Great Meteoron Monastery

What it is and why it matters

The Great Meteoron is the largest and oldest of the six monasteries still inhabited. It was founded around 1356 by Saint Athanasios the Meteorite, a monk born in Ypati who had lived on Mount Athos, and dedicated to the Transfiguration. The second founder was Ioasaph, a Greek-Serbian prince who became a monk and built a first church in the second half of the 14th century; a piece of his wall is still embedded in the present church. It stands on the widest rock in the group, 613 m above sea level and more than 400 m above the Pineios valley. Its library once held 610 of the 1,124 codices catalogued in Meteora.

What you see inside

• The katholikon, the main church, from the mid-16th century, with post-Byzantine frescoes of the same period. Photos are not allowed inside.
• The museum, with codices, icons and liturgical objects.
• The old kitchen of the monastery.
• The ossuary, with the monks' skulls on shelves: it impresses some children.
• The terraces, with a view of Varlaam and the other towers.

Allow an hour inside and another half hour for the climb and descent.

Opening hours and closing days

According to the hours published for 2026, it opens from 9:30 to 15:00. It closes on Tuesdays from April to October, and from November to March, Tuesday to Thursday: in winter it is open only Friday to Monday. The monastery's page on the same website gives a winter closing time of 14:00, so in those months arrive before one o'clock. The monks may change hours without notice, especially at religious festivals and Orthodox Easter.

Entry and clothing

Entry costs €5 per person and is paid in cash at the door. Under-12s do not pay. There is no advance sale or reservation.

The dress code is enforced. Women, skirt below the knee and shoulders covered; at the entrance they lend or sell skirts and scarves. Men, long trousers, no shorts above the knee. Nobody enters in a vest top. Animals are not admitted, except assistance dogs.

The climb

From the car park there are about 300 steps cut into the rock. They are steep but manageable with good footwear; in the heat they are heavy going, so climb first thing. It is not accessible by wheelchair or with a pushchair: for that there is Saint Stephen's.

Getting there and parking

You reach it by the road climbing from Kastraki to the monasteries. The car park is small and from May to October it fills between 10:00 and 14:00. Arrive at 9:15 and you will be at the door when it opens. Without a car, half-day tours from Kalambaka pick up at your accommodation; you can also walk up from Kastraki by the monks' footpaths.

With children

Children like the kitchen, the museum and, the older ones, the ossuary. The steps are steep: hold little ones by the hand and, with a baby, use a carrier.

Combine it

Varlaam is opposite, ten minutes away. If both happen to be open, do the Great Meteoron first, at 9:30, and Varlaam after. For lunch, go down to Kastraki, where Stefanos Tavern and the Taverna-Ouzeri Pappas are.