Mount Olympus, Litochoro & Dion Day Trip by Coach

Mount Olympus rises straight out of the coast 90 km south-west of Thessaloniki, about an hour away by motorway. At 2,918 m it is the highest mountain in Greece and, in myth, the home of the twelve gods. It also became Greece's first national park in 1938 and a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve in 1981.

The day works from the bottom up. First ancient Dion, the sacred city where Macedonian kings sacrificed to Zeus. Then Litochoro, the small town at the foot of the mountain, the monastery of Agios Dionysios in the Enipeas gorge, and the road up to Prionia at 1,100 m, where the road stops and the summit trail starts.

In the afternoon we come back down to the sea and reach Thessaloniki around 18:00. The coaches are ours and the driver knows these bends.

Your day, step by step

1. 07:15
   First pick-up at the White Tower

   Your escort is waiting on Nikis Avenue, opposite the waterfront tower, holding an Exit Bus sign. Come ten minutes early. The first coffee stop is Litochoro at around 10:20, so bring one with you if you need it earlier.

2. 07:30
   Departure from Aristotelous Square

   The main pick-up, in the city's central square where it meets Egnatia Street. Most of the group boards here and this is the time the day is measured from.

3. 07:45
   Last pick-up, then onto the motorway

   We stop at KTEL Macedonia, the intercity bus station on the western edge of town, then join the A1 motorway heading south. Mount Olympus is only 90 km from Thessaloniki and the whole drive is motorway — about an hour.

4. 08:50
   Ancient Dion, the archaeological park

   Dion sat at the foot of the mountain and was the religious capital of ancient Macedonia; its kings sacrificed to Olympian Zeus here before marching east. You walk the Roman forum, the baths and the sanctuary of Isis, with spring water still running between the marble. The museum comes later, because in summer it does not open until 11:00.

5. 10:20
   Litochoro, the mountain's base town

   Fifteen kilometres uphill at 300 m, this is where every climb of Olympus begins. Coffee on the main square, then the viewing terrace above the gorge, where you see the peaks and the Aegean in the same glance. Forty-five minutes are yours.

6. 11:15
   Monastery of Agios Dionysios

   Three kilometres out of town, at the mouth of the Enipeas gorge. We arrive deliberately before noon: the monastery shuts from 13:00 to 15:30 and tours that turn up at lunchtime find the gate locked. Shoulders and knees must be covered — no shorts, men included.

7. 12:35
   Prionia, at 1,100 metres

   Eighteen kilometres of hairpins through fir and beech forest, on a narrow mountain road that is rough in places. This is where the road ends and the footpath to the summit begins. We eat at the mountain restaurant, drink from the spring and walk the first stretch of the E4 trail. Eighty minutes here, and expect it seven to ten degrees cooler than the coast.

8. 14:10
   The old monastery in the gorge

   On the way down we stop briefly at the 16th-century original monastery, built into the ravine and destroyed twice — by Ottoman forces in 1828 and blown up by German troops in 1943. Restoration is still going on. Twenty minutes is enough for the saint's tomb and the stone bridge.

9. 15:10
   Plaka beach, Litochoro

   From the gorge down to the sea in forty minutes. Plaka holds a Blue Flag award and mixes pebbles with pale sand, with tavernas and beach bars along it. Forty minutes for a swim or a coffee with the mountain behind you. This stop runs June to September only.

10. 16:10
    Archaeological Museum of Dion

    We loop back to Dion for the museum, which stays open into the evening in summer. Inside is the hydraulis, the oldest surviving pipe organ in the world, alongside the statues and mosaics lifted from the site. Thirty-five minutes, and we confirm the current hours before every departure. The museum is closed on Tuesdays, when the day finishes earlier instead.

11. 17:50
    Back in Thessaloniki

    We drop at KTEL Macedonia first, then Aristotelous Square around 18:00 and the White Tower by about 18:10. These times are realistic, though traffic coming into the city can move them.

Pick-up points

• White Tower, Nikis Avenue07:15On the pavement opposite Thessaloniki's landmark waterfront tower, at the bus stop.
• Aristotelous Square at Egnatia Street07:30Main departure point, at the Eleftherios Venizelos statue.
• City-centre hotels (Tsimiski – Egnatia – Nikis)07:35By arrangement, where the coach can stop safely.
• KTEL Macedonia bus station, Giannitson 24407:45Last pick-up, directly on our way out of the city.

Drop-off is at the same point where we picked you up.

Group & private pricing

Know before you go

• This trip does not reach the summit, and no day trip does. Our highest point is Prionia at 1,100 m, where the road ends. Mytikas, the 2,918 m peak, needs two to three days on foot plus mountaineering experience. You will see it from below, close up, but you will not stand on it.
• The Archaeological Museum of Dion is CLOSED EVERY TUESDAY. On that day we visit the open-air site only and return earlier. In summer the museum opens late in the morning and stays open into the evening, which is why we schedule it for the end of the day; we confirm the current hours before every departure.
• Dion entry is not included, and nobody in this price bracket includes it: EUR 8-10 per adult for the site and museum together, paid at the ticket office. Under-18s generally enter free with ID, as do all visitors on the free-admission days such as the first Sunday of each month from November to March.
• The monastery enforces a dress code: shoulders and knees covered, no shorts and no sleeveless tops, for men as well as women. It closes daily from 13:00 to 15:30, which is why we get there before noon.
• Winter, 1 November to 30 April: the Prionia road can close with snow or ice and we never guarantee it in those months. We substitute Palaios Panteleimonas, the restored stone village above Platamonas, which is reachable all year. Dion also keeps shorter winter hours and shuts in the early afternoon, so it always goes first in the winter running order.
• The Plaka beach stop runs June to September. Outside those months we swap it for extra time in Litochoro or a stop at Platamonas castle. Bring a swimsuit and towel if you are travelling in summer.
• Bring closed comfortable shoes and a fleece or windbreaker even in August — Prionia runs about ten degrees cooler than the beach. The Dion site has unpaved paths and the short walk at Prionia is uneven ground, so tell us in advance about any mobility limits and we will adjust the stops.