Volos Excursions

[JM0115]

Has anyone docked in Volos on Azamara? If so what excursion did you do? Has anyone done Meteora from Volos on AZ excursion or private? Recommendations please.

[ewenwash]

15 minutes ago, JM0115 said:

Has anyone docked in Volos on Azamara? If so what excursion did you do? Has anyone done Meteora from Volos on AZ excursion or private? Recommendations please.

We were in Volos 8am-8pm in Oct 2021.  I did not find alternative/private tours on the www from Volos to Meteora. With 4 people, we rented a car to drive there.  Had to have the car back by 4pm.[!] Required International license. I saw trips to Meteora from other towns on the www.

[java spot]

I went up into the mountain villages and thought it was gorgeous.  If you are traveling with a group, it may be really nice to hire a driver to go up there so you can take more time.  It was a hot summer day but 15 degrees cooler up in the mountains. 

[h2ocruiser]

We did Meteora from Volos as an Azamara Excursion last summer as we had a ton of OBC. It was probably a group of 16 to 20 people and it was an excellent excursion with very good guides. 

[conman]

Meteora is what you want to do in Volos.  We hired a guide and a driver to take us to Meteora.  After the tour we were taken back to Volos and had Tsipouro.  Its a local drink much like Ouzo.  Yes it packs a punch but they also bring lots of Tapas style foods.  If you have a second drink they bring another round of food.  Our guide told us that people come from all over to go to these places.  Do not miss Meteora while in Volos.

[Solent Richard]

19 hours ago, JM0115 said:

Has anyone docked in Volos on Azamara? If so what excursion did you do? Has anyone done Meteora from Volos on AZ excursion or private? Recommendations please.

 

I may be able to advise you here. We did a call at Volos with Hapag-Lloyd's Europa 2 and did their Meteora excursion which turned out to be amazing. I covered the excursion on my cruise blog, just scroll down to the Itinerary section....

 

https://solentrichardscruiseblog.com/2014/10/03/europa-2-raising-the-bar/

 

 

*****

 

[wjfan417]

Is there any way to see the exterior of the monasteries without the hike up and down (can you wait at the bottom while the rest of the tour goes up)? Looks beautiful but unfortunately both my husband and I have developed some foot issues and wouldn’t be able to do the climb.

[Host Jazzbeau]

5 hours ago, wjfan417 said:

Is there any way to see the exterior of the monasteries without the hike up and down (can you wait at the bottom while the rest of the tour goes up)? Looks beautiful but unfortunately both my husband and I have developed some foot issues and wouldn’t be able to do the climb.

Yes, but for some of the monasteries you would be very far away. And the wait might be long indeed. I would advise booking a private guide, who will know which monasteries are most easily accessible. 

[tmacktravels]

I can absolutely recommend https://www.taxiinvolos.gr/transfers/taxi-volos-to-meteora-tour/

I did this last year and they were brilliant. They will adapt to whatever you require regards visiting the monasteries and will stop whenever you want for that perfect photo.(something that wouldn’t happen on a coach tour). As I had a mobility issue, we visited the monasteries that required the least amount of walking but still visited the others at their starting points. So saw way more on the day. Also, we were taken to lunch in a really authentic greek restaurant that locals would go. We also did a wee diversion on the way back to ship and enjoyed an hour or so in Makrinitsa. Without doubt my most memorable and amazing day on a 20 night B2B Azamara cruise 

Edited April 11, 2023 by tmacktravels
Change photos that didn’t work

[cpgrneyes]

2 hours ago, tmacktravels said:

I can absolutely recommend https://www.taxiinvolos.gr/transfers/taxi-volos-to-meteora-tour/

Thanks for the recommendation! We’ll be there on Onward in October, and I’ve already contacted them for information. Much appreciated.

[kate61880]

On 4/9/2023 at 7:56 AM, conman said:

Meteora is what you want to do in Volos.  We hired a guide and a driver to take us to Meteora.  After the tour we were taken back to Volos and had Tsipouro.  Its a local drink much like Ouzo.  Yes it packs a punch but they also bring lots of Tapas style foods.  If you have a second drink they bring another round of food.  Our guide told us that people come from all over to go to these places.  Do not miss Meteora while in Volos.

Do you have your guides info?

