Volos (Greece) is the 5th largest city and the 3rd most important port in the country, as well as the administrative center of the community of the same name. Its area is close to 28,000 km2, and its population is close to 100,000 people.
This very lively and dynamic city has a very convenient location – between Athens (362 km) and Thessaloniki (215 km). Volos stands on the coast of Pagasitikos Bay (Aegean Sea) at the foot of Mount Pelion (Land of the Centaurs): the northern side of the city offers magnificent views of the green mountain slopes, and from the south to the blue sea expanses.
The city does not look at all typical for Greece. First, there are a lot of modern buildings on its territory, most of which appeared on the site of those destroyed by the catastrophic earthquake of 1955. Secondly, it has been successfully transformed for hiking, with many intersecting stone-paved streets.
Volos has the status of an industrial city, but at the same time, it is also a fairly popular tourist center with a well-developed infrastructure. Tourists here will find a rich selection of hotels and apartments, excellent beaches, a variety of entertainment and attractions.
The most interesting sights of the city
There are a lot of attractions here, in this article you will find a description of only the most significant and popular ones.
Important! Independently going to Greece, to the city of Volos, you can use a fairly extensive database of the tourist information center. It is located opposite the central city bus station (www.volos.gr) and runs on the following schedule:
- April-October: every day from 8: 00 to 21: 00;
- in November-March: Monday-Saturday from 8: 00 to 20: 00, Sunday from 8: 00 to 15: 30.
City embankment
Volos has a very beautiful promenade, one of the best in Greece. This is the most popular place for evening walks not only for tourists, but also for residents of the city. However, there is never any pandemonium here.
Walking along the embankment is interesting, attention is constantly attracted by a variety of monuments and beautiful structures that are considered local attractions. Opposite the impressive building of the former Papastratos tobacco factory is the Cordoni breakwater, where you can walk to the water’s edge. On the embankment there is a monument to Argo, which is a symbol of the Hair, also attracts the attention of the neoclassical building of the National Bank of Greece and the cinema “Achillion”. And there are also small palm trees everywhere, resembling pineapples of huge size.
In addition to the architectural attractions, there are many pastry shops, restaurants, cafes and bars on the embankment. Special attention should be paid to small atmospheric taverns, also, a kind of local attractions:
- mezedopolies, which specialize in traditional Greek meze snacks (they can be fish, meat, and vegetables);
- tsipuradiko, where fish and seafood dishes are prepared, and they are served with tsipuro – a strong alcoholic drink made from grapes (simply put, this is a kind of moonshine).
It takes a little more than an hour to walk the entire embankment – from the railway station to the small city park of Anavros and the beach. The streets that are adjacent to the embankment are also quite interesting – there you can always feel how life in the city is bustling.
Note to tourists! Even in summer, it is quite windy in the city, especially on the embankment, so you should definitely take warm clothes with you.
Archaeological Museum
The Archaeological Museum of Volos in Greece is a particularly outstanding attraction, because it is included in the top ten best museums in the country.
It is located in the park Anavros, which ends the embankment.
The museum occupies a rather nice one-story building in the neoclassical style. Its total area is about 870 m2, it has 7 halls, 1 of them is reserved for temporary exhibitions.
The exhibits presented here tell about the historical development of Thessaly and prehistoric Greece. Most visitors gather in the hall with jewelry and household items that were found during excavations in Dimini and Sesklo (the oldest settlements in Europe).
- Exact address: 1 Athanassaki, Volos 382 22, Greece.
- This attraction is open from Thursday to Sunday from 8: 30 to 15: 00.
- The entrance ticket costs only 2 €.
Church of Saints Constantine and Elena
On the picturesque embankment there is another well-known attraction: the Orthodox Church of Saints Constantine and Elena. Address: 1 Stratigou Plastira Nikolaou, Volos 382 22, Greece.
This shrine was built from 1927 to 1936, and on the place where it was erected, there used to be a small wooden church.
The Church of Saints Constantine and Elena is a grandiose, impressive stone structure with a high bell tower. The interior is very rich, the walls are painted with magnificent frescoes depicting biblical scenes. The main relics are particles of the Holy Cross, as well as particles of the relics of Saints Constantine and Elena, stored in a silver shrine.
Roof and Brickwork Museum
One of the best industrial museums in Greece, The Rooftile and Brickworks Museum N.&S. Tsalapatas, is located just a short taxi ride from the city center.
Many tourists who have visited there are surprised to note that they did not even expect that an exhibition with such exhibits could be so interesting. In their opinion, a walk through the local halls was a pleasant departure from the usual Greek museums of pots and statues. The only regret expressed was that it was impossible to buy bricks as a gift and as a memento of visiting this unusual landmark of Volos.
- The museum is located at Notia Pyli, Volos 383 34, Greece.
- It is open from Wednesday to Friday, from 10: 00 to 18: 00.
Choice of hotels, cost of accommodation
The city of Volos offers an extensive selection of housing for every taste and budget. Hotels of any “star rating”, private apartments and villas, campsites, hotel complexes-all this is present.
Here you need to take into account that geographically Volos includes many small settlements located within a radius of up to 20 km. Accordingly, all the tourist accommodation options located there also apply to Volos.
In the city itself, most of the hotels are designed for businessmen, although there are also resort hotels. Hotels are mainly located in the central part of Volos and in the area of the embankment.
In summer, the average cost of a double room in 5* hotels is about 175 €, in 3* hotels a double room can be rented for 65-150 €.
How to get to Volos
Although Volos is on the list of the best tourist cities in Greece, it is almost impossible to get there directly from Europe, and there is no need to talk about the CIS countries. As a rule, first you need to get to one of the major cities of Greece (Athens, Thessaloniki, Larissa), and then get to Volos by bus, train or plane.
By bus
Volos Intercity Bus Station is located on Grigoriou Lambraki Street, next to the City Hall. Buses from Athens, Larissa, Thessaloniki, as well as commuter routes come here.
In Athens, KTEL Magnesias buses depart from Athens Station approximately every 1.5-2 hours, starting from 07:00 and ending at 22:00. The bus ride to Volos takes 3 hours and 45 minutes, and the ticket costs €30.
From Thessaloniki, buses to Volos depart from the Macedonia Bus Station. There are about 10 flights per day, the ticket price is about 12 €.
By train
In Volos, the railway station is located just west of Riga Fereu Square (Pl.Riga Fereou), it is very close to the bus station.
Traveling from Athens by train is not very convenient: there are no direct flights, you need to change trains in Larissa, which increases the travel time to 5 hours.
From Thessaloniki, the time of such a trip also increases significantly.
By plane
There is also an airport in Volos, it is located 25 km from the city. Shuttle buses run regularly from the airport to the Volos bus station, which costs €5.
The number of destinations used for air transportation is not very large, but you can choose something. For example, HellasAirlines operates flights from Athens and Thessaloniki to Volos. Other airlines also operate flights from some European countries. On the Nea Aghialos National Airport website www.thessalyairport.gr / en / you can find out about all flights to Volos (Greece).
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