One-day pilgrimage tour to Mount Athos

Athos is an incredible place; the Holy Mountain halfway between Heaven and Earth. For the last 1500 years, Athos has been holding a special place in the Christian Orthodox world: the way of life here is not subject to worldly laws. It’s an autonomous monastic state under the jurisdiction of the Patriarch of Constantinople; an autonomous part of Greece, with Greek being the state language.

Today in Mount Athos there are 20 functioning monasteries, which have patriarchal stauropegial status (17 Greek and three Slavonic: one Russian, one Bulgarian and one Serbian). Apart from the monasteries, there are 12 sketes and more than 500 cells and desert settlements on the Holy Mountain. Overall, about 2,000 monks reside in Mount Athos.

Book our pilgrimage tour, and let’s start exploring the shrines of the Holy Mountain! The program includes visiting the most important monasteries cherished by the Christian Orthodox world.

For more than a thousand years there has been an unbreakable law in Mount Athos, according to which only men are allowed to set foot on the territory of the monastic republic. Women, unfortunately, cannot participate in the tour, but they can buy it as a gift for their loved ones. Women, however, can take a cruise along Mount Athos shores, where the monks of the Holy Mountain bring the miraculous icons and relics of the saints to the cruise ships.

The pilgrimage begins in Ouranoupoli where we take a boat to the Athonite State. We arrive at the pier of the St. Panteleimon Monastery in Athos, where the honorable head and the miracle-working icon of the Great Martyr and Healer Panteleimon are treasured.

We set out to our next destination by car. It is the Holy and Great Monastery of Vatopaidi (972) where seven miraculous icons are safekept, including the Pantanassa (“Queen of All”) known for healing cancer. The icon called “Paramythia”, meaning “Comfort” or “Consolation”, a favourite icon of Saint Dimitry of Rostov, is also kept here. Main shrines of this monastery are the Cincture (belt) of the Theotokos and the Honorable Head of St. John Chrysostom.

On to the next point of our journey. It'll be Karyes, the capital of Athos, with the Parliament and representative offices of all the 20 monasteries. The major temple here is the Protaton, the church of the head of the monastic community, or Protos. Karyes is also home to the primary shrine of Athos: the “Axion Estin” icon (“It is Truly Meet/Right”), dated 962, depicting the Theotokos (Mother of God), who is the patroness of the whole Athos.

Then, we visit the majestic skete of the Apostle Andrew the First-Called, built by Russian monks and benefactors, where the Honorable Head of this great Saint and one of the closest disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ rests.

We then head on to the Iviron monastery hosting the miracle-working icon the Iviron Theotokos and more relics of canonized holy saints than any other monastery in Athos.

Upon finishing the pilgrimage, we take a boat from the pier of the St. Panteleimon Monastery back to Ouranoupoli.

Timeline:

• 7:30 — arrival to the meeting point with the guide in Ouranoupoli
• 17:30 — approximate time of the trip wrap-up in Ouranoupoli

During the trip, pilgrims are accompanied by a Christian Orthodox guide and travel about the monastic republic in an SUV or minibus.

Please note that the pilgrimage center reserves the right to change the sequence of visits and the list of monasteries due to weather, transportation and other reasons beyond our control.