Kalambaka

Kalambaka is the gateway town to Meteora, spread across the plain of the Pineios river where the flatlands of Thessaly abruptly give way to a forest of sheer sandstone pillars. From almost every street you look up to see the grey rock towers, and on their summits the monasteries that have made this one of the most photographed landscapes in Greece. The town itself is unpretentious and lived-in, a place of tavernas, guesthouses and a long central avenue rather than a manicured resort, which is much of its appeal.

Most travellers use Kalambaka as their base for exploring the six active monasteries above. The road up winds through the village of Kastraki, which lies even closer to the rocks and is popular with climbers. You can drive the loop, join a guided tour, or walk the old monk paths that thread up between the pillars on foot. Sturdy shoes and a head for heights help, and modest dress is required to enter the monasteries.

Down in the town, the small Church of the Dormition of the Virgin is worth seeking out, a Byzantine basilica with faded frescoes tucked into the older quarter beneath the cliffs. There is also a growing cluster of small museums, including one devoted to Greek natural history and mushrooms, and another to the making of religious icons. Evenings are for slow dinners under the floodlit rocks.

Getting here is straightforward. Kalambaka is the northern terminus of a railway branch from Palaiofarsalos, with direct trains from Athens and Thessaloniki, and it sits about 20 km from Trikala, the nearest sizeable city. The town works well as an overnight or two-night stop, long enough to see the monasteries properly and catch both a sunset and a sunrise over the pinnacles.

Though Meteora draws the crowds, Kalambaka rewards those who slow down: a morning market, the sound of church bells echoing off the cliffs, and the strange, humbling scale of the rocks that hang over everything.