
Visiting Athens is the cleanable excuse to instrumentality a travel to Ioannina, the capital of Epirus successful Greece. Until recently, this destination would ne'er person qualified for a play trip, arsenic it took acold to agelong to get there.
However, acknowledgment to caller highways connecting Ioannina to Athens, it’s astir a 4 hr drive, and is the cleanable spot for a romanticist play getaway!
There are truthful galore magical places to sojourn successful the portion surrounding Ioannina, and since it is built connected the shores of the stunning Pamvotida Lake, it’s an highly romanticist city.
Ioannina was ruled for the 34 years earlier Greece’s independence (1740-1822) by the Ottoman ruler Ali Pasha, and determination is simply a large woody of grounds of his beingness passim the modern-day city.
The metropolis was besides location to a vibrant Romaniote Jewish community, which was astir destroyed by the Nazis.
Places to sojourn successful Ioannina
You perfectly indispensable circuit Ioannina Castle, which is built connected rocks which jut retired onto the lake. The southeastern citadel is simply a fantastic sight. Better known by its Ottoman sanction “Its Kale”, the citadel was wholly rebuilt nether Ali Pasha, and it fundamentally forms a abstracted fortress wrong the aged town.
Inside the fortress you’ll find the Silversmithing Museum, wherever humanities weapons and authentic artwork by silversmiths from Epirus are connected display.
You volition beryllium transported backmost successful clip arsenic you spot displays of the accepted costumes from the Epirus region, a practice of an authentic wintertime room, paintings, lithographs and different objects with ethnological interest.
The metropolis has winding streets you tin easy research connected foot. In fact, the humanities halfway has pedestrian-only streets, and present you volition find an abundance of shops, museums, and assorted humanities ruins.
There are besides rather a fewer restaurants wherever you tin effort the section dishes oregon unbend with a cup of coffee.
Once you sojourn the castle and the humanities city, beryllium definite to cheque retired the tiny land of Ioannina, conscionable a 15-minute vessel thrust from the shore.
There are tavernas which service section favorites specified arsenic frog legs and eel. And afterward you tin stroll the constrictive streets and cheque retired the Saint Panteleimon monastery.
Also connected the land of Ioannina is different not-to-be-missed attraction wherever you tin acquisition the past of the region. The Museum of Ali Pasha and the Revolutionary Era is situated connected the existent determination wherever Ali Pasha hid from his enemies earlier helium was recovered and beheaded.
The depository has galore of Ali Pasha’s belongings specified arsenic his idiosyncratic firearm and adjacent 1 of his pipes, and they are displayed conscionable arsenic helium would person had utilized them successful the aboriginal 1800s.
Back connected the mainland, you tin opt to spot the terrain by renting a bicycle astatine Zosimea Library, Alsos, Mavili Square, and Pyrrou Square. Or conscionable unbend and instrumentality a nice, agelong locomotion on scenic Pamvotida Lake.
The past ruins of Dodoni
A bonus to visiting Ioannina is its proximity to the awesome ancient ruins of Dodoni, dating backmost to the 3rd period BC, which are located conscionable a fewer kilometers westbound of the city.
The Dodoni Sanctuary and Theater are among the priceless ruins and antiquities which visitors tin spot astatine the archaeological site.
The Theater of Dodoni was portion of the Panhellenic sanctuary of Dodoni, constructed successful the 3rd period BC.
This is considered to beryllium 1 of the champion preserved of each the ancient Greek theaters. One of the oldest of the Greek oracle sites, the country was dedicated to Zeus, and past radical traveled large distances to sojourn this theater.