Thessaloniki Guide – Best Things to do in Thessaloniki in 3 Days

I wrote this Thessaloniki guide based on my 3-days trip there. It will give you a taste of Greece. Find out about Thessaloniki: the best things to do, where to stay, what to eat in Thessaloniki, and a lot more.

Update 2020: I took a second trip to Thessaloniki in June, so I added even more updated information to this Thessaloniki guide.

About Thessaloniki

With over 2300 years of history, Thessaloniki was a melting pot for many cultures. It was founded by a Macedonian general and named after his wife Thessalonike, which means “Victory of the Thessalians”. The Romans conquered the city, and later it became part of the Byzantine Empire. The Ottomans followed. In the 15th century, it was a refuge for the Jews, then occupied by Nazi Germany. All of these nations contributed to the development and cultural diversity of the city.

Thessaloniki Guide – Best things to do

The Roman Heritage in Thessaloniki

First, start your tour by exploring some of the rich Roman Heritage in Thessaloniki.

Thessaloniki Guide – The Rotunda

The Roman Emperor Galerius probably intended the building as a mausoleum. Over time, it served as a church and then as a mosque. It resembles the architecture of the Mausoleum of Maxentius on Via Appia Antica in Rome. Some of the Byzantine mosaics are still well preserved. You can visit Tuesday to Sunday, from 8 AM to 3:45 PM and the entrance fee is 2 euros.

Arch of Galerius (Kamara)

A few hundred meters from the Rotunda is the Arch of Galerius. Both structures were part of the Imperial complex during the Roman period of the city.

The Roman Forum

This Ancient Agora is almost 2000 years old. As any Roman forum, it was the center of all social life of Thessaloniki, the beating heart of the city. It is still in the center of the modern city, at the upper-end of Aristotelous Square.

You can visit the Forum Monday to Saturday from 8:00 AM to 3:00 PM. A ticket is 8€ in the summer and 4€ from November to March. You can see the Forum from above but if you visit, pay attention to the cryptoporticus – the covered corridors that lead to an underground museum.

Thessaloniki Guide – The White Tower

The Tower is the most recognizable monument in Thessaloniki. It was built as part of the harbor defense and later used as a prison, named the Red Tower at the time. Now it stands alone on the waterfront, a symbol of the city.

It is open to visitors from 8 AM to 8 PM in summer (April to October), and the entrance costs 4 euros. In the off-season (November to March), the opening hours are 9 AM to 4 PM, and a ticket costs 2 euros.

If you’re passionate about history, you can also use a combined ticket valid for 3 days which costs 15 euros. It includes access to the following landmarks: The Archaeological Museum of Thessaloniki, The Museum of Byzantine Culture, The White Tower, The Archaeological Site and The Museum of Roman Agora, The Arched Hall at the Galerian Complex.

The Umbrellas Zongolopoulos

The Umbrellas is a fun sculpture installed by George Zongolopoulos on the waterfront in 1997 as Thessaloniki was the European Capital of Culture. A short walk from the White Tower will give you the chance to take a few instagrammable pictures.

Thessaloniki Guide – Ano Poli – The Upper Town

If you take a turn right by the Ataturk Museum, the view will suddenly change. You made your way to Ano Poli, the upper Thessaloniki. The houses here survived the Great Fire in 1917, and the Upper Town didn’t change much. It is a charming maze of cobbled streets, colorful houses, and reminders of the Ottoman past of Thessaloniki. Part of Ano Poli is in ruins but wandering through its streets and discovering hidden treasures is worth an entire afternoon.

The Walls and Heptapyrgion 

Going up through Ano Poli, you will reach the Northern Wall. Rest here for a while and admire the complete view over Thessaloniki. Go up even more to the Byzantine fortress, Heptapyrgion. The name means the Seven Towers Fortress. In reality, the fortress has 10 towers.

Heptapyrgion is free to visit every day from 8:30 AM to 3:30 PM.

Pasha’s Gardens

When you head down towards the sea, follow the walls from the outside, and you will come across Pasha’s Gardens. The garden has partially ruined fantastic elements. It is also a pleasant green space where locals come to rest and play with their dogs.

Beautiful Byzantine Churches

Several beautiful Byzantine churches are scattered throughout Thessaloniki. Some are below the present street level, at the Byzantine town level.

The Markets in Thessaloniki

There are three markets very close together in the city center: Bezesteni, Modiano and Kapani and they are worth a visit to check out the local life. You can find everything here: fresh fruit and vegetables, fish, butcher shops, diary stores, spices but also clothes and household products. You can sit in a market tavern and have a snack or a greek coffee, watch the locals buy their groceries, or find some souvenirs to take home.