[annapolitan369]

We also used taxiinvolos when on the Journey last year and concur that it was the best tour of our cruise.  Highly recommended and I think very reasonably priced.  Don't mis Meteora.  We are not the most mobile anymore but were able to visit 2 of the monasteries and drive as near as possible to several others.  Don't miss it!

[yogagal47]

On 4/9/2023 at 12:25 PM, wjfan417 said:

Is there any way to see the exterior of the monasteries without the hike up and down (can you wait at the bottom while the rest of the tour goes up)? Looks beautiful but unfortunately both my husband and I have developed some foot issues and wouldn’t be able to do the climb.

On the Azamara tour we did in June ‘22 we visited several monasteries at Meteora. In my opinion, none of the walking we did qualified as hiking. In some cases, there may have been a few steps up and then of course you have to walk around the monasteries themselves. But this was definitely not a hiking tour. The monasteries each tour visits changes from day today, depending upon what is open. The day we went we actually visited monasteries that were run by nuns. We had to cover ourselves, and at one facility, they even made me buy a rap to put around my hips when I already had slacks on! This is a long bus ride both ways, but it is quite spectacular.

[k0k0]

We did the Azamara excursion from Volos to Meteora in July 2022.

An 8am coach, long (3 hour?) drive to Meteroa and we went inside inside 2 monasteries - St Stephen’s and Varlaam.  The coach took us between the two, with a short photo-stop on the way.

Both monasteries were extremely busy - Varlaam was particularly bad. You couldn't walk up the steps to enter as the queue went all the way down the steps. That may have been good for the older people as there were plenty opportunities to sit on the wall, then shuffle up 2 steps, and sit on the wall again!

The trip certainly did not include any hiking. The most uncomfortable part for me was sitting in the coach for about 6 hours of the day.  I’m glad that I went, because we used OBC, and its astonishing how they built in such an inhospitable environment, but I wouldn’t go again, and without the OBC it would be a very expensive trip for what was a very short time inside.

[sofietucker]

Has anyone done anything else in Volos? We've been to Meteora before (stayed in Kalabaka so no long drive).

[luv2travel90266]

On 6/5/2023 at 8:02 AM, sofietucker said:

Has anyone done anything else in Volos? We've been to Meteora before (stayed in Kalabaka so no long drive).

I see you went in 2023. We are leaving in the fall for a similar Azamara itinerary and also looking for what to do in Volos? Prior to the cruise we will be renting a car and driving so are staying in Kalabaka for 2 nights so looking for something else to do in that port stop. 

[sofietucker]

1 hour ago, luv2travel90266 said:

I see you went in 2023. We are leaving in the fall for a similar Azamara itinerary and also looking for what to do in Volos? Prior to the cruise we will be renting a car and driving so are staying in Kalabaka for 2 nights so looking for something else to do in that port stop. 

We actually were cancelled for going to Volos due to severe ruinous flooding at that time... Went to Cesme (Turkey) instead. But we had PLANNED to visit the small-but-nice Volos archaeological museum and then go to the highly recommended beach, literally a couple of blocks away. We had originally tried to do a ship's excursion that went to a town (Makritsnya?) and then the beach--but that was cancelled on us TWICE. The other itinerary that went to that town would have put us in a coach for hours... I'm sure Volos will have bounced back by the time you go.

PS--I found organic Greek saffron threads for 5 euro (a box of 4 envelopes) in Kalambaka. Astonishing.

Edited February 10 by sofietucker

[wjfan417]

2 hours ago, luv2travel90266 said:

I see you went in 2023. We are leaving in the fall for a similar Azamara itinerary and also looking for what to do in Volos? Prior to the cruise we will be renting a car and driving so are staying in Kalabaka for 2 nights so looking for something else to do in that port stop. 

We went in July 2023 and visited Meteora and Makrynitsa with a private tour operator that had been recommended by others on this board-Taxi in Volos.

[java spot]

Also went to Makrynitsa and another hillside town and it was wonderful.   Highly recommend a visit high up into the hills if a long bus ride early in the a.m. is not something that makes you happy 

[luv2travel90266]

Did you get a taxi or was there an excursion offered? 

[java spot]

It was an excursion but highly recommend a cab so you can take it at your own pace.  I thought it was gorgeous - amazing mountain air that is 15 degrees cooler than at the port.  Beautiful vistas and interesting architecture.