Thessaloniki On National Geographic’s “Must-See” List

“A bolt of Greece lightning” is how the National Geographic characterized Thessaloniki in its “Best of the World 2013” list. Thessaloniki is the European Capital for 2014. (Photograph by Peter Schickert, Alamy)

Greece’s second largest city, Thessaloniki, was included as one as one of the new year’s 20 must-see travel destinations in the National Geographic magazine’s “Best of the World 2013” list.

“Although the euro crisis has caused ripples of discontentment here, it’s the century-old street markets filled with ripe fruits and barrels of fresh feta that symbolize this city,” the National Geographic said.

The magazine praises Thessaloniki’s “sparking harbor” that has remained “one of the last urban seafronts in southern Europe not hemmed in by a giant marina.

“Instead, wooden caïques still ply the quiet bay while footpaths trace the meandering waterfront of Greece’s second largest city, some 320 miles north—and a world away—from chaotic Athens,” the article underlined.

National Geographic recommends discovering Thessaloniki on foot, walking from the ruins of Ano Poli to Aristotelous Square on the waterfront.

“Tucked between relics of Byzantine and Ottoman antiquity are art galleries, bohemian nightclubs, and culinary hot spots, all part of a grassroots vision turned reality by Thessaloniki’s large (about 50 percent of the population) do-it-yourself youth culture,” the magazine mentions in its description of the Northern Greek city.

Thessaloniki this year celebrated the anniversary of 100 years since its liberation after nearly five centuries of Ottoman rule.