Planning a Trip

Getting There

By Plane -- Thessaloniki's Macedonia International Airport (tel. 2310/473-212), 17km (11 miles) south of town, is served from Athens International Airport (tel. 210/353-0000; www.aia.gr) by Olympic Airways (tel. 210/966-6666, or 2310/368-311 in Thessaloniki; www.olympic-airways.gr); Aegean Air (tel. 210/998-8300, or 2310/239-225 in Thessaloniki; www.aegeanair.com) has flights from Athens. EasyJet sometimes serves Thessaloniki; go to www.easyjet.com. From the U.S., there are no direct flights to Thessaloniki. Connections can be made at a number of European cities, including London, Amsterdam, Brussels, Frankfurt, Stuttgart, Munich, Zurich, and Vienna.

The airport (tel. 2310/411-997 or 2310/473-212) is a 30-minute drive from the city center. Bus no. 78 runs from the airport into central Thessaloniki in about an hour (usually stopping in Aristotelous Sq. and at the train station) daily from about 6am to 11pm and costs 2€. A taxi ride runs about 15€.

By Train -- Five daily trains officially make the trip from Athens to Thessaloniki in about 6 hours, but most are extremely crowded, without air-conditioning, and subject to unexplained delays; nonetheless, they are cheap: 18€ each way. If you must take a train, choose the fast InterCity, preferably the overnight sleeper, which has first-class compartments for four to six passengers and sleeper compartments for two to six passengers. Make reservations for sleeping compartments well in advance at the Larissa train station in Athens (tel. 210/323-6747; www.ose.gr). In Thessaloniki, you can purchase tickets at the OSE (train) station, 28 Monastiriou, the western extension of Egnatia (tel. 2310/599-068). InterCity coach tickets from Athens to Thessaloniki cost from 40€, sleeper service from 75€. A taxi ride from the station to Aristotelous Square takes about 10 minutes and costs about 7€. Avoid the trek to the train station to get information and buy tickets, and use the OSE (train) office instead, at 18 Aristotelous Sq. (tel. 2310/517-517; www.ose.gr), 9am to 9pm Tuesday to Friday; 9am to 3pm Monday and Saturday.

By Bus -- Ten air-conditioned buses from Athens make the trip daily to Thessaloniki in about 7 hours (includes one 20-min. stop at a roadside restaurant with toilet facilities). Buses usually arrive on time. Make reservations in advance at the Athens bus terminal, 100 Kifissou (tel. 201/512-9233). A one-way fare costs about 35€. Many buses arrive in Thessaloniki at the station at 65 Monastiriou (tel. 2310/510-834) opposite the train station, where there are taxis. Some buses stop at the newer bus station at 194 Iannitsou (tel. 2310/595-408), west of the train station. For general information on Athens-Macedonia schedules and fares, call tel. 210/512-4910 or go to www.ktel.org.

By Car -- From Athens, take the 516km (320-mile) National Road, a four-lane highway that's the best in Greece, although stretches are always being repaired or widened, which leads to frequent delays. The road, a major truck route, is also often the scene of serious accidents. Plan on at least 6 or 7 hours, if you stop en route. Gas stations are common along the National Road, but you often must exit to reach them. Much of the road skirts the mountains and goes through the plains of central and northern Greece. In other words, it's not the most stunning drive.

If you're driving to Northern Greece from Europe, you'll probably take the ferry from the Italian ports of Bari, Ancona, or Brindisi to Igoumenitsou on the northwest coast of Greece, and then drive across the Pindus Mountains to Thessaloniki. The trip is spectacular; allow at least 5 or 6 hours. The southern route (via Ioannina and Kalambaka to Larissa and the National Rd.) is much less treacherous than the northern alternative (through Kozani) -- particularly in winter, although snow can close both routes. The southern route also passes Kalambaka and the monasteries perched on the awesome pinnacles of the Meteora. You will almost certainly encounter continuing roadwork on the National Highway (called the Via Egnatia, after its Roman predecessor) designed to link Patras (in the Peloponnese) with Central Greece and continue on to Macedonia and the Turkish border. The road was officially completed in June of 2009, but work will continue for some time.

