The hotel’s excellent location in the center of Trikala’s market, provides a magnificent view to Litheon river and the unique historical monuments of the area, while presenting the opportunity to taste the local cuisine and discover the city and its attractions in a few minutes.

400m from the Fortress
300m from the Old city
350m from the Asklepieion
150m from the Tsitsanis Museum
950m from the Mill of Matsopoulos
150m from the Osman Shah Mosque

 

OLD CITY

The Old City of Trikala, is consisted of the districts Varousi and Manavika. Varousi was the Christian district of Trikala during the Turkish rule and is located at the foot of the fortress. Until 1930, this part of the city was considered as the noble district of Trikala with a large number of old buildings, built between 17th and 19th century, which are preserved until today. In this part are located the oldest churches of the city. Following the district Varousi up to the central square is the part of the city called Manavika, a neighborhood of the old city with a unique architecture. Here are located some of the best restaurants, coffee shops, and bars in the city.

MILL OF MATSOPOULOS

The Mill of Matsopoulos, which was constructed in 1884 ,today is a historical-industrial building and cultural center. During the Christmas period, the stone-built Matsopoulos Mill transforms into the “Mill of Elves”, a famous Christmas park.

OSMAN SHAH MOSQUE

The Osman Shah Mosque (16th century),is a building designed by Mimar Sinan. Behind the mosque stands the mausoleum of Osman Shah, nephew of Sultan Suleyman the Magnificent.

The mosque was founded by Osman Shah, also known as Kara Osman Pasha. Osman was the son of one of Sultan Selim I’s daughters, and for a long time dwelt in Trikala as the governor of the local province (Sanjak of Trikala). The exact dating of the mosque is uncertain, but it was probably built in the period 1550–60, most likely in the late 1550s. Osman attached several charitable establishments to the mosque, among others a madrasah, an alms house, and a caravanserai, and was himself buried in a türbe in the mosque’s southern courtyard at the time of his death in 1567/8. By the time of Evliya Çelebi‘s visit a century later, the mosque was the principal mosque of the city.

The mosque itself was built by the renowned Ottoman architect Mimar Sinan, one of 79 throughout his career, and the only one surviving in modern Greece. It is also the only mosque still standing in the city of Trikala out of the at least eight that Evliya Çelebi reported seeing. The building itself consists of a square prayer hall topped by a large semi-spherical dome, and has a portico (revak) in front, which has recently been rebuilt from its ruined state. The minaret is located on the northwestern corner and is well preserved, except for its missing roof. All other buildings attached to the mosque have since vanished, except for the founder’s octagonal türbe, which is used as a storage site for artefacts recovered from archaeological excavations.

 

VASSILIS TSITSANIS MUSEUM

Vassilis Tsitsanis (1915-1984) was a Greek composer and singer, credited by many with the revival of Rebetico music, a musical genre whose history runs parallel to that of the Blues. Tsitsanis penned wonderful melodies, wrote lyrics about love, death and family becoming a master of the bouzouki. During his lifetime he reached out to broad public and today he continues to gain new fans.

The city of Trikala, where Tsitsanis was born in January 1915, has for years been trying to create a museum befitting the artist who defined the future of Greek music in the 20th century. Housed in a 16th-century Ottoman bath house which in more recent times served as a prison, the Vassilis Tsitsanis Museum – Research Center has finally been completed.

The museum comprises four halls roughly 100 square meters each – the same size as the cells that once housed 70 prisoners.

The first hall will feature audiovisual material and a chronology of career landmarks such as Tsitsanis’s collaborations with renowned Greek singers such as Sotiria Bellou and, composers including Mikis Theodorakis and Manos Hadjidakis, both inspired by the rebetiko master.

The second hall will host an interactive display allowing visitors to listen to songs from old vinyl records, including some original versions, on the telephones once used by inmates to talk to their visitors.

The third hall will be used for various functions and events, while the last room is all about the history of Trikala, the Ottoman baths and the prison, which closed in 2006 – along with songs written by Tsitsanis about the prison experience.

The museum showcase an exhibition on Tsitsanis with memorabilia pertaining to his life, including items donated by his family, such as gramophones and cameras, that have been listed for preservation by the Culture Ministry’s Directorate for Modern Cultural Heritage. The research department of the museum is also responsible for storing all of Tsitsanis’s recordings in digital form and putting together a collection of books.

 

ASKLEPIEION OF TRIKKE

The archaeological site of Asklepieion of Trikke, is the most significant and most ancient of Greece, according to Strabo.

The archaeological site includes:

• Part of a late Hellenistic building which remained in use during the Roman period. The preserved mosaic floors are also dated to the Roman period.
  
  – Part of a late Hellenistic stoa.
  
  – Part of a Roman bath.
  
  – Post-Byzantine church.

 

The preserved ancient remains were brought to light during rescue excavations carried out sporadically between 1902 and 1992, in several private plots.

 

THE BYZANTINE CASTLE

The Byzantine Castle, built by Justinian onto the acropolis of ancient Trikke in the 6th century AD. Later it was rebuilt by the Ottomans, who in the 17th century placed a huge clock tower, which was accompanied by a bell weighing 650 kg (1,433 lb). In 1936, another clock tower was placed and today remains the trademark of the city, while offers a panoramic view to the city.