A plan for Thessaloníki

Once the biggest port of the Balkans, Thessaloniki is a city that has been conquered by many empires, with each one leaving its mark. One can find Ancient Greek, Roman, Byzantine and Ottoman buildings all throughout the city.

History

King Philip II of Macedon, after a victory in the region of Thessaly, named his next daughter "Thessalonike" (Thessaly Victory). Cassander, a later king of Macedon, married her, and founded the city in her name in 315 BC. The city grew over time, becoming a major metropolis of the Roman Empire, and then the second largest and wealthiest city of the Byzantine Empire after Constantinople.

During the Ottoman years a sizeable Jewish community formed in the city (at times even majority-Jewish), giving it the name 'The Jerusalem of the Balkans'. Muslims, Jews and Christians lived together in Thessaloniki for over 400 years. During the 1923 Greco-Turkish population exchange hundreds of thousands of Christians arrived from Asia Minor and most of the Muslims moved to Turkey. The 55,000 strong Jewish community was eradicated during the 1941-1945 German occupation, with 2,000 remaining after the war.

Orientation

Thessaloniki lies on the northern fringe of the Thermaic Gulf on its eastern coast and is bound by Mount Chortiatis to the east.

The City Centre is bound by the waterfront, up the hill to Olympiados Street to the northeast, and the Byzantine-era city walls on the sides - Dimokratias Square to the northwest, the University campus and Thessaloniki International Fair to the southeast. Most commercial, entertainment and educational facilities can be found here, while it also remains a densely populated residential area. Most of this area burned down in the Great Thessaloniki Fire of 1917, and was rebuilt with a modern grid city plan of streets parallel and perpendicular to the coastline.

1 Aristotelous Square. The focal point of the city. The square is used for cultural events, such as festivals, the annual Christmas and carnival celebrations, and the occasional political rally.

The Aristotelous Promenade, lined with cafes and restaurants, starts at Aristotelous Square and continues uphill to the Roman Forum.

The northernmost 1 Byzantine Walls of the city and parts of the eastern walls are still standing, as is the city's symbol, the White Tower. The rest of the walls are in the picturesque Upper Town which offers a spectacular view over the bay, especially in the late afternoon.

Roman ruins

When the Roman Empire was divided into the tetrarchy in 293 AD, Thessaloniki became the administrative capital of one of the four portions. Emperor Galerius commissioned an imperial palace and other structures.

2 Arch of Galerius (Arch of Triumph) (Egnatia and Dimitriou Gounari streets). The triumphal arch was dedicated in 303 AD to celebrate the victory of the tetrarch Galerius over the Sassanids. Free. (updated Dec 2025)

3 Palace of Galerius. €10. (updated Dec 2025)

4 Roman Forum (Ancient Agora). 09:00-16:00. Excavations and an interesting museum underneath. €10. (updated Jun 2019)

Paleochristian and Byzantine monuments

As the "second city" of the Byzantine Empire, the city flourished during its early years, and was again revitalized in 1300s. This is reflected in the grandiosity of the religious spaces built during these periods, and in the richly-colored murals and mosaics that adorn their interiors.

Despite the capture of Thessaloniki by the Ottoman Empire in 1430, the Christian monuments were not destroyed. While not all of these Byzantine churches survived the 1917 fire, 13 of the ones remaining (along with the City Walls and the Byzantine Bath) have been added to the UNESCO World Heritage list.

Entrance to the buildings is free, except for the Rotunda. The hours vary widely. The largest ones are open for much of the day, the smallest ones are closed much of the time. Mornings are your best bet.

Cultural Route public bus tour (Line 50). OASTH launched a special “Cultural Route” to make the rich historical and cultural heritage of Thessaloniki more accessible. The bus departs from the White Tower for a 50-minute tour around the city's main historical and cultural monuments. The tour is supported by a telematics based audio-visual material (in Greek and English), as well as by printed leaflets (also in Greek and English). (updated Dec 2025)

Walk along the 12 km seafront promenade.

Go to the beach. There are frequent ferry services from the Port and White Tower to the sandy beaches of Peraia, Neoi Epivates (and some to Agia Triada) - expect a 40 minute trip each way. These have a range of bars and restaurants.

Football: the city has three soccer teams playing in Super League, the top tier.

- PAOK FC play at Toumba Stadium (capacity 29,000) 2 km southeast of city centre.

- Aris Thessaloniki play at Kleanthis Vikelidis Stadium (capacity 22,800) a further km south.

- Iraklis were promoted to Super League in 2026. Their Kaftanzoglio Stadium (capacity 27,500) is 1 km inland from the White Tower.

1 Thessaloniki Concert Hall, "25 Μartiou" Str. (near the Posidonio Athletic Centre of Thessaloniki - Kalamaria). The venue includes a main hall of 1,400 seats, designed by the Japanese architect Arata Isozaki and inaugurated on 2 January 2000. The Thessaloniki State Symphony Orchestra plays Italian Operas and works of Greek composers. (updated Feb 2016)

2 Waterland. A large water park near Tagarades Hill. Free bus service starting at the city centre. (updated Feb 2016)

Yachting

Thermaikos Gulf is a challenging place for yachting and sailing. Many days there are strong North winds but with low waves making sailing a fun and joy for all sailors. There are three sailing clubs in Thessaloniki and world championships take place here every year. There are a couple of yacht charter companies renting sailing yachts.

Discovery Yachting, Thermaikou 21, ☏ +30 231 046 5269, +30 694 838 8098, fax: +30 231 046 5269, info@discoveryyachting.com. Bareboat charter or skippered sailing yacht, also night time tours.

