The best Museums in Thessaloniki Greece

Archaeological Museum,

XANO ( YMCA of Thessalonike ) Square, is on 6 Manoli Andronikou Street.
Among its exhibits are architectural fragments from the Archaic temple of Therme, finds from the excavation at Sindos, the amazing and unique treasures from the royal tombs of Vergina, and finds from the tombs at Derveni and the areas around Thessaloniki, and from Chalkidiki and Pieria.

Museum of Byzantine Civilisation

The Museum of Byzantine Civilisation is on Leoforos Stratou 2. The objects it contains, which have come from Thessaloniki and the entire province of Macedonia, highlight the achievements of Byzantine art and culture from early Christian times to the period of Turkish rule.

Museum of Art and History of Thessaloniki

It is housed in the White Tower ( Old Waterfront ). Here we shall find vases, architectural fragments, mosaics, funerary slabs, inscriptions, coins, and icons.

Ethnological and Popular Art Museum

Ethnological and Popular Art Museum is on Vasilissis Olgas 68. Its collection includes more than 18,000 objects dating from the 18th and 19th centuries. Among them, worth noting is the regional costumes of Thessaloniki and other areas of Macedonia and Thrace, the embroidered and woven articles, the wood-carved objects, the gold- and silver work, the popular instruments, household utensils, etc.

Centre of Thessalonican History

Centre of Thessalonican History, is on Hippodamiou Square. Here are exhibited historical documents, maps, engravings, etc.

Municipal Gallery

Municipal Gallery, is at the crossroad between Vasilissis Olgas 162 and 25th March. On the second floor of the building are exhibited works by Greek artists ( mostly from Thessaloniki ) and a collection of prints and engravings.

Art Gallery of the Society of Macedonian Studies

Art Gallery of the Society of Macedonian Studies is sited on Nikolaou Germanou 1. The sixth floor of the building of the theater of the Society of Macedonian Studies houses a collection of modern Greek art with works by contemporary and older artists and sculptors, mostly from Thessaloniki.

Cultural Center of Northern Greece

Cultural Center of Northern Greece, is on Vasilissis Olgas 108. Here is exhibited the collection of the Cultural Foundation of the National Bank of Greece, which contains works by Greek artists and sculptors from 1800 to the present day.

Macedonian Center of Modern Art

The permanent exhibition is housed in the Philkeram-Johnson factory, at the 5th kilometer of the Farm School, at Phoenikas, while temporary exhibitions are held on the grounds of the International Trade Fair of Thessaloniki. Among the exhibits of the Museum is included a large part of the Alexandras Iolas collection of works of well-known Greek and foreign artists, such as Takis, Tsoclis, Moralis, Andy Warhol, and others.

Gallery of the Teloglion Foundation

It is housed in a building that borders the University campus. Among its exhibits are works of the major Greek artists of the period from the 18th to the 20th century. There are also sculptures and statuettes of the Hellenistic period, vases of Hellenistic and Roman times, etc.

Museum of the Macedonian Struggle

Museum of the Macedonian Struggle, you can find it at Proxenou Koromila 23. The Museum occupies a neoclassical mansion designed by Ernest Ziller and built-in 1893. Displayed here are souvenirs of the Macedonian Struggle, photographs of fighters for the liberation of Macedonia, and photographic material relating to the period between 1900. and 1912.

Technical Museum

It is situated in the industrial zone ( BI.PE.THE ), 2nd Street, building 47 and includes exhibits related to the historical development of technology and the exact sciences.

Center of Historical Studies of the Jews of Thessaloniki

Center of Historical Studies of the Jews of Thessaloniki is on Vasileos Herakleiou 24. Its exhibits include photographs on the subject of the history of the Jews of Thessaloniki. In the Center, there is also a Library ( in the MELKA building, Aghiou Mina 13 ), which are housed the historical archives and the popular art museum of the Jews of Thessaloniki.

Museum of Ancient Greek, Byzantine, and post-Byzantine Instruments

It occupies a traditional building at 12-14 Katouni street, in the Ladadika area, and exhibits musical instruments dating from 2800. BC to the early 20th century.

