elsewhere.
SavedFind your elsewhere

Europe / Greece

Thessaloníki.

Places to go. A little room to wander.

A local view near Thessaloníki, Greece
A local view near Thessaloníki, Greece. Photograph by Berthold Werner · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Resized proportionally to at most 1200 pixels wide without upscaling or a height limit; original ICC retained; EXIF orientation applied; converted to WebP high-quality photographic compression.

THE SHORTLIST

A few places worth your time.

01Culture · DAY 1 IDEA

Thessaloníki

Saint Demetrios

Constructed in the mid-7th century on the ruins of a Roman bath complex, in honor of Demetrius, a Roman officer who was imprisoned and martyred here in 303 AD. An earlier small church, built on the site of martyrdom, burned down during the earthquake of 620 and a new large basilica was erected at expenses of Leontius, the Byzantine prefect of Illyricum and the Bishop of Thessaloniki. The new church of S. Demetrios became one of the most famous centres of pilgrimage for Orthodox Christians until its Muslim conversion in 1492.

Allow about 90 minutes · planning estimate

Map Source
02Culture · DAY 1 IDEA

St. George Square

Rotunda

Started life as a Roman temple of Zeus, built by Caesar Galerius, and is almost as old as the Pantheon in Rome. The monument has a diameter of 24.5 m and its dome reaches a height of 30 m. It was converted into a Christian church during the Early Christian era, and its interior was decorated with magnificent mosaics. In 1591 the Rotunda was converted into a mosque, and a tall minaret still stands beside the monument.

Allow about 90 minutes · planning estimate

Map Source
03Culture · DAY 1 IDEA

Thessaloníki

White Tower

A 34 m fortified tower from the 16th-century, the primary symbol of the city. It was part of the city's erstwhilse Byzantine walls, and became a prison under the Ottomans. Today it houses a small museum dedicated to the history of the city, and viewpoints at the top. The exhibits are only in Greek, but the museum provides WiFi and an MP3-based audioguide.

Allow about 90 minutes · planning estimate

Map Source
04Outdoors · DAY 2 IDEA

Thessaloníki

Thessaloniki Zoological Garden

A small municipal zoo with many hilly climbs. The exhibited animals are mostly goats, sheep, ducks, deer, and peacocks.

Allow about 60 minutes · planning estimate

Map Source
05Neighborhoods · DAY 2 IDEA

Thessaloníki

Eleftherias Square

In July 1942, during the Nazi occupation, all Jewish men aged 18 to 45 years old were brought here and were ordered to perform humiliating acts.

Allow about 60 minutes · planning estimate

Map Source

A note before you go. Start with Saint Demetrios, then decide whether Rotunda deserves a separate visit rather than rushing both. The suggested days are an editable grouping, not a timed tour. Visit allowances exclude transfers, meals and queues; confirm the exact entrance and current visiting arrangements for Eleftherias Square before setting off.

Reference material retrieved 2026-10-19. Suggested days and time allowances are editorial starting points. Check the linked visitor information for opening hours, access, and reservations.

BEFORE YOU SET OFF

A more practical kind of plan.

Getting your bearings

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. 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 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.

Build a route that makes sense

Saint Demetrios and Rotunda are about 0.7 km apart in a straight line. Use the route link to compare the actual streets or transport connections before putting both in the same morning; the measurement is not a walking distance or a transfer estimate.

A LITTLE STRUCTURE. ROOM FOR DISCOVERY.

Your Thessaloníki plan.

Add a few stops, choose your days, and leave space between them.

My saved trips
Location, map & reference details

Find your bearings.

Country
Greece
Area
Central Macedonia
Time zone
Europe/Athens
Coordinates
40.6407, 22.9349

Geographic reference: GeoNames, CC BY 4.0.

Thessaloníki

Loading this map connects to OpenStreetMap.

Visitor information & sources

Reference credits & reuse

This city guide includes selected, abridged material by Wikivoyage contributors, adapted under CC BY-SA 4.0. The adapted guide text is available under the same license; photographs and website design retain their separate terms. Selected and abridged reference descriptions; operational prices and timetables omitted. Elsewhere added the shortlist, geographic grouping and planning notes.

Reference material retrieved 2026-10-19. It is community-edited background, not firsthand reporting or a live opening-hours service.

KEEP EXPLORING

More places in Greece.

Browse the country

Corfu

280 km straight-line distance

Athens

303 km straight-line distance

Chaniá

578 km straight-line distance

A WORLD OF POSSIBILITIES

Where to next?

Search 600 places across 100 countries.