Meteora Travel Guide

Planning a trip to Meteora, Greece? In this post, I cover when to visit, how long to stay, where to stay, what to pack, driving, how much we spent, and some of our tips.

HOW LONG TO STAY:

Most people go to Meteora for a day but we recommend you go for at least 2 days and here's why:

The drive to Meteora from Thessaloniki/Athens takes about 3-4 hours by the time you get there you'll have only a few hours to really enjoy it since you probably won't want to drive in the dark.
Sunsets and sunrises here are definitely worth seeing here if you're around.
If you want to properly enjoy the monasteries and the view they have to offer you'll need more than a day.
You won't be able to see all 6 monasteries in one day, you'll be able to see maybe 4. If you're going to make it all the way to Meteora it's a shame not to get to see all of them. They are very unique.
You can explore Kalabaka and Trikla the towns below Meteora.
Go to wineries - They have some really great wineries around Meteora.
Gives you time to explore Meteora and find hidden gems like this spot in the photo.

WHEN TO VISIT:

The best time to visit is in late spring (March to May) or autumn (September to November) when the crowds are less hectic.

We visited in the winter.

Here's why you should consider visiting in the winter:

1. Beat the crowds: In winter, the mainland sites are practically deserted, allowing you to explore and experience the monasteries all to yourself. Meteora isn't as much of a secret these days thanks to social media and during the summer you'll see a line of buses filled with tourists that come to visit the monasteries on a day trip from Athens or Thessaloniki. You'll see that in our photos we are ALL ALONE not because we edited people out of our photos, but because we really had Meteora all to ourselves.

2. Great Weather: Greek winter weather can be downright warm. Yes, in the northern region it could snow or rain but the temperature shouldn't be too bad if you're lucky. We visited a week after a snowstorm and during the morning and night it was freezing (6c) but mid-day it was sunny and warm.

3. Cheap: When you travel off-season you also get to enjoy off-season prices which always helps save up for the next trip!

Cons:

If the weather isn't great you might experience low visibility, the monastery stairs and bridges might be slippery if wet from rain and some might even be closed.

WHERE TO STAY:

The monasteries are located just north of the small town of Kalambáka, south of the village of Kastraki, and east of the Pindus (Píndos)

WHAT TO PACK:

modest dress / long skirts or a shawl
cash (entrance fee 3 euro)
comfortable shoes
hat
sunglasses
an extra layer since it gets chilly in the early morning/late evening.
Snacks and water - there is nothing in the area.

TAP WATER:

Tap water is drinkable in all cities of Greece. The same is true for the tap water of Meteora. You may want to ask locals if they recommend drinking tap water.

The best time to visit the Meteora monasteries is during the spring and autumn. It's better to start your day early in the morning. Tourist buses arrive between 10:30 and 11:00, so you might want to be there sooner.

DRIVING:

Everything you need to know about renting a car in Northern Greece:

When we landed at the airport the car rental agent recommended we take a big car since it isn't "easy" to drive to Meteora. We took the risk with an Automatic Toyota Aygo and we got along without any problems.
The drive from Thessaloniki isn't too difficult, even though we heard some people compare it to the drive in the Dolomites (Italy). From our experience, if we had to compare driving in the Dolomites to Meteora, Meteora was a piece of cake.
We recommend using the toll roads since it isn't so expensive, easy to use and the roads are great.
We used Waze to get around and found it to work perfectly.
Car rental cost per day: 38.2 Euro (including rental car insurance)
Gas cost in total: we spent 77 Euro (for 4 days)
We rented our car from Budget and we were very happy with the service.

COST BREAKDOWN:

TOTAL 1,039 EURO.

Flight: 121.76 Flights from TLV to Thessaloniki (including seats and 23kg Suitcase)

Car rental: per day 38.2 Euro per day (including rental car insurance)

Gas: 77 Euro (for 4 days)

Accommodation: 118 Euro per night.

Travel insurance: 56 Euro for both.

Covid antigen test: 91 Euro for both.

Food: One-course meal for a couple cost 31 Euro.

Sim cards: 24 Euro.

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