Ladadika District

Ladakika is an area of a few streets full of restaurants and bars of all types. You can get lost in there, but you can never go hungry. It’s a tourist area, but a lot of Greeks also dine here. Though you may find better food if you stumble on a family taverna in the upper town, you will always find a food meal here and a great atmosphere, especially at night.I had a similar feeling at Jaffa Flea Market in Tel Aviv.

There are many other things to see in Thessaloniki, especially in the history department.

I also wanted to see the photography museum MOMus, which I found closed. It’s hosted in an old warehouse in the harbor, and open daily from 11 AM to 7 PM. Still, you should check their website before going, because I found it closed with no notice at the entrance. You will also find a Cinema Museum and a couple of cafes in the same complex.

Where to stay in Thessaloniki

The best area to stay in is between Ladadika and Aristotelous Square as you’ll have easy access on foot practically everywhere. For this Thessaloniki guide, I chose 3 perfectly-located modern places to stay:

Superior One Boutique Hotel – a beautiful hotel with spacious rooms and great services.

Colors Urban Hotel Thessaloniki – modern and colorful, this place has a very good vibe.

Evapollo Aparthotel – a modern aparthotel within 100 meters from Aristotelous Square.

Useful tip: Parking is hard to find on the central streets. However, there are many indoor garages where you can park the car for a fee ranging from 15 to 20 euros a day. Keep in mind that you will have to leave the key and announce the approximate time you want to leave because they park the cars as if they were on a ferryboat, and it’s difficult to take them out.

Thessaloniki Food Guide – What to eat

No Thessaloniki guide would be complete without a notion of the local food to try and the best places to eat in the city.

We found a very good breakfast with a view at MoNo Unique Fresh in Aristotelous Square. They make their own bread and have quite a few interesting choices. We loved the place and came back the next day, even though the service was a little slow the first day.

Greek Specialties

• Soutzoukakia-is a Turkish-influenced dish-meatballs in tomato sauce. It goes very well with greek yogurt and pita bread or with orzo. The flavor comes from the cumin in the meat. Thessaloniki had a lot of influences in its history which left their mark on the food too, so they use more spices here than in other parts of Greece. Thessaloniki was placed on Egnatia Road, the main Roman way from the Italic Peninsula to Asia. So, it always had access to all ingredients from both Asia and the Mediterranean region.

• You can never get hungry in Thessaloniki, or anywhere in Greece for that matter, there is always a Gyros or a Souvlaki close by. In Thessaloniki, you should try a Gyros in Kapani Market. It comes either on a plate or in pita bread, but it was intended and it’s best in the “to go” version, wrapped in pita bread. These Greek specialties are some of the best European street foods.

• You should also take advantage of Thessaloniki’s location in the Thermaic Gulf and try the fresh fish and seafood. You can never go wrong there! A saganaki dish is a must, whether it’s mussels or shrimps.

• For the rest, the possibilities are endless, you shouldn’t miss moussaka, dolmadakia (rice in wine leaves), tzatziki, or tirokafteri (a creamy and spicy cheese).

Read more about the best food from Greece and street food in Thessaloniki.

Greek coffee and the coffee Greeks drink

You should know that if you ask for greek coffee you will get a small coffee with the ground on the bottom. They brew Greek coffee in a pot called briki, putting the coffee in from the beginning and removing it from the heat as it starts to boil. It is similar to Turkish coffee, and it’s usually taken with sugar at the end of a meal. While that is the traditional coffee, most Greeks drink a lot of cold coffees with or without milk. Therefore you can see people everywhere on the streets, attached to their plastic cups filled with cold coffee or sipping them at cafes along the waterfront.

Other things to do from Thessaloniki

If you have more than a couple of days, Thessaloniki is a good base for a Mount Olympus day trip or even a trip to Meteora.

Also, whether you prefer crowded beaches or empty ones, you can find them less than one hour south of Thessaloniki. Further south, you can explore the Chalkidiki (Halkidiki) beaches, some of the most beautiful in the area.

Useful tip: In Greece, you don’t usually pay for the beach amenities. You can use the deck chairs and umbrellas as long as you buy your drinks from the beach bar.

While in Greece, make sure not to miss Athens for all the history. Here is my post on the tourist attractions in Athens you should see, especially the unique Acropolis.

And, of course, make your way to some of the stunning islands in the North Aegean: Thassos – the emerald island of Greece, Samothraki, or Limnos. Find the best ferry ride right here.

Disclosure:

Some of the above may be affiliate links. This means that if you click on a link and make a purchase, I earn a small commission at no additional cost to you. However, I only recommend companies, activities, or products that I use myself. Thank you for your support in keeping my blog live!

I hope my Thessaloniki guide helps you plan a great trip to the second-largest city in Greece.