When someone mentions Greece, people would usually think of Athens or the Greek Islands. Most tourists have not heard of other places in Greece. When I decided to go to Greece there was one more place that I had to see. That place is Meteora. I saw one picture of this place several years ago and I was immediately in awe. The sight of all those monasteries perched on top of rocks was really surreal. i told myself that if ever I find myself in Greece, there was no way I’m not setting foot in Meteora.
When I was talking to fellow travelers in Athens, I was surprised that so many of them have not even heard of the place. And those who have heard of it had no plans of going there. I thought the place would be more popular considering how beautiful it looked in pictures. And it’s easy to get there too, so one would think that a lot more travelers would be heading there. If you plan on visiting Meteora, first you have to decide where you want to stay. You can either stay in Kalambaka (aka Kalabaka aka Kalampaka) or Trikala. Kalambaka is closer to Meteora. In fact it only takes about an hour to get there by walking. The downside is, accommodations are more expensive as well as places to eat since the town is mostly catered to tourists. There are still a number of cheap accommodations though so i decided to stay here. Some choose to stay in Trikala which is about 40 minutes away from Kalambaka by bus. This is because it’s a larger town and there are cheaper places to stay and eat. Meteora was my main destination though so i thought it was quite impractical to stay in a farther town considering the fact that it’s not that much expensive to stay in Kalambaka.
From Athens, the cheapest and simplest way to get to Kalambaka is via train. There’s a direct train that leaves from the Larissa Station in Athens. Just hop on the red line and get off at Larissa Station then transfer to the train heading to Kalambaka. Tickets only cost 18.30 euros each way and it takes 5 hours to get to Kalambaka. If you miss the direct train, you can take a train to Palaeofarsalos instead and transfer to a train heading to Kalambaka from there. This would cost you more than 30 euros for those two train rides. Take note of the train schedule in Palaeofarsalos. There are no trains heading to Kalambaka from 1:30 PM-6:30 PM. So if you miss the direct train that leaves at 8:20 AM, just take the train to Palaeofarsalos that leaves at around 2 PM instead of the earlier ones to avoid a long wait— unless you wanna check out Palaeofarsalos for a couple of hours while waiting for the train to Kalambaka. You can check out the train schedules on this website:
https://tickets.trainose.gr/dromologia/
Alternatively, you can take a bus. It’s a bit more expensive (31.50 euros for a one way ticket, 48 euros for a return trip), but it may be more convenient if you would like to leave in the morning but think that the departure of the direct train is too early. The journey also takes about 5 hours. There are 6 buses heading to Trikala daily, except on Fridays where there are 7 buses running. From Trikala you transfer to another bus heading to Kalambaka. Take note that the last bus from Trikala to Kalambaka leaves at 11 PM, so if you take the last bus from Athens you might as well spend the night in Trikala since you’ll be arriving past 11 PM. You can check out the bus schedules on this link:
The company that runs these buses is called KTEL and they seem to have a monopoly of bus routes in the Greek mainland. Their buses depart from the Liossion Bus Station in Athens. It’s harder to get here since the nearest metro station is almost a mile away. If you take the metro, get off at the Attiki station and catch any local bus heading north on Liossion Street. Tell the bus driver that you need to get to the Liossion Bus Station— it’s a bit tricky since most bus drivers in Athens know very limited English. In my case I asked a fellow passenger instead to tell me when i need to get off the bus. Downloading an offline map would be very helpful. You’d know if you’re already at a nearby bus stop so you won’t need to ask a fellow passenger for a favor. If you want to save yourself from the headaches of riding a local bus— they’re very crowded and often delayed.. you can take an Uber instead. I found Uber to be very cheap in Athens, and it shouldn’t cost much if you’re heading to the bus station from Attiki. Like train tickets, you can buy bus tickets in advance online via the KTEL website, but I found it unnecessary. I took the 1:30 PM bus and it wasn’t even half full.
If for some reason you’ll be coming from up North instead of Athens— you’re probably in Thessaloniki, the second largest city in Greece and a common destination for travelers coming from the Balkans…. no need to worry. From this city it’s also easy to get to Meteora. Just find your way to the central bus station and buy a ticket to Trikala or Kalambaka. Since it’s closer to Meteora, tickets are cheaper. It only costs 21.40 euros for a single journey ticket and 32.50 for a return ticket. There are 5 buses heading to Trikala daily so you’ll surely find a bus schedule that’s convenient for you.
Kalambaka is a quaint little town with a bit of history. You wouldn’t get the impression that it was just some town that sprouted up haphazardly just so tourists would have places to stay *cough* aguas calientes *cough* . It’s a great place to relax since you’ll find no rowdy parties here. In fact the town doesn’t seem to attract a young backpacking crowd. In the hostel where i stayed at, there were a lot of old folks. In my dorm room 6 people were already in their 60s, doing a trip around Europe. The youngest person was probably around 25. It’s actually perfect since I wasn’t in the mood to party. And I wanted to rest before doing a hike the next day. Make sure to spend half a day to explore the town a bit. Check out the Byzantine Church of the Virgin Mary on the old part of town by the outskirts. The architecture inside is jaw dropping! A lot of people miss this on their way to Meteora. i wasn’t able to take pictures inside though. The person inside was telling me something in Greek when I brought out my camera. I wasn’t sure if taking pics was allowed or not so I just didn’t lol.
From Kalambaka, if you’re on a tight budget, the cheapest way to Meteora would be to just hike of course. And you wouldn’t mind walking at all since the scenery is so beautiful. Our hostel offered a morning hike with a guide but I chose to go ahead since I wanted to catch the sunrise. If you don’t feel like walking, you can easily book tours via private taxis in Kalambaka. The standard price is 30 euros for 2 hours I think. In two hours you can see everything and even have time to go inside one or two monasteries since driving around Meteora only takes about 30 minutes.
Now one of the frequent questions is, what is the perfect time to head to Meteora? If you’re gonna hike, going in the middle of the day doesn’t sound like a good idea. So that leaves either sunrise or sunset. Sunset hikes seem to be the more popular choice. I decided to check out hiking tours one afternoon and there were very few guides who were offering sunrise hikes. If you’re on a tight budget yet you want to join a group hike, then it would be easier to find one for the sunset. For the purpose of getting better pictures, i think it’s all subjective. Personally I don’t find much difference whether i check out a place during sunrise or sunset. I chose to hike before sunrise because it was more convenient for me. For one thing, i was able to sleep really early so I was up at 5 AM. No one else was awake so I thought i might as well head out. Also, the monasteries open at around 9 in the morning– i would be up there just in time. If i go on a sunset hike, yeah I’d probably see spectacular views but i won’t be able to see what’s inside those monasteries since all of them would be closed (those sunset tours start at 4 or 5 PM). But then again, you won’t be missing much if you don’t see those monasteries from the inside. Let’s just say they look way better from afar from the outside. If you only have time to visit one monastery, choose the Great Meteoron Monastery. It’s the largest and the oldest one. James Bond fans might prefer to check out the Holy Trinity Monastery. It was featured in one of those old Bond films.
There are other things to do in the area besides seeing the monasteries. There are other hiking trails in the surrounding area. You can do rock climbing as well. Or you can just find a perfect spot to sit still for hours and gaze at the spectacular scenery before you. Meteora is truly one of the most unique and beautiful places I’ve ever seen. And the ambiance it exudes is perfect for reflection and meditation. I understand that it may not be for everyone… a number of people may find the peace and quiet boring. As for me, I was glad that i spent a few days in this corner of Greece. And those quiet hours I spent just gazing at the distance are hours that I’ll remember for as long as I live.
no roads to follow 
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