Travel ideas for Greece - unique sights, worth Guinness records

Amazing Meteora monasteries are among the most striking sights in Greece. They owe their name to Greek word ‘meteor’ that can be translated as ‘floating in the air’. The name succinctly and clearly describes the feature of these religious structures. Currently, the complex includes six active Orthodox monasteries located on the cliff tops.
They have been founded more than a thousand years ago. Locals believed that the mountain range of Chasia, where monasteries have been arranged, to be the real godsend. Rocks set amidst Thessalian plain attracted the attention of monks. They managed to achieve their main goal - to get close to God by building temples high above the earth. Monasteries located on the cliff tops look just fascinating; the only way to get to one of them is to climb over steep fragile stairs.
Given that the highest rock is more than 600 meters high, the path to the monastery won’t seem simple. All staircases were cut directly into the rock; the 8 meters suspension bridge provides access to the monastery of St. Stephen. It’s noteworthy that some stairs were cut just recently. However, monks have being constantly living in monasteries for over a thousand years. Initially, the path to the shrines was a deadly event, but now the main obstacle is a fear of heights. ... Complete sights collection

Monasteries of Mount Athos are prominent landmarks of world importance. One of the most famous is Dionysiou monastery. It was founded in the 14th century on top of a steep and incredibly narrow cliff of about 80 meters height. The founder of the monastery was Dionysius the Reverent, who had started to collect funds for the construction of the monastery and has received support from the Emperor Alexius III Comnenus.
Unfortunately, the pristine building failed to survive to the present day, as it was completely destroyed by fire in 1535. The monastery was completely rebuilt only a hundred years later. Today, it stores hundreds of ancient manuscripts and books. Currently 50 monks reside in the monastery. Code Dionysus, the unique manuscript, whose age is more than 1100 years, is stored there. The amazing Dionysiou monastery attracts travelers not only with an abundance of religious shrines, but with its inaccessibility too. Climbing a steep rock becomes a matter of honor for fans of unusual tours and outdoor activities. Great journey through the fabulously beautiful places of the Athos peninsula will be a great compliment. ... Complete sights collection

Amazing Athens has long been synonymous with bright ancient culture. Founded in 1400 BC, this Greek city has being improving for over 3,500 years. It has to endure a lot of important events, periods of decline and prosperity. Travelers associate Athens with unique ancient monuments, beautiful myths of ancient Greece and the names of prominent philosophers. The culture of this ancient city is extremely interesting and original.
Currently, the city has more than 200 museums and galleries introducing history and culture to visitors. The most visited among them are the Acropolis Museum and the National Archaeological Museum showing guests of the city the collection of priceless archaeological finds. The modern capital of Greece is the cradle of a great civilization; ruins of beautiful temples and termae tell about its former power. Fans of ancient history from around the world are eager to see the Parthenon, as well as a picturesque historic district of Plaka.
An integral part of culture of the modern city are interesting myths. Athens received its name in honor of the goddess Athena, patroness of arts, crafts and military affairs. Travelers who wish to admire historical heritage of Athens and feel culture of the ancient city would have an opportunity to learn a lot of beautiful legends. It seems that even stubborn influence of modernity can’t destroy belief in power of ancient Greek gods and the way of life that has been formed over thousands of years. ... Complete sights collection

Speaking about the oldest cities in the world, it’s worth to mention wonderful Thebes, founded in 1400 BC. A story of the city is extremely interesting, it involves a lot of beautiful myths. According to one of them, the founder of Thebes and powerful Cadmea was the son of the Phoenician king Agenor, Cadmium. Ancient city of Greece was a place of many outstanding mythical events; one of the most important among them is considered a campaign against the seven kings of Thebes.
Despite the fact that many myths are just amazing poetic creations, they make atmosphere of the city even more romantic and mysterious. The main historical symbol of Thebes is represented by ruins of the ancient Cadmean fortress, which was built in the Bronze Age. You can see items found in the territory of Thebes by scientists in the local Archaeological Museum. Thebes is an ideal place for travelers who have long dreamed to explore culture and history of ancient Greece.
During the tour, guests of the city will hear interesting legends about the birth of Dionysus and Heracles, about the exploits of the legendary king Cadmium and bloody battles that has being devastated the thriving city for thousands of years. Developed tourist infrastructure of the city will be a nice addition to stay, as modern Thebes offers its guests a lot of attractive hotels, magnificent local restaurants and lots of amazing places to relax. ... Complete sights collection

Greece is home to priceless ancient attractions, many of which are found not only on land, but also under water. Pavlopetri is the first flooded city in the world, which archaeologists were able to detect and identify accurately. The scale of the city is simply amazing; its streets were spread on an area of about 30,000 square meters.
Despite the fact that the city went under water more than 5,000 years ago, its structure has survived. Precise placement of the buildings forming the streets left no doubt in the fact that once the city was incredibly beautiful and prosperous. The flooded city has been discovered in 1967 by Nicholas Flemming, and a year later, scientists from Cambridge marked the exact location on the map.
Researchers have identified about 15 separate buildings in the flooded city. The total area of residential buildings, according to approximate calculations of scientists, is 9,000 square meters. Currently the ruins of Pavlopetri represent the attraction of world importance. However, it’s extremely difficult to ensure the proper security of historic sites hidden underwater. Not only inexperienced divers and robbers can harm old buildings, but the anchors of vessels, whose traffic in the area is virtually unregulated. ... Complete sights collection

