After a scenic route alongside the Aspropotamos River and in the woods of southern Pindos Mountain, the monastery of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross is located at an altitude of 1150 meters. It’s between Doliana and Krania villages, just 50 km from Meteora, because of its dependency from the holy monastery of St. Stephanos of Meteora. The monastery can be accessed either from Meteora or from the villages of Koziakas, if you’re already in one of them. The
road from both directions is very good and you won’t come up against any difficulty. It was built around the 17th century and part of it was burnt by Germans in 1943. The monastery has dozens of visitors daily who come to admire its impressive 13 domes. It’s Basilica, made of stones and covered with plates. It’s listed preservable by the Ministry of Culture and every September on the 14th, there’s a big celebration there.
The visit to the monastery can be combined with many other options, such as a visit to the villages of South Pindos, hiking and rafting in the waters of Aspropotamos river, since there are three starting points in the area. The closest starting point is in the position “tria potamia” (three rivers). Details on the map.
The Holy Monastery is open every day, except Wednesdays, from April 1st to October 30th. Open from 10 am to 6pm.
