Best things to do in Thessaloniki – Top 5 places to visit in Thessaloniki

Are you looking for best things to do in Thessaloniki and more specifically top 5 places to visit in Thessaloniki? You’re in the right place! I chose my absolute favorite spots I’ve visited in Thessaloniki and also two of them are outside the city, but totally worth it. Even if you’ll need to rent a car to reach them, in my opinion, they should be totally added to your bucket list. Also, other than the road trip to these two places, everything on the list was free, so this top 5 places to visit in Thessaloniki list is also great for a budget traveler!

If you are interested in further advice about traveling on a budget, I have an article with 20 of my best tips. You can access it by clicking here. Also, you can check this article with 10 cheap countries to visit. There are a lot of cheap countries to visit, but I chose my favorites among the cheapest.

So let’s start with the list!

1. Kavourotrypes Beach

Amazing beach and landscape in the list of best things to do in Thessaloniki

This is one of the most dreamy places I’ve been to in Greece. It’s amazing to think of this because I had absolutely no expectations for this place

A downside of this incredibly beautiful spot is that you’ll need a car to reach it. This is one of the two places I mentioned at the beginning of the article. Still, trust me, it’s totally worth it! You can see more of it in my YouTube video linked above. This is for sure one of the best things to do in Thessaloniki! You can either stay at the beach and relax . There is a bar and also sunbeds and umbrellas where you can just relax.

One thing to be aware of is that you’re not allowed to raise drones. So if you’re a drone lover (like me), be aware that you are not allowed to film with your drone here (the sign is printed on the bar, so it’s easy to not notice it). I loved that it was not crowded at all and also if you walk a little bit on the white rocks, you’ll get rewarded by amazing views of the sea. This is one of the most beautiful places I’ve seen in northern Greece!

2. Trigonion tower

Unlike the previous spot I’ve mentioned, this one is very crowded, but also beautiful! It’s the second one on my top 5 places to visit in Thessaloniki because I truly loved it.

Even if it was crowded, the view is unbeatable. You can see the entire Thessaloniki from there! There were also people working out or staying on the walls and relaxing. It’s for sure one of those places where you can buy something to drink and sit down and relax. It’s in the other side of the city than the White Tower and sea, but it’s not that hard to reach. If you like walking a lot, it’s also reachable by feet. The sure fact is that it’s one of the best places to visit in Thessaloniki and it’s also in the city, so no need for rented car here.

3. Heptapyrgion (Acropolis of Thessaloniki)

One of the top 5 places to visit in Thessaloniki for the Walls, view and for relaxing

This is actually a place where I saw lots of local people. First of all, there was enough space for paring, in case you have a car. Then, you can go around the walls which is very nice and relaxing. When I visited it, the inside was closed because of the virus. Still, if you travel when there are no restrictions, maybe you can get inside. After you walk for a bit of time, you can go and see the city view

In the place where we were admiring the city view, there were lots of local teenagers. You can sit on the walls (which are not high) and relax. The view is not as wide as the one from Trigonion tower, but it’s still impressive! The parking was also free, which was very convenient for us.

If you want to reach this place by foot, you’ll have to climb a bit to reach it, but it’s pretty close to Trigonion tower, so you can see them both in the same day. For Trigonion tower, the parking was more challenging, we were lucky to find a parking spot close to it.

4. Diaporos island

And the second place of the two I mentioned at the beginning of the article. This impressive place is actually a hidden gem that I found while exploring on Google Maps. I had zero expectations for it, I didn’t even know how to reach it by car. There was a small road where we entered and then we found a parking lot. We stopped there and went to explore this beautiful small path of sand in the middle of the sea.

This place is for sure accessible only by car, I wouldn’t even think there would be a bus because it’s very unpopular. We were the only people there and also on Google Maps there are no ratings.

I wouldn’t take a bath here as it didn’t seem clean, but I would stay and relax for a while, then go to Kavourotrypes beach to enter in the sea.

5. White Tower of Thessaloniki & walking around the sea

This is probably the most popular and crowded place in all Thessaloniki. If you don’t like crowded places, I would recommend you to skip the walk around the sea and go directly to the White Tower from the other side of the city or from the inside. You can there stay and relax on a bench, there are also people singing usually, so it’s pretty relaxing.

The entrance fee is around 2-3 euros, if you want to go inside too. It was, as I mentioned above about all the other things, closed when we entered. Still, if you visit Thessaloniki without restrictions, you can go inside as it’s not that pricy, if you want.

Wrapping up