A mountainous region with the imposing peaks of Pindos, where people coexist with nature in a harmonious and creative way. The area is full of fir and oak forests, rivers, plains and, of course, the unique natural phenomenon of the rock pillars of Meteora. People that live here adore this rich and in the same time wild nature and they built their stone houses, bridged the rivers' banks with arched bridges, built water mills and honored their faith to God by building monasteries in the crags of Meteora. They developed their settlements with the mores and traditions, which deeply characterize the culture of Greek mainland. Each year visitors from all over the world come to enjoy this feeling during all seasons of the year. A visit to Meteora is considered to be mandatory for religious, geological and architectural reasons, for those who love climbing and hiking or just for those who search something unique. And, of course, who doesn’t want to wake up among firs in one of the traditional villages surrounded by forests? During winter snow is adding a unique beauty to the scenery while in springtime wild strawberries and all kinds of mushrooms sprout in the trees hollows. And the exploration begins…
This beauty was discovered a long time ago, since archaeological findings in the Trikala Prefecture, especially in the cave of Theopetra, confirm the existence of humans in the region since the Middle Paleolithic period, i.e. 100.000 years ago. The history of the region begins back at that time and continues uninterruptedly up to this day. Important findings from the Middle and the Late Neolithic period have been excavated in Megalo Kefalovryso and in Zarko respectively. Homer’s references in the city of Trikki, Mycenaean findings in the excavation of Asclepius, slavery to Persian people in 480 BC, participation in the campaign of Alexander the Great against Persian people in 324 BC, Roman dominance in the region in 197 BC and finally the spread of Christianism in this particular part of the Roman Empire are in brief evidence of the human presence in this region during the past centuries.