Visiting Meteora + 10 Things You Should Know! (Updated for 2024)

Guys, you MUST add visiting Meteora, Greece to your bucket list! Since we’ve visited, I’ve waxed lyrical about its amazingness to anyone and everyone. Truth be told, we loved Meteora so much we actually considered having our wedding here. We did, in fact, get married in Cinque Terre, Italy

Anyways, Meteora, Greece, is one of the most unique and memorable places we’ve visited. Out of the 50 countries we’ve been to, Meteora is in our top 5.

We hope this detailed blog post will inspire you to go off the beaten track a little and plan visiting Meteora, Greece – before it becomes the next big thing in travel. It sure is pretty enough to be at the top of everyone’s bucket list!

1. Is Meteora, Greece worth visiting?

Yes, visiting Meteora is 100% worth it – it’s one of the most unique destinations in all of Greece!

There are six mountaintop monasteries in Meteora and every one of them is worth visiting. Around 60 monks and nuns live in these monasteries which are built atop super-tall sandstone pillars. What a unique place to live!

All of the monasteries are so photogenic and hold so much history. I’ll be honest, Meteora is one of the most unique places we’ve ever visited!

The history of Meteora is fascinating. Meteora and its surrounding areas were originally settled by monks who lived in little caves in the rocks way back in the 11th century. As an invasion from the Turkish army looked imminent, these monks climbed higher up the rock face. Until they reached the inaccessible peak at the top. Here, through no easy feat, they managed to build the first monasteries. They actually brought all the building materials up using ladders and ropes with baskets at the end.

When the Turkish did finally invade, the Meteora monasteries remained unscathed. During this time the monasteries became the academic and artistic centres for locals.

2. All the Meteora monasteries you should visit

There are six active monasteries in Meteora today, all are connected by road or pathways. So, provided you start your day early enough you can see them all in one day.

But, be mindful of their opening hours as they are all different!

Holy Trinity (Agia Triada)

Holy Trinity is perhaps the most famous and most-visited monastery in Meteora. This is because it was featured in the James Bond movie ‘For Your Eyes Only’. To get to the Holy Trinity you must walk up 140 steps, this can be slow-moving on a busy day.

OPENING HOURS | Holy Trinity is only open between 10 am – 4 pm every day except Thursday.

Varlaam monastery

Varlaam is the second-largest monastery in Meteora and was founded in 1517. It has lots of hidden nooks and crannies to explore, which means you can easily escape the crowds here. Varlaam also features a small but interesting museum, here you can learn all about the history of Meteora.

OPENING HOURS | Varlaam is open between 9 am – 4 pm. It is closed every Friday.

Roussanou monastery

Founded way back in 1545, in 1988 it was converted to a convent. This convent is now home to 13 nuns. Roussanou is in fact, the least-visited of all the monasteries in Meteora.

OPENING HOURS | It is open between 9 am – 4:30 pm. It is closed on Wednesdays.

Megalo Meteoro (Great Meteoron)

Also known as Metamorphosis, it is the highest and most-visited monastery in Meteora. Interestingly, a Serbian Emperor named Uros became a monk and gave this monastery all his wealth. This resulted in Megalo Meteoro becoming the wealthiest monastery at the time. It holds the most beautiful and precious art of all the monasteries.

OPENING HOURS | Megalo Meteoro is open from 9 am – 3 pm. It is closed on Tuesdays.

Agios Nikolaos Anapafsas

One of the smaller monasteries in Meteora, Agios Nikolaos, was built in the 16th century. We found that a lot of the tour buses seemed to skip here, so we had the place pretty much to ourselves.

OPENING HOURS | Open daily from 9 am – 5 pm. It is open every day.

Agios Stefanos (St Stephens Nunnery)

Agios Stefanos s a convent with one of the best views of the Meteora valley below. There is uncertainty on when Agios Stefanos was built, but it is estimated around 1798. It is easily accessible (not many steps leading up to it like other monasteries) and as a result the tour buses seem to love it.

OPENING HOURS | Open every day from 9 am – 1:30 pm and again from 3:30 – 5:30 pm. It is closed on Mondays.

3. What is the best month to visit Meteora?

June and October are the best months for visiting Meteora!

Our visit to Meteora was in mid-June, which worked well for us. Temperature-wise it was hot but not unbearably so. It can get very hot in July and August. Mid-June is also a little quieter than other summer months as it is not quite peak season in Europe yet. A lot of tourism to Meteora is from Europe, so I would avoid the school holiday period (mid-July to the end of August) if possible.

A friend of ours visited in late October. We saw his photos, and the beautiful fall colors made a stunning backdrop to the monasteries. It is a lot quieter in October, and you can find some great hotel deals at this time.

4. Is it difficult to get to Meteora?

Depending on where in Greece is your starting point, I would say visiting Meteora is quite easy. Especially from Athens and closer cities like Igoumenitsa and Ioannina.

From Athens:

The most common way for tourists to get to Meteora is to get the direct train from Athens to Kalabaka. This takes 5 hours and can cost up to €30. This was how we departed Meteora and we found the train itself to be clean and uncrowded. But bear in mind the trains are typically late coming into the station.

