Ouranoupolis is a small town where most places in the village can be reached by foot.

The closest large city is Thessaloniki. The visitor usually starts from there. The city is located around 80-miles to the north-west of the Mount Athos point of entry. It has an international airport with many connections to European cities. The city itself is the second largest city in Greece next to Athens.

Ouranoupolis can be reached by bus, car or taxi from Thessaloniki. To get by bus, you have to get to Chalkidiki Bus Station, located south of Thessaloniki. To get to this bus station you can take bus 45A from the commuter bus station adjacent to Thessaloniki Train Station: Chalkidiki Bus Station is the final stop. Schedule information can be found at www.ktel-chalkidikis.gr.

The only way to enter Mount Athos is by sea. From Thessaloniki one must travel the 80-miles by car, taxi or bus. Most visitors embark on one of the vessels leaving from the port of Ouranoupolis on the south side of the peninsula on the gulf of Siggitikos also known as gulf of Agion Oros. If the weather permits there is also a possibility to enter the Mount Athos peninsula from the small port of Ierissos on the northern side, on Strymonian gulf.

The boats from Ouranoupolis take the visitors to Daphni, the main port in the middle of the peninsula. On the way, they also make intermediate stops on monasteries along the coast. From Daphni one can catch a bus to Karies, the administrative center of the monastic society and from there other buses to any of the monasteries. Or, from Daphni one can travel even further south up until Karoulia, at the foot of the mountain, by corresponding boats. Alternatively, from the north side the boat stops to all the monasteries on the sea, until the monastery Megistis Lavras, if the weather is kind.

Generally speaking the transportation to and from Ouranoupolis is rather easy going. However the bus routes in Mount Athos are not so easy to arrange and the schedules are very flexible. It is advisable to have our assistance as a local contact to make sure that the visiting plan can be followed.