Greece - Korina Miller [242]
Up the hill across town, the Byzantine Museum ( 23310 25847; Thomaidou 26; admission €2; 8am-3pm Tue-Sun) is Veria’s coolest museum. It presents priceless icons and other Byzantine antiquities, like 5th-century floor mosaics, marble epigraphy and ornate sarcophagi in a sumptuously lit, three-floor space complemented by explanatory wall placards. The helpful staff explain the exhibits, which illustrate daily life in ancient and Byzantine Veria.
Few of Veria’s dozens of Byzantine churches are open; a good bet is the fresco-rich, 14th-century Church of the Resurrection of Christ (admission free; 8.30am-3.30pm Tue-Sun) in the centre.
In winter, Mt Vermio, 22km west, is a popular ski centre with eight slopes and three lifts – good for beginners.
Sleeping
Since Veria’s largely a business destination, budget travellers are in for a world of pain.
Hotel Macedonia ( 23310 66902; Kontogiorgaki 50; s/d €50/72; ) A quiet hotel with good, well-furnished rooms, the Macedonia also has a nice rooftop terrace. From Elias take Paster, which becomes Kontogiorgaki.
Hotel Villa Elia ( 23310 26800; eliaver@otenet.gr; Elias 16; s/d €55/70; ) Slightly louder but closer to the action is this business hotel with large, comfortable rooms.
Hotel En Eari ( 23310 75788; www.eneari.gr; Leoforos Anixeos 82; s/d/tr €85/110/143; ) Sparkling new luxury hotel located near the Archaeological Museum with spacious rooms and well-lit cafe windows.
Eating & Drinking
Veria has numerous tasty eateries, and some buzzing bars on the pezodromos. Local specialities include oven-cooked fasoladha (bean soup) and revani, a sweet syrupy Turkish cake.
Zaharoplasteio Konstantinos ( 23310 70196; Elias 2; pites €2; 24hr) Visit this cheery central place for a morning coffee and tyropita (cheese pie), bougatsa (semonlina pudding) and other sweets.
Menou ( 23310 72788; Plateia Raktivan 14; mains €5-8) Try the fasoladha at this vegetarian-friendly joint, or the imam baïldi (baked eggplant with ground beef).
Vergiotiko ( 23310 74133; Thomaidou 2; mains €5-9; noon-midnight) This wonderful, grottolike traditional restaurant is literally carved from the town’s old Byzantine walls, and has great ambience. Service is friendly, the portions hearty, the food fresh and inventive. Try the pork with aubergines, or pungent mushrooms. It’s located up a hill, where the road forks left to Vergina or right to the Byzantine Museum.
To Katafygio ( 23310 27227; Kontogeorgaki 18; mains €5-9) This ‘hide-out’, as its name means in Greek, occupies a restored old building and serves game dishes such as quail, mushroom specialities, and more usual taverna fare.
Fournos ( 23310 29829; Ellis 14; 8.30pm-late) On the pezodromos, 100m down from the corner of Kontogiordaki, this cool, low-lit bar is marked by smooth wood and jazz (along with Greek music), and gets busy after midnight. Other popular bars are nearby too.
Getting There & Away
BUS
From the bus station ( 23310 22342; Trembesinas) buses serve Thessaloniki (€6, one hour, half-hourly), Athens (€31.50, 6½ hours, three daily), Edessa (€4.20, one hour, four daily), Naoussa (€1.80, 25 minutes, 22 daily) and Vergina (€1.40, 20 minutes, eight daily). Buses for Kastoria (€10.90, two hours, six daily) go from a station ( 23310 75170; Pierion 155), 2km west of town.
TRAIN
From the train station ( 23310 24444), north of town off the old Thessaloniki road, 14 daily trains traverse the line connecting Veria with Thessaloniki (€3.20, one hour) and Florina (€4, two hours).
Getting Around
Veria is walkable; there are also taxis ( 23310 63394).
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VERGINA ΒΕΡΓΙΝΑ
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Vergina (ver-yee-nah), 11km southeast of Veria, is the legendary burial site of the Macedonian kings, and their first capital (ancient Aigai). In 336 BC, at the wedding of his daughter Cleopatra, Philip II was assassinated here. At least the guests were already there.
This World Heritage–listed site is also called the Royal Tombs ( 23310 92347; adult €8; noon-7.30pm Mon, 8am-7.30pm Tue-Sun summer, 8.30am-3pm winter). A walkway through the interior