PRIVATE : 1 day Meteora Tour from Thessaloniki by Train

We took a train from Athens to Kalabaka & was welcomed by our tour guide, Chrysa. She’s so kind & friendly. She’s informative & helpful all throughout the tour. She... read more liked it when we asked questions. She took nice photos of us too! She’s the best tour guide ever! Our experience with Meteora Thrones is something that we will never forget.

My wife and I took the sunset tour, and it was very nice! The guide was very knowledgeable about the history of the monasteries of Meteora, those currently active and... read more the past ones. We visited inside one monastery, passed by the others and stopped for a few minutes, we also visited the ancient church of Kalambaka, and we finished the tour by watching the beautiful sunset from the mountains of Meteora. I would highly recommend taking a tour with Meteora Thrones!

Spirit filled experience Meteora  - Unfortunately we were notified the train had issues so the back up plan was a big nice bus. It worked out fine! It was a very long day... read more but so worth it! such an amazing trip. Our tour guide, was so passionate about the monasteries and the history of Meteora. We learned so much. I apologize we can’t remember his name. Please tell him how much his information was so appreciated.

Very informative tour! You would be missing out visiting this site without learning some of the history. Our guide Thomas was very knowledgeable and entertaining. We saw quite a bit,... read more including some extra things like the hermit caves I would have missed otherwise. We didn’t get a sunset because it was cloudy, but the views are still magnificent. It really is amazing how much history there is at meteora and surrounding area.

Beautiful weather, perfect amount of time at each monastery, and good information from Giannis the tour guide

This was a private tour and was well worth it! Both our driver and tour guide have been exceptional, friendly yet professional!

Our tour guide, Charis, was very... read more knowledgeable about the history of the monasteries and other attractions in the area of Meteora that we visited and he literally answered any question that he had, a lot of times backing his responses with references to official historic and recent research data.

That was probably on of the best experiences overall we had from a guided tour that lasted a bit over 5 hours. Thank you Charis, Sakis and Meteora Thrones!

Nice storytelling by the guide with nice views enough time at eaxh monestary.
Made sure we arrives back on time.

The tour was a fantastic experience. The monasteries were incredible from the inside and outside. The journey in the van between the monasteries was pleasant and convenient and the guide... read more was very knowledgeable and knew the area inside out. I can highly recommend this tour!

Amazing Experience - Clement was a fantastic tour guide. Very knowledgeable and engaging. The entire landscape was breathe taking and his insights to the area enhanced the trip. The long train trip to... read more get there was 100% worth it.

Wonderful. Best tour I have ever been on. - This is a great tour. The tour guide is excellent, and the tour had some amazing sites, and great information. The pace is excellent, and you can easily choose the... read more right level of activity for each individual. What an amazing place, too! Meteora is simply beautiful, and worth visiting for anyone!

Hiking with Meteora thrones - Dimitri & Sarah tour guides made my experience unforgettable. The unique and charming views of Meteora coupled with the personalized approach of Dimitri & Sarah... read more in touring made the whole difference. It felt like hiking with old friends, we laughed, got informed, and enjoyed the sceneries all at the same time. I'm very grateful to them and seems that Meteora Thrones leaders know how to recruit! Best.

We were delayed by 2 hours because of problems with the train from Athens (weather) yet the tour company waited for us and gave us a fantastic tour nonetheless. The... read more guide was very well educated, engaging and charming. It was an unforgettable experience!

Yiannis and Kostas were great hosts. We enjoyed our experience and would reccomend it! Bring a comfortable pair of shoes!

We had Clement from the Meteora Thrones Travel Center. Clement was the epitome of professionalism as a tour guide. He was extremely knowledgeable of the sites, local area (being... read more a resident himself), Greek history and Greek Orthodox Religious History. Clement spoke perfectly clear English, having lived in England and Canada. Most of all he was extremely thoughtful, polite, and courteous. When it started to rain hard, he met us outside the monastery to give us umbrellas so we didn’t get soaked walking to the van in the parking lot.

MONASTERY SITE
Unfortunately, the day we went was rainy and foggy/misty so we weren’t able to see all the monasteries from the outside. We visited 3 Monasteries inside and stopped at viewpoints to see 2 others, but again it was somewhat foggy we were unable to clearly see some of them. What we did see inside the monasteries we visited was beautiful and the views from up top stunning. Mondays are good because all are opened, except the one convent/nunnery, otherwise the monasteries alternate openings during the week. The Grand Meteora is closed on 3 weekdays. Winter hours are shorter closing at 4pm or earlier. We liked Grand Meteron and the St Varlaam. Wear SKIRTS inside the Monasteries out of respect. If not you will have to pay for a scarf like skirt at the entrance. The entrance fee is 3 euros per person cash for each monastery. Bring small bills.

3 BONUS Sites: As a result of us not being able to see all the monasteries, Clement offered to take us to one of the first HERMIT CAVES (really something to see, origin of habituating the area and eventually constructing the monasteries on the rocks.) He also took us to see the old BYZANTINE CHURCH that was built on top of Apollo’s Temple and explained the religious aspect inside the church. We also drove to see St Anthony’s Monastery and another ‘more’ recent hermit cave.

Our Tour VAN vehicle was spacious, clean and seemed like a newer Peugeot. Our Driver (sorry didn’t catch his name) drove carefully and safely through the windy roads.

Clement also recommended a restaurant in town that he frequented, when we were waiting for our train back to Athens. After, dinner Clement and driver drove us to the train station. They waited for us in the van while we dined.

TRAIN - Meteora Thrones company was very responsive in answering all questions. Tour company also emailed /WhatsApp our train tickets promptly. Clear instructions, Clement met us at the train station in Kalabaka with a placard of our name. Very well organized. Meteora Thrones Travel Center is probably the largest tour company in this area. The train ride itself was comfortable (Buy the first class cabin, it’s not that much more). Seats inside can slide down so you can lean back. If you have the entire cabin yourself (6seats), you could probably make it into a sleeper bed and lay down. You yourself must board the 7:57am train from Larissa Athens main train station. It’s a 4hr train ride each way and upon return you’ll arrive around 10:30pm back in Athens. However, we were delayed for 40mins (train employees did not specify why) and that made getting back very late. It’s a long day but this way you won’t have the additional day and expense of having to stay overnight in the vicinity of Kalabaka.

Overall, Clement was an excellent tour guide, very good tour (it ended up being a private tour for us even though we booked a small group tour), tour company is well organized and responsive.

HIGHLY RECOMMEND METEORA THRONES TRAVEL CENTER.

Easy to find, well organised (even if last minute), we didn't have to think about anything, the guide was very nice!

Excellent tour of multiple monasteries- well organized, and the train trip was a bit long but a good experience. Local travel company knows their town best - booking with Meteora... read more Thrones is the way to go. Katya (?) was a wonderful and knowledgeable guide. Very enthusiastic.

This was the most knowledgeable, interesting, educated, and entertaining tour guide and tour we have taken to date. Meteora was where he grew up and his father before him. He... read more ensured our very informative and fascinating sunset tour of meteora. We took a sunrise tour with another company the next morning and the sunset tour was by far better than the other. The excellent driver made sure our trip up windy roads was extremely smooth and comfortable. It was well worth the higher price of the other tours. Thank you for such an enjoyable tour!

Meteora tour - Thanks for the experience. We had an amazing time with Antonio who showed us around. Amazing history and views ! Thank you so much