Northern Greece 2

This thoroughly updated second edition of Bradt's Northern Greece guidebook, written by Greece expert and long-time travel writer Dana Facaros, remains the only guide available to a region that includes Epirus, Thessaly, Macedonia and Thrace - complete with their five dramatically beautiful national parks, the country's highest peaks, mountain lakes, rushing rivers, the world's deepest gorge and (this is Greece, after all) long sandy beaches.

Northern Greece is an up-and-coming, year-round destination that provides the more natural, authentic experience that many travellers seek from this increasingly popular country. Thessaloniki, the country's vibrant second city, is packed with ancient and Byzantine monuments. Three-pronged Chalkidiki has two peninsulas lined with hedonistic beaches and resorts, while the third comprises silent, holy Mount Athos. Central Macedonia is Alexander the Great country, offering ample archaeological sites, Mount Olympus and Greece's top vineyards. The handsome port city of Kavala lies near the beach-fringed island of Thassos and ancient Philippi, visited by St Paul.

To the east, multi-ethnic Thrace has traditional towns, spectacular birdwatching and the island of ancient mysteries, Samothraki. Western Macedonia, meanwhile, is full of surprises: charming small cities nobody has heard of, such as Edessa, Veria, Kastoria and Florina, which neighbours the haunting Prespa lakes. Further west, northern Epirus is home to the breathtaking Vikos Gorge and the Zagorachoria's enchanting stone villages. Beaches dot the coast, if you can drag yourself away from ancient Roman Nikopolis, Dodona or the Necromanteion, where the living consulted the dead. Fringing Thessaly's great agricultural plain are the Meteora's pinnacle-topped monasteries and beautiful Lake Plastira. In Magnesia, Volos provides the gateway to the Pelion Peninsula and the islands of Skiathos, Skopelos and Alonissos.

This new edition of Bradt's Northern Greece serves as an ideal travelling companion for visitors of all ages, budgets and interests, from culture lovers to wildlife enthusiasts, history buffs to archaeologists, foodies to wine connoisseurs, mountain climbers to sea kayakers - not to mention those who simply want to relax on a sandy beach before dancing the night away.