Visitor Information

The office of the Greek National Tourism Organization (EOT) is at 136 Tsimiski (tel. 2310/252-170; www.visitgreece.gr or www.mintour.gr); the Thessaloniki Tourist Office is at 138 Vas. Olgas (tel. 2310/428-329; www.thessalonikicity.gr).

Maps -- City maps and two excellent guides to the city (The Thessaloniki Handbook [with section-by-section maps], by Christos Zafiris; and Monuments of Thessaloniki [with an excellent city-center map], by Apostolos Papagiannopoulos) are usually available at bookstores, including Ianos, 7 Aristotelous (tel. 2310/277-164); Travel Bookstore, 41 Proxenou Koromila (tel. 2310/275-215); Malliaris, 9 Aristotelous (tel. 2310/276-926); and P. Kyriakides, 40 Agias Sophias St. (tel. 2310/241-613).

Getting Around

In the city center, a 20- to 30-minute walk will take you to most attractions, restaurants, and shops. Taxis are usually easy to find, unless you're going to the Upper City. Many taxis are reluctant to make this trip because there is little guarantee of a return fare down, and they may -- unlawfully -- refuse. But if you're in the cab before you state your destination, there's little the driver can do but take you there. Otherwise, it's a steep uphill walk of at least 20 minutes, or you can hop on bus no. 22, which leaves from Eleftherias Square.

By Bus -- Buses with double cars are boarded at the rear, where a conductor gives you a ticket and makes change. Single-car buses are boarded at the front; on these, exact fare is required. Deposit the fare in the ticket-issuing machine behind the driver's seat. Keep your ticket in case a conductor boards the bus to check them. Fares vary according to the distance traveled; an average journey within Thessaloniki costs less than 1€.

By Taxi -- This is your best bet except, as noted above, when you want to go to the Upper City. Take along a map or have someone write out your destination in Greek, so that you can show the driver where you want to go. Rates are moderate compared to those in the U.S.; tips are not expected, although rounding up the fare is appreciated. Make sure that the driver turns on the taxi meter and that, within the city limits, the rate used is no. 1. Rate no. 2 is for outside the city limits. There's an extra 6.50€ charge for trips from the airport. After midnight, all fares on the meter are doubled.

By Car -- As noted, there is little reason to use a car within Thessaloniki. Traffic is terrible and legal parking spots are almost impossible to find, even at the large public parking lot in Plateia Eleftherias. But having a car for excursions into Northern Greece will allow you to see and enjoy a lot more than you would either from a bus or on a guided tour. Keep in mind that if you take a day trip, you'll spend at least an hour getting out of and another hour getting back into the city. It makes much better sense to see what you want outside of town on your way in, or out, of Thessaloniki.

Most car-rental agencies, including Avis (www.avis.com), Budget (www.budget.com), Eurocar (www.eurocar.com), and Hertz (www.hertz.com), have offices at the airport. A car with unlimited mileage costs from 60€ per day in high season. (Reminder: High season is not summer, but the time of the Sept-Oct trade and other festivals.) Be sure to ask if the price quoted includes all taxes and insurance -- and be sure to take full insurance if your credit card does not provide it. Tip: It is almost always cheaper to book a car with an international agency from abroad, not from within Greece.

By Boat -- It's possible to take ferries and boats from Thessaloniki to a number of Aegean islands (including Crete, Santorini, and Mykonos) and to the Sporades (Skiathos, Skopelos, and Alonissos). Many travel agents around Plateia Eleftherias and Aristotelous Square sell ferry tickets. Centrally located agencies include Polaris Travel, 81 Egnatiou (tel. 2310/276-051), and Zorpidis Travel, 4 Salaminos (tel. 2310/555-955; www.zorpidis.gr). The harbor police/port authorities can be reached at tel. 2310/531-504 (to -507). The website for Greek Travel Pages (www.gtp.gr) is also useful for boat schedules.