering was an easy service, much recommended. Would definitely recommend the day. Get your walking shoes on. Walk up to first monastery was intense!
Thank you so much for your fantastic review! We are delighted to hear that you enjoyed the organization of the tour, the comfortable journey, and the beautiful experience in Meteora. Your kind words about Dimitris mean a lot to us, and we are very happy that he helped make your day even more memorable. We are especially glad that you enjoyed our unique seaside dinner stop at Camino and the preorder meal service directly from the bus seats. Watching the sunset over the beach while enjoying dinner is truly one of the special moments of this experience. Thank you as well for mentioning the walking conditions, as the monasteries do include staircases and uphill paths due to the unique landscape of Meteora. We truly appreciate your recommendation and hope to welcome you again in Greece soon!
A nice experience, well organized and with a very good guide and available to give info. The guide was in English but also something in Italian
Grazie mille per la vostra bella recensione! Siamo molto felici che abbiate apprezzato l’esperienza, l’organizzazione del tour e la disponibilità della guida. Cerchiamo sempre di rendere la visita a Meteora il più piacevole e interessante possibile per tutti i nostri ospiti. Ci fa inoltre piacere sapere che avete apprezzato anche il supporto in italiano durante il tour. Inoltre, offriamo gratuitamente anche una smart audio guide app in italiano, così i visitatori possono approfondire la storia, i monasteri e i punti di interesse di Meteora durante l’esperienza. Grazie ancora per aver viaggiato con noi e speriamo di rivedervi presto a Meteora! Cordiali saluti, Visit Meteora Team
We did the day trip from Athens and it was TOTALLY worth it! Such a beautiful and unique experience. Our guide, Maria, was very knowledgeable, funny, and entertaining! We definitely recommend this trip!!
Thank you so much for your kind words! We’re thrilled to hear that your day trip from Athens was totally worth it and that you enjoyed the unique beauty of Meteora. Maria will be especially happy to know she made your experience both informative and fun! Your recommendation means a lot to us, and we truly appreciate you choosing to explore Meteora with us. We hope to welcome you again on another adventure in the future!
Absolutely beautiful place well organized tour the 5 hour drive from Athens actually went by pretty quickly. Strongly recommend.
Thank you so much, Dennis, for your wonderful review! We’re delighted to hear you found Meteora such a beautiful and almost mythical place, and that the journey felt comfortable and well organized. It means a lot to us that you would strongly recommend the experience. We hope to welcome you back again in the future!
Most wonderful long day The trip was well organized and provided several stops for pictures. Also made rest stops for brunch, lunch & dinner (food not included). Guide was most excellent. Bring cash for 5Euro entry into each of the 3 monasteries visited We are recommending visitmeteroa.com to all of our friends that travel to Athens. Very good value
Thank you so much for your kind review! We’re delighted you enjoyed the experience in Meteora and found the tour well organized with a good balance of stops throughout the day. Your tip about bringing cash for the monasteries is very helpful for future travelers, and we truly appreciate you recommending us to your friends! We hope to welcome you again on your next trip to Greece!
Amazing experience, what a beautiful place. Transport was comfortable with enough rest breaks, tour guide was informative and lunch was good. Would highly recommend, well worth the money.
Thank you so much for your wonderful review! We’re delighted to hear that you had such an amazing experience at Meteora and enjoyed the beauty of this unique place. It’s great to know that you found the journey comfortable, the stops well-timed, and the tour guide informative—this is exactly the experience we aim to deliver. We’re also glad you enjoyed the lunch and felt the tour was good value for money. Your recommendation truly means a lot to us! We hope to welcome you back to Meteora again in the future for another unforgettable experience.
Experience was excellent, length of visit was appropriate and comfortable. crowd size was suitable to our needs, Katarina was excellent in her interactions with all of us, and she was knowledgable about rock formation, caves and monsteries. She interacted with everyone. She helped everyone to click their photos. Yanis, drive, made this trip safe.
It was wonderful to be guided by Maria! She was funny, informative, kept us on schedule, gave helpful hints!
Thank you so much for your wonderful review! We’re delighted to hear you had such a great experience. Maria will be very happy to know you appreciated her humor, knowledge, and organization. We truly appreciate your kind words and hope to welcome you again in the future!