Greeks consider Thessaloniki a gourmet city - but bear in mind that this refers to the excellent local specialities and cheap-and-cheerful ouzo taverns rather than to haute cuisine or a range of foreign restaurants. The latter are best avoided in Thessaloniki.

Try a crepe in one of the numerous crepe shops patronised by the student population at Gounari St, near Navarinou Sq.

There are plenty of shops selling gyros. Usually there are pork and chicken gyros. This is the best calories per money option, since with less than €3 you get a meal that, although not that healthy, can keep you going for many hours.

During the winter you can try roasted chestnuts (kastana in Greek) that are sold from carts.

During the summer one can buy boiled or roasted corn on the cob that is sold from carts. Cost €1-2.

You can try stafidopsomo, a small bread with raisins, or koulouri a donut-shaped small bread with sesame. You can find them sold in a bakery or on carts. Cost: €0.50.

For breakfast you can have a bougatsa, a type of cream pie, that Thessaloniki is famous for. You can accompany it with a cacao milk or coffee.

For a carnivore's treat, try soutzoukakia: minced meat pellets either grilled (at the central market or rotisseries) and topped with chilli pepper flakes, or cooked in tomato and cumin sauce (Smyrna-style).

For a late night (or early morning) meal try patsas (Tripe soup).

Seafood: gemista kalamarakia (stuffed squid), mydopilafo (rice with mussels) or mydia saganaki (mussels in tomato sauce).

A popular winter drink is hot sahlep (salepi), a creamy milk beverage.

In the summer, drink frappé coffee, an iced coffee drink generally made from spray-dried instant coffee, water, sugar, and milk, the hallmark of postwar outdoor Greek coffee culture invented in 1957 in Thessaloniki International Fair.

Thessaloniki is by far the liveliest city in Northern Greece, maybe even the whole country. Most of the trendy bars at the old sea-front (Nikis Ave.) and around, many of the tavernas are either downtown or in the old city (Kastra). You can also find numerous bars and tavernas at Krini, an area in eastern Thessaloniki. If you want to check out what the whole bouzoukia scene is all about, try the clubs Pyli Axiou and Mamounia, at Vilka. You will also find a lot of night clubs, bars and restaurants in Ladadika, the neighbourhood with the old warehouses next to the port. The student area is around Kamara (the Arch of Galerius), with many cheaper cafes and bars.

If you will be in town during summer, take a ride on the floating bars plying the harbour. Every 2 hr or so they leave from the White Tower area for a short evening trip (30 min) in the Gulf of Thessaloniki. They play mostly ethnic and alternative foreign music.

A beer would cost you €3-7, an alcohol drink €5-10 and a coffee €2.50-5.

Among the most popular places to drink a coffee or a beer are:

Aristotle Sq (Aristotelous) - The most popular tourist cafés and bars lie in the central square of the city and the homonymous street. One can find quiet cafes or noisy ones usually preferred by the young. Breakfast is also served, some restaurants are also available.

Nikis’ Av - The centre’s seafront avenue is full of cafeterias usually crowded around the clock, available for coffee in daytime and beer or drink at night.

Proxenou Kroromila St - Parallel to the seafront Nikis avenue is Pr. Koromila street with some cafés and bars.

Iktinou pedestrian - Another place in the city with cafes and bars and a couple of restaurants. A "street beer" culture has been created by locals and students. People buy beer from the kiosks and hang out on the surrounding benches. This is probably one of the most economic ways to drink some Retsina and socialize with locals.

By metro

Thessaloniki has a single metro line with 13 stations that runs from the New Railway Station across the city centre and the southern and eastern suburbs to Nea Elvetia. The trains run from 05:30 to 00:30 except on Fridays and Saturdays when the last trains are at 02:00. The standard fare is €0.60 (which is purchased only with cash inside the stations).

6 Venizelou station (Βενιζέλου). This station is worth a visit in itself: the station contains an active archaeological site dubbed the "Byzantine Pompeii" and a mini museum showcasing finds so far, which delayed the opening of the line by over 10 years. (updated Jul 2025)

A new line with 5 stations is planned to open in November 2025 and will serve the Kalamaria area.

By bus

OASTH is the city's bus company and runs a total of 85 different bus lines. Moovit or Rome2Rio mobile apps can be used to plan the journey and check the schedule on the go. Bus services usually operate from 05:00 until just after midnight.

Bus 50, the "cultural line", follows a figure-of-8 route past all the major tourist sights. There is an English speaking guide aboard, who provides you with maps and information. The whole route takes 50 min, and it departs every hour on the hour from the White Tower.

Connection to the airport is provided by buses 01X (which runs as 01N in the night), and 02X (requiring transfer to the metro at Nea Elvetia).

Night bus 01N runs from 22:00-05:00 every 30 minutes on average. Being the only public transportation option after 00:00 it is usually packed with people, especially on Friday and Saturday nights, so don't count on it if you have a late night flight to catch.

This being Greece, the bus drivers go on strike occasionally. Notices about strikes may appear (in Greek only, naturally) at the bus stops information panels.

Thessaloniki is generally a very safe city but watch your pockets and travel documents as there may be pickpockets, especially in buses during rush hour.

Some people may feel uncomfortable walking in the areas around the railway station at night and it's better to avoid them along with places like Dendropotamos, and Sfageia. These areas are full of abandoned buildings and factories and are a hotspot for drug-use and prostitution.