Guide for Konitsa
This is a place of lofty peaks, steadfast mountains and thickly-forested gorges in the mountain ranges of Grammos, Smolikas and Tymfi, and a crossing point for the Aoos, Sarantaporos and Voidomatis Rivers.
Perched on the slopes of Trapezitsa, near the Aoos Gorge, Konitsa, near the border with Albania, is a particularly charming county town. Here it is worth visiting the Photographic Exhibition of the Monuments of Konitsa, the Museum of Wine and Vine, the Museum of Natural History and Folklore, the Environmental Education Center, as well as the Hussein Bey mansion house, the Suleiman Mosque and the complex of buildings built for Hamko, Ali Pasha’s mother. The stone bridge at the entrance of the Aoos River is a landmark and one of the highlights of the area, while the bridges Kleidonia, Zerma and Mavri Petra in Pournia are also impressive.
The ‘Mastorochoria’ (‘Villages of the Master Craftsmen’) in the north were home to famed stonemasons and other artists (icon painters, wood carvers, etc.), who constructed wonderful buildings throughout the Balkans. The Ethnological Museum of Stonemasons in Pyrsogianni offers an opportunity to admire their work. At Bourazani you can take a tour around the Environmental Education Park and the Natural History Museum, where you can admire the stunning wildlife of the Epirote countryside (mainly deer, roe deer and wild boar). Of the numerous monasteries, the Monastery of Panagia Stomiou stands out, where the Venerable Elder Paisios lived for four years. It is located on one of the most impressive sites anywhere in the country, in the ravine of Aoos and Molivdoskepasti. In Ano Kleidonia there are also churches dating back to the late Byzantine era that still survive today. Between Tymfi and Smolikas lies the famous Lakka Aoos Valley, with its exquisite mountain scenery and authentic traditional villages. Visit Palaioseli, one of the first of the Vlach villages in the region, Pades, and Distrato, the largest of these villages, which is just 12 km from Vasilitsa Ski Centre.
Go rafting or kayaking down the Aoos and Voidomatis Rivers. Here you can try mountain biking, hang-gliding, mountaineering and climbing, horse riding and archery, canyoning in the Aoos Gorge, and skiing at the Vasilitsa Ski Centre.
In the Municipality of Konitsa are two of Greece’s registered thermal springs, in the villages of Amarandos and Kavasila, where you can enjoy therapeutic spa treatments.
Activities
Experiences
Epirus manages to be a one-of-a-kind destination: an enviable combination of cultures and traditions, with a natural environment unique in Greece, and it never fails to surprise and delight its visitors. Epirus is located in the north-west corner of Greece and is an ideal travel destination all year round.
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Epirus manages to be a one-of-a-kind destination: an enviable combination of cultures and traditions, with a natural environment unique in Greece, and it never fails to surprise and delight its visitors. Epirus is located in the north-west corner of Greece and is an ideal travel destination all year round.
