← Thessaloniki Marathon·Day trip

Pella: The Capital Where the Race Begins

The ancient Macedonian capital where the marathon starts, with a museum and an excavated site that suit a slow Monday on tired legs.

DurationDay trip
TransitArranged road transfer or taxi, about 1 hour to 1 hour 30 minutes each way
DepartsThessaloniki

After the Thessaloniki Marathon: Pella

The Route: Thessaloniki → Pella → Thessaloniki Logistics: Prearranged road transfer or taxi, roughly 1 to 1.5 hours each way. The site is about 40 km from the city, and the marathon course runs the opposite way along the same corridor. Marathon Month: April Duration: Day trip

Thessaloniki ──(1-1.5 hrs by transfer or taxi)──> Pella
      ▲                                              │
      └──────────────(1-1.5 hrs)────────────────────┘

The Alexander the Great Marathon finishes on the Thessaloniki waterfront on a Sunday in April, and most runners spent the first hour of that Sunday on a coach heading the other way. On Monday you can go back to Pella at a more reasonable hour, on a road that now has a surface you recognise. The site is flat, there is a museum with seats, and nobody expects you to run.

April at Pella. The plain around Pella is green in April, and rain is possible. Daytime temperatures are usually mild, cooler in the morning, and conditions vary from year to year. The site has little shade, so a hat and a light waterproof are both worth packing.

Getting there needs some planning. Check the KTEL timetable for services towards Giannitsa and ask whether a connection runs to the site. Otherwise a prearranged transfer or a taxi from Thessaloniki is the most dependable option, and a hire car is a fine alternative. Agree a waiting time or a pick-up time with the driver, because the site is on the edge of the village and taxis are not always on hand for a return.

The site and the museum

Pella was the capital of the kingdom of Macedonia from the late fifth century BC, and Alexander the Great was born here in 356 BC. The excavated city sits on a gentle slope, with the foundations of large houses laid out along paved streets. The best-known finds are the pebble mosaics from the houses, with scenes of hunting and mythological figures, which are now in the museum.

The paths between the excavated houses are level compacted earth and short, and the whole circuit can be done at a slow pace in an hour or less. There is little seating outside the museum, so pick the stretches you want to see. The Archaeological Museum of Pella displays the mosaics, with seating in the galleries and level floors. Check the Ministry of Culture site for current opening hours and admission before you go, as they change with the season.

The marathon's start is in the village square nearby, beside the Alexander statue. If you ran the race you will have been here before dawn, in the dark, wondering whether the coach driver knew where he was going. It looks quite different in daylight.

Back in Thessaloniki

Return by the same transfer. If you have time before dinner, walk the flat waterfront promenade near the White Tower, where the race finished, and sit down for as long as you like.