A MAGIC PLACE
The hotel complex Akrathos Beach Hotel is located in the pre-Athos area just 2 km from Ouranoupolis and 111 km from Macedonia airport, it is built in accordance with the monastic architecture. Surrounded by silvery olive groves, it is wrapped in the aura of the blue sky and the sea.
Harvesting olives from the trees of our hotel is a family affair that we love to share with friends and guests.
Our valuable product, virgin olive oil, is used for the preparation of our guests’ meals.
Your participation in the harvest would give us great pleasure. We invite you to try what we have been cultivating with care for many years.
Ouranoupolis, the cosmopolitan city that separates with its borders the secular from the land of monks, generously offers its charm to visitors and pilgrims. The settlement, created by the refugees from Asia Minor, knows how to keep its tradition and offers unique images. The Tower, the narrow alleys, the cobbled streets, the small harbour with the pilgrims and the monks, create the setting of an unprecedented tour, placing its visitors in a special theatrical setting. After all, Ouranoupolis is the city of the sky (ouranos in Greek)…
The Tower of Ouranoupolis is wrapped in myths, nostalgic stories and tales of older people, being the landmark of the settlement and the surrounding area.
History places the Tower in Byzantine times when it was the old property of the Monastery of Vatopedi on Mount Athos. It was given as a shelter to refugees who came after the Asia Minor disaster in 1924, while a few years later the Lochs (Joice & Sydney Loch), members of a humanitarian organization to help refugees of the First World War, settled there. Their work was considered valuable, while they integrated themselves with the inhabitants, teaching them the art of the loom, writing books and, of course, taking care of the Tower.
Mount Athos is considered the only living monument in the world that reflects Orthodoxy and Byzantine art through its frescoes, monastery architecture, treasures and rare icons.
The land border is at Ouranoupolis, while a large number of pilgrims visit the monasteries every day by boat, following the procedure of issuing a monastery permit.
The first presence of monks on Mount Athos is recorded from the first half of the 9th century. Back then the monks lived in small huts and caves, while over the years the monastic life was organized to reach the current standards.
In the middle of the 10th century, the peninsula of Athos was already recorded as Mount Athos. Much later, in 1926, it was declared self-governing and the sanctuary was enshrined in imperial gold-plated articles of international regulations and in the Greek Constitution, which banned the entry of women.
The monasteries are communal, thus defining common use of food, shelter, work and property by all monks.
Apart from the monasteries on Mount Athos, one can find the sketes, the cells, the huts and the seats, the so-called accessories.
It is worth mentioning that Mount Athos is also called the Garden of the Virgin Mary. According to tradition, the Virgin Mary, on a journey to Cyprus with Lazarus, admiring the beauty of the place, asked Jesus to be dedicated to her as a gift. Since then, this name has accompanied the holiness of the holy peninsula.
Drenia or Gaidouronisia, 6 in number, is one of the most beautiful and pure places in Greece. They extend between Ammouliani and Ouranoupolis from which they are only 2 miles away. The coasts of the islands are sandy with shallow crystal clear waters.
There is just an organized beach with umbrellas, sunbeds and gazebos where the essentials are provided to the guests. Lovers of the sea and the deep will love diving. Visitors are even given the opportunity to swim from one island to another!
You can go to the islands with the small boats that exist in Ouranoupolis, privately with your own boat (it is possible to rent a motorboat with steering wheel without a license) or by rowing your canoe from one island to another.
Undoubtedly, the visit to Drenia will be added to your favorite experiences!
It is the only inhabitable island of Chalkidiki. Its residents are always friendly and hospitable to visitors, creating a special atmosphere of hospitality.
The coasts of the island look exotic… White sand with turquoise clear waters! Proof of the purity and cleanliness of the beaches is their award with blue flags. Alykes, Karagatsi, Ai Giorgis and Megali Ammos are the organized coastal areas of the island where visitors can enjoy hours of coolness, action or relaxation.
The passage to the picturesque island of Ammouliani can be done in 2 ways. From the port of Tripiti by the ferry of the line or by private boat as in Drenia. Many visitors choose to hire a boat to sail around Ammouliani and the islands in just one day.
A visit to Varvara waterfalls gives visitors an unprecedented feeling of total integration with nature!
The waterfalls are hidden between the villages of Varvara and Olympiada, in the forest of Kipourisia, which is adorned with, among other things, itamos, wild hazelnut, beech, ash and alder trees.
The beauties of nature touch the most sensitive chords of the human senses. Away from the hustle and bustle of the city and the demands of everyday life, a visit to the waterfalls will soothe your soul, offering absolute tranquility. Furthermore, visitors can enjoy swimming in the cool waters of the waterfalls.
You can reach the waterfalls in an organized way following the program of an excursion or individually with your vehicle.
One of the greatest philosophers of all times and teacher of Alexander the Great, Aristotle, was born in our country. Ancient Stagira is the home of Aristotle, where the “Grove of Aristotle” was created and dedicated to him. It is the only theme park in Chalkidiki at an altitude of 500 meters overlooking the bay of Ierissos.
In the Grove of Aristotle you will find various interactive instruments such as a compass, telescopes, prisms, solar wheels, flashlight, pentaphone, optical discs, pendulum, whirlpool, inertia spheres, parabolic mirrors, etc. Visitors are given the opportunity to explore and play with the instruments, entering into the mind and thoughts of the great philosopher.
In addition, for hiking enthusiasts, a wonderful 14 km trail has been created that connects the Grove of Aristotle with Ancient Stagira.
Visitors can visit the grove as members of organized tours, individually by private or rental car or even by shuttle bus.
Blessed is the land where the olive and the vine thrive. How could our fair land be devoid of the vine? In the wider region there are several wineries ready to welcome you and share with you their fruits and flavours.
Apart from wine tasting, visitors are given the opportunity to visit both the premises of each winery and the vineyards (when conditions allow)
The wineries are built on hills offering at the same time their own unique view. They welcome visitors through organized tours and individually. A prerequisite for wine tasting at the wineries is to contact them by phone at least one day in advance in order to schedule the time of the visit.
An art that struggles not to be extinguished over the centuries is that of the shipwrights In the country that the sea loves to embrace, boats are its cornerstone. The wooden boats are traditionally cared for by the experienced hands of the technicians. The boatyard is located on the coast of Ierissos and is an attraction for visitors. One will always come across ships under construction and maintenance, but the luckier ones will witness the unique spectacle of the transport of ships to and from the sea.
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