You could also book a guided day tour to Meteora from Athens (that also includes the train fare). As this is a full-day tour it’s ideal if you’re short on time and can’t spend the night in Meteora.

From Ioannina:

Because we were on a 6-week backpacking trip through Greece (including the tiny island of Syros and super-famous Santorini) we found our way to Meteora the less-popular way. We got the ferry from Corfu to Igoumenitsa, which takes approximately an hour and a half. From Igoumenitsa, we hopped on a KTEL bus to Ioannina.

This took about an hour and 15 minutes. We actually decided to spend a few hours in Ioannina as we heard it was a cool university town. Ioannina had a really cool vibe, and it was cheaper than most of our other stops. In fact, we regretted not spending the night here.

From Ioannina, we got the bus to Kalabaka, which is the closest large town to Meteora. We did have to change buses in Trikala. All in all the journey took 3 hours 15 minutes. For all those buses the total cost was approximately €20. A very cheap way of getting to Meteora!

For planning your routes to and from Meteora, we highly recommend Rome to Rio

5. Where to stay in Meteora

We stayed at the gorgeous Hotel Meteora in Kastraki, and it was honestly the nicest accommodation we had in Greece. It has 63 rooms, a pool, and the most epic view of the Meteora rocks. We didn’t want to leave.

It was a short walk from the hotel into the town of Kastraki, but be sure to bring a torch as the path is unlit. However, most evenings there are fireflies to light your path home – magical! Our room at Hotel Meteora included breakfast and we sat by the pool every morning watching the first light hit the Meteora rocks.

Some other highly rated hotels in Meteora include Grand Meteora Hotel and Only Yours Meteora. There are also several accommodation options in Kastraki and in the larger town of Kalabaka.

6. How much time do you need at Meteora?

I recommend allowing at least two full days for visiting Meteora. That way, you’ll be able to book an awesome tour, like the sunset tour we did for one of the days. And then, visit the monasteries on your own the next day and take your time in each one.

If you have the time, stay for 4 nights in Meteora, like we did. It was perfect for us as it wasn’t rushed, and it enabled us to enjoy a full day at the gorgeous pool at our hotel (Hotel Meteora) and have lunch and dinner in the lovely town of Kastraki nearby.

7. What are the best tours of the Meteora monasteries?

We booked a sunset tour of the monasteries and we highly highly recommend it. Not only did we get to see all six famous monasteries, two of which you can go inside and explore. FYI, the monasteries you’ll get to see depend on the day of the week you do the tour, as some monasteries are closed on certain days.

We also visited the Byzantine Church of the Virgin Mary – a bit of a hidden gem place in Meteora. The cherry on top of the cake for us on this tour was getting to watch the sunset at the best spot in Meteora. We did so with a beer in hand. Our guides were so knowledgeable with many having grown up in the area.

You can BOOK the sunset tour we did here!

Another tour recommendation: You can book a half-day guided tour of all the monasteries in a luxury vehicle, departure is from Kalabaka. It’s 4 hours long and costs just 35 euro.

If you don’t plan on spending the night in Meteora (although I highly recommend staying here if you can) you can book a full-day guided tour from Athens or from Thessaloniki. Prices start from 81 euros for these. But please keep in mind that it involves a lot of time in the bus as the drive from Athens to Meteora is 4 hours each way!

8. Can you visit Meteora without a tour?

If you want, you can visit the Meteora monasteries without a tour. Which is what we did the day after our sunset tour. There is a hiking trail from Kastraki town, but it is very steep in some parts. Thus, we recommend being of reasonable fitness.

There’s also a longer trail loop that starts in Kalabaka, but this is over 18 km long and will take around 5 hours to complete!

Alternatively, you can catch a taxi from your hotel to the monasteries.

During the summer you can catch a public bus to the road that the monasteries are located on, however, the departure times vary by day and month – so, it’s best to enquire about this with your accommodation when you arrive.

9. How hard is it to climb to the Meteora monasteries?

The climb to each Meteora monastery varies in difficulty. For example, The Great Meteoron is one of the most difficult to climb to as it involves 270 steep, winding steps. In comparison, Agios Stefanos (St Stephens Nunnery) is one of the easiest to reach as there are very little steps leading to it. My favorite monastery in Meteora (and the most-visited) – Holy Trinity involves a steep-ish climb of 140 steps.

10. Best restaurants near the Meteora monasteries

Thankfully, there are lots of authentic Greek restaurants a short drive from the monasteries in the small town of Kastraki – here, we loved Stefanos Meteora Tavern and Restaurant Batalogianni. A longer drive away in the larger town of Kalabaka, some of our favorite restaurants included Elias Garden & Restaurant Meteora.

Thanks for reading my blog!

And there you have it, a short snippet into our time in Meteora, Greece. We spent 3 nights here at one of the nicest hotels we’ve ever stayed in and, honestly, if we had more time in Greece, we could have easily spent a week or two in Meteora. It truly is somewhere you should add to your bucket list.

While you’re here, you may also enjoy reading our other Europe blogs, like –

11 Epic Things to do in Santorini in the Summer (2024 Guide)

Best activities in Cinque Terre (5 best things to do)

Villages of the Cinque Terre: Which One to Pick?

Unique things to do in West Cork

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Last Updated on July 20, 2024 by snaphappytravel