Tours in Kalabaka

Kalambaka sits at the foot of the rock pillars of Meteora in Thessaly, and the town exists almost entirely because of what stands above it. The pillars are conglomerate, up to four hundred metres high, formed from a river delta that hardened and then eroded, and from the fourteenth century monks climbed them and built on top. Twenty-four monasteries were founded; six remain in use — Great Meteoron, Varlaam, Rousanou, St Nicholas Anapafsas, Holy Trinity and St Stephen — and they are reached now by steps cut into the rock rather than by the nets and windlasses that hauled up monks and supplies until the 1920s. The whole site carries a UNESCO listing for both its geology and its monasticism. Below, the town has the Byzantine church of the Dormition and not much else.

The monasteries are the visit and they are done by road or on foot. The circuit by car or minibus takes half a day and covers three or four; the monastic footpaths between them are the better way and take a full day, with the walk up from Kastraki the classic approach. Sunset tours drive to the western viewpoints, which is when the rock turns orange and the photographs happen. Beyond Meteora there is rock climbing on the pillars themselves, one of the more serious venues in Greece, and hiking in the hills behind.

Practical. Each monastery has its own closing day, and they differ — check before setting out, because arriving to find two of four shut is the standard mistake. Dress code is enforced: long trousers for men, skirts below the knee for women, shoulders covered; wrap skirts are lent at the gate but the queue for them is slow. There is a small entrance fee at each. Summer is hot in the plain below and the steps are steep; spring and autumn are better, and winter mist makes the rocks extraordinary. The train from Athens takes about five hours, from Thessaloniki three.