A Kavala itinerary: two days, an aqueduct

That aqueduct is the reason to stop, the Panagia quarter above it is the reason to stay a night, and Philippi inland is the reason to give the city two days rather than one. Everything else is in the Kavala guide.

Day 1: the Kamares, and the Panagia quarter

Start with the aqueduct, because you cannot miss it and should not try. The Kamares runs on two tiers of arches straight across a modern street between the old town and the new. It follows a Roman line and was rebuilt in the sixteenth century under Suleiman, and the city uses it as a landmark, a meeting point and a roundabout at once.

Walking under it is the moment people remember about Kavala. Do that first, then climb.

The Panagia quarter is the old town on the headland: lanes of Ottoman and later houses climbing to a castle at the top, with the bay on both sides. It is small enough to walk in an hour and good enough to walk twice. The Imaret, a large Ottoman almshouse complex on the slope, is the other set piece and is now a hotel, which is an unusual afterlife for a building of that kind.

Come down for the evening on the harbour, which is a working port rather than a promenade.

Day 2: Philippi

Inland, and the reason the city earns a second day. Philippi is one of the more substantial archaeological sites in northern Greece: a Roman forum, a theatre cut into the hillside, basilicas, and the line of the Via Egnatia running through the middle of it.

It is where a decisive Roman battle was fought and where the earliest Christian community in Europe was founded, which gives it a weight out of proportion to how few visitors it gets compared with the southern sites. Go in the morning, and give it longer than you think, because the site is large and spread out.

Back in the city, the archaeological museum holds the finds and is the right place to end the day.

The optional third: the coast, or Thassos

If you have a third day, two options.

The coast east and west of Kavala has long beaches and low development, and Nea Peramos and the bays west of the city are the easy swimming.

Or take the ferry to Thassos, which sits a short crossing offshore: a round, densely forested island with a ring road, an ancient city under its main town and marble beaches on its coast. It is a genuinely good day and it is also the reason a great many cars queue at Kavala’s port in August.

How to adapt this

One night. The aqueduct, the Panagia quarter and the castle. That is the essential Kavala and it fits an evening and a morning.

On the way to Thassos. Most people meet Kavala this way, and it is worth a night rather than a drive-through. Thessaloniki to Thassos covers the wider route.

With a car. Useful for Philippi and necessary for the coast, though the city itself walks and the aqueduct is in the middle of it.

Out of season. Kavala is a working city rather than a resort, so it stays open. Northern Greece is genuinely cold in winter, which the islands are not.

Where this leaves you

Two days in Kavala: the Kamares aqueduct and the Panagia quarter climbing to its castle on the first, Philippi inland on the second, and the coast or the Thassos ferry on a third if you have one. It is a working port with an aqueduct through the middle of it, and it is the most underrated city stop in northern Greece.

Quick answers

What is the Kamares in Kavala?

The city’s aqueduct, running on two tiers of arches straight across a modern street between the old town and the new. It follows a Roman line and was rebuilt in the sixteenth century under Suleiman, and it is used as a landmark and a meeting point.

How many days do you need in Kavala?

Two: one for the aqueduct, the Panagia quarter and the castle, and one for Philippi inland. A third day adds the coast or the ferry to Thassos.

Is Philippi worth visiting?

Yes. It is one of the more substantial Roman sites in northern Greece, with a forum, a hillside theatre, basilicas and the Via Egnatia running through it, and it gets far fewer visitors than equivalent sites further south.

Can you get to Thassos from Kavala?

Yes, it is a short car ferry offshore, which is why the port is busy with vehicles in summer. Thassos is a round, forested island with a ring road, an ancient city under its main town and marble beaches on its coast.