The Corinth Canal is a global sight which is unique in every way. It is the narrowest navigable canal on the planet that connects the Gulf of Corinth with the Saronic Gulf. It is named in honour of the fondly known Greek city located on the western end. The Corinth Canal has some external distinguishing marks such as length of more than 6 km and a width, which is only 25 meters. High rock walls surround the canal and stretch up to 76 metres. The Canal is only 8 metres deep.
The locals began thinking about creating of a channel between the bays thousands of years ago. The idea of this project’s development first came to a tyrant Periandros’s mind in the 7th century BC. But his grandiose ideas could not be realized at those times. Barely started they had to stop due to a number of difficulties. The present Corinth Canal can boldly be called a remarkable historical landmark.
Its building began in 1881 and was finally complete in August, 1893. Just a few decades back the canal was of great economic significance. Nowadays it is of interest as a tourist attraction point. Over 11000 ships travel through the Corinth Canal annually. Numerous tourist ferries are among them. Moreover, the bridges over the canal are used by thrill seekers who indulge a new activity of bungee jumping. ... Complete sights collection

The wonderful Corinth Canal - one of the most beautiful and longest canals in the world, is very popular among tourists. Over the canal is the small metal bridge, on which the place for jumps was equipped. In Greece there is no better place for Bunjee Jumping. The experienced travelers recommend to visit the attraction in the evening - on the decline, the canal looks incredibly beautiful. The height of the bridge, from which one can jump, forms 80 meters.
If one is not yet brave enough for the independent jump, one can look at the specialists. The Corinth Canal has been the location of the Zulu Bungy Festival, which is home to the most famous athletes from different countries of the world. The festival is held in summer. Thousands of people gather to watch the incredible tricks of the champions. While preparing for the jump you have to look downwards and make sure that there is no barge on the canal. Every year more than 15,000 ships sail through the canal. Thanks to the attentive and well-organized work of the specialists, the athletes as well as the sailors can use the canal. ... Complete sights collection

The treasure house of the Atreus, located in Mykene, was built not later than 1250 BC. For the first time, this building was only explored in the second half of the 19th century. Among the other tholos, which are presented on the territory of the Mediterranean, the ancient crypt is distinguished by its impressive size. The scientists have estimated that the original length of the entrance into the crypt camera was 36 meters.
The camera itself is a dome-shaped construction, built with the method of dry masonry. The height of the room is about 13.5 meters, and the diameter - about 14.5 meters. The construction of the treasury was carried out in rather complicated conditions. The Atreus treasure house is located on the top of the Panagitsa hill. One of the most remarkable elements of this ancient building is the stone slab, which is fixed above the entrance. Their weight makes 120 tons. The fact that people managed to raise a huge stone on the top of the hill a thousand years ago seems unbelievable.
At present the crypt is one of the most important monuments of Mycenaean civilization. All those interested can not only look at it from the outside, but also look inside the dome-shaped building. At the time of construction the treasure house was the largest dome-shaped structure on earth. Only a few years later the larger buildings - the Roman Pantheon and the Mercury temple in Baia were built. ... Complete sights collection

In the south-west of Peloponnese, in Messenia is the beautiful beach of Glossa Beach, protected from the wind and the strange glances of the high cliffs covered with lush brushwoods. The stretch of coast accessible to the rest has the regular triangular shape and is covered with the soft snowy sand. To the beach you can go to the sea. The high rocky wall surrounding the beach completely excludes access to the coast from the mainland.
In the immediate vicinity of the coast are the coral colonies. Glossa Beach is like found for snorkeling. This magical area will also appeal to the experienced divers who can enjoy the beauty of the underwater world all by themselves. The beach is very quiet and shallow. Even those tourists who can not swim or have a holiday with the children will be able to relax here. The wind and strong waves are very rare phenomena for this unified, calm coast. For several years, Glossa Beach has been one of the most picturesque and purest beaches in Greece. ... Complete sights collection

Located on Zakynthos Island, the Navagio Beach is popular with the followers of the peaceful rest. Literally one can translate the beach name as 'the shipbreak' from the Greek. In the ancient times these coastal stretches were considered one of the most dangerous among sailors. The reason for this are the underground currents, because of which the numerous ships were undersigned and a sandbank.
One of them, the Panaiotis, is now considered the main attraction of the beach. It is still unclear how the ship has been so high on the shore, perhaps the strong flood or storm has driven it on the sand coast. The beach is surrounded by the high rocky walls that penetrate deep into the sea and completely exclude the possibility to land on the coast.
To the picturesque sandy beach can only be reached by boat or with the cutter. The unified beach without any infrastructure is incredibly popular with tourists. Every day the travelers come here to see the ancient smugglers' ship and to relax in the calm atmosphere. Despite the relatively small number of holidaymakers, the atmosphere on the beach remains calm and quiet. Those who want to spend their time in full solitude should head to Navagio Beach early in the morning. ... Complete sights collection