Museum of the Cinema

It is temporarily housed on the first floor of a building at 44, Andreou Georgiou Street, near the “Mill”, and the “BILKA” cultural center.

Museum of Design

This is also temporarily housed on the ground floor of a building at 43 Metropoleos Street.

Crypt of St. Demetrius

This is preserved beneath the transept of the church of St. Demetrius in what was originally a Roman bathhouse and which later, after the Saint’s martyrdom, became the place where the faithful collected the holy oil of St. Demetrius. Sculptured works and other objects dating from the various phases of the monument’s long history can be seen here.

The Outlying Area of Thessaloniki

On the way to Langadas ( 10 km ), one can visit the six cyst-shaped tombs of Derveni. At Polichni, north-east of the town, on the way to Asvestochori, may be seen the Byzantine water-mills.

The “Macedonian tomb” of St. Athanasius with its Ionic facade and its narrow painted frieze lies 21 km to the northwest of Thessaloniki.

The Axios Delta, one of the most important wetlands in Greece, lies 20 km to the southwest. The Church of the Transfiguration, at Hortiatis, dating from the 12th century, is to be found 21 km to the east of Thessaloniki.

A little further lie the important archaeological sites of Pella, the capital of Macedon and birthplace of Alexander the Great ( 40 km to the northwest ), of Vergina, the first capital of the ancient Macedonian Kingdom (about 70 km to the south-west), and of Dion, the sacred city of the Macedonians ( 17 km south of Katerini and about 85 km from Thessaloniki ). Here ends our brief but indispensable parenthesis on celebrated Thessaloniki, the “Bride of the Thermaic Gulf. We shall now follow the Via Egnatia (which begins as Monastiraki Street and traverses the city from west to east) and start out on our various journeys into Chalkidiki, which will allow us to discover the natural beauties of the region and learn something of its long history.

Tour Of Chalkidiki

In this beautiful peninsula the sea seems to lovingly embrace the sand, the verdure seems to dissolve into the blue of sea and sky, the old blends with the new, and mortals communicate with the divine. The mornings are cool, the sunsets are a blaze of gold and purple, the evenings enchanting, and the nights star-studded and magical. The roads unwinding before us lead us to places of unique beauty, where we shall surely forget all our cares and happily relax, before returning to the demands of everyday life. We shall not find bustling cities, only modern summer resorts, throbbing with life in the summer months, villages and small towns; Polygyros, the largest town in the department, and its capital, numbers a mere 5, 500 inhabitants. On the other hand, in many parts of the region, we shall see modern hotels and large hotel complexes – a result of the rapid development of tourism in Chalkidiki after 1960.

In order to become better acquainted with the region, we shall drive in turn along with five different directions.

On our first itinerary, we shall follow the road which links Thessaloniki to Nea Moudania. By making a few detours, we shall be able to visit Nea Kallikrateia and the Petralona Caves, and shall complete the journey with a visit to Cassandra.

On the second tour, we shall take the main road leading to Sithonia. We shall make two detours, one towards Aghios Mamas and the other towards Nea Olynthos, to visit the archaeological site of ancient Olynthos. We shall also pass by Gerakini, visit Nikete, and from there continue on to Sithonia, ending up at Aghios Nikolaos and Pyrgadikia. On the third journey, we shall visit the inland areas of Chalkidiki. We shall follow the road which links Thessaloniki to Polygyros. We shall visit Vassilika and from there continue on towards Galatista. We shall make a small detour and visit Polygyros, after which we shall continue on to Arnaea, Stageira, and Stratoni, which lies on the shores of the bay of Ierissos. The road from there takes us to Ierissos and ends up at Ouranoupolis.

On the fourth journey, we shall start from the northwestern boundaries of the peninsula of Chalkidiki. We shall visit Asprovalta, beside the Strymonic Gulf, which belongs administratively to the prefecture of Thessaloniki. Taking a southerly direction we shall come to Ierissos, from there continue to Nea Rhoda, and shall complete our tour at Ouranoupolis, the last settlement before Athos. Our journey will end with the fifth and last tour which will be dedicated to the holy mountain of Orthodoxy, Mt. Athos.