What Is Trikala Known For?

Trikala claims to be the birthplace of the god of medicine himself, and that ancient reputation sits alongside a modern one built on Christmas lights and thousands of bicycles.

Trikala is known first for Asclepius, the ancient Greek god of medicine, who according to the geographer Strabo was born along the banks of the Litheos River that still runs through the city center. Homer's Iliad even lists Trikala among the cities that sent ships to the Trojan War, led by Asclepius's own sons, Machaon and Podaleirios, who had learned medicine from their father. That connection has stayed part of the city's identity for close to three thousand years, since Trikala ranks among the oldest continuously inhabited settlements in Europe.

The city is equally known today for the Mill of the Elves, Greece's largest Christmas theme park, built inside the restored Matsopoulos Mill, the first industrial flour mill ever built in the country and once the largest in the Balkans. Since its 2011 transformation, the mill now draws roughly a million visitors each December, giving Trikala a reputation as the country's unofficial Christmas capital.

Trikala is also known for its cycling culture, with more than 30,000 bicycles in daily use across the city and flat, well-designed streets that make it one of the most bike-friendly places in Greece. Thirteen bridges cross the Litheos, including the Central Bridge, built by French engineers in 1888 and still connecting the old and new parts of the city today.

Music rounds out Trikala's identity further, as the birthplace of rebetiko composer Vasilis Tsitsanis, and the Manavika neighborhood, home to a mural honoring him, sits close enough to make an easy pairing with a visit to nearby Meteora.