Greece is traditionally one of the most popular holiday destinations, at least for the citizens of Europe and the region, and what this country has to offer fully justifies this popularity. In addition to beautiful beaches and crystal clear sea, Greece is a rich country full of sights and attractions, and behind each of them are legends, myths, and historical stories that leave you breathless.
If you go to the “cradle of civilization” this summer, don’t forget to visit some of its biggest sights. When it comes to Greece, the sea is not its only trump card, and this is proven by the next five attractions that you should visit when you travel to this country.
1 Acropolis – a sanctuary of the ancient goddess Athena
Athens is an unavoidable stop for all those tourists who spend their summers in the south of the country, and the charms of the Greek capital begin right on the Acropolis. It is an ancient sanctuary dedicated to the patron saint of the city, the goddess Athena.
Various cults, and myths of ancient Athens, as well as various important historical events, are connected with the Acropolis, which is why this building enjoys the reputation of one of the most important and most beautiful sanctuaries in the world.
This masterpiece of antiquity is located on 150-meter-high rocks, and from its walls, there is a beautiful view of the capital, whose facades, looking from the Acropolis, are dominated by snow-white color. On the Acropolis, you can see the temple of Athena Nike, built during the Pericles period, as well as the most impressive building – the Parthenon.
There are also other temples and symbols that take visitors back to the history of ancient Greece, so a tour of the Acropolis is one of the most valuable and beautiful memories you can make when visiting Athens and Greece in general.
2 The mysterious Navagio beach on Zakynthos
The most interesting are those attractions to which many stories and legends are connected, although no one can claim the real basis of their existence with reality. Such an attraction is the beach of Navagio on Zakynthos, more precisely the ship that ran aground on this coast under unknown circumstances.
The wreck of the ship, precisely because of the unexplained circumstances under which it reached the beach, became the biggest attraction of Zakynthos, and Navagio the most photographed beach in Greece.
One of the legends says that it is a ship that smuggled cigarettes and alcohol, and ended up stranded on the beach due to an attempt to escape from the Greek navy.
The beach is named after the boat, and the scene is even more fascinating if you take into account the white limestone cliffs that overlook the beach, and the turquoise color of the sea as a perfect contrast to the light rocks.
3 Gulf of Corinth – the link between Athens and the Peloponnese
Those who are vacationing in Loutraki this summer, have the privilege of having the Gulf of Corinth at their fingertips – the pearl of the eastern Ionian Sea that connects Athens and the Peloponnese.
The bay is about 130 kilometers long, and both its shores are connected by a newly built bridge, which is considered one of the largest in Europe.
When you find yourself in the Gulf of Corinth, on one side you will find the Peloponnese with all the preserved treasures of ancient Greece, and on the other side beautiful Athens, which is also a kind of museum of the Greek past.
The bay is extremely rich in fish, and all the rocks are natural, of limestone origin. The bay is named after its largest port, Corinth.
4 Santorini – the most beautiful Greek island
Santorini is one of the most visited resorts in the Mediterranean, thanks to the specific architecture and location of its resorts. It is a very picturesque, photogenic, and tucked-away place, so it is very often found on postcards, tourist flyers, and, in general, photographs from Greece.
Santorini is a volcanic island, recognizable by its white houses with blue roofs that are “dotted” along the rocky island, and at its very top is Fira, the island’s capital. This island is famous for sunsets, so this afternoon on the beaches is welcomed by thousands of spectators every day.
In addition to the beautiful photos that you will take from Santorini, on this island you will have the opportunity to enjoy the most beautiful restaurants, great nightlife, and a variety of content adapted to tourists because Santorini is one of the most visited Greek destinations.
5 Meteors – a complex of monasteries on fairy-tale rocks
About 250 kilometers south of Thessaloniki are located Meteora, a famous monastery complex whose name translated from the Greek language means something that is “neither in heaven nor on earth.” They are placed on the rocks of a very unusual shape, so the scene looks fabulous and almost unreal.
It is believed that the amazing position of the rocks was achieved by moving the ground due to earthquakes and natural disasters thousands of years ago, and as a result, one of the biggest natural attractions on which the monasteries are located today appeared.
Of the 26 monasteries that existed at the end of the fifteenth century, only six of them remain in the same place today – two for women and four for men. However, that did not diminish the popularity of Meteora as one of the most visited attractions in Greece.
These monasteries represent the most important monastic group, after those on the Holy Mountain, as evidenced by UNESCO, which declared Meteora a unique phenomenon of cultural heritage.
These are some of the most important Greek attractions, and we are sure that at least one of them is located near the summer resort where you plan to stay. Take the opportunity to get to know the unique sights that date back to the earliest past of Greece, and we are sure that what you see and hear will leave a strong impression on you.