Holy Trinity Monastery in Meteora, Greece

Holy Trinity (Agia Triada) Monastery in Meteora is the most difficult one to access and therefore records the least number of tourists. There is a long pathway which takes to the base of this peak; from there you have to climb 140 steps approx carved to the sides of the peak to reach the monastery.

Holy Trinity Monastery Greece

Long way to Holy Trinity monastery

Views from this monastery are mesmerizing! The monastery existed since 1362, as mentioned in scriptures and inscriptions. There is a mention somewhere that it took 70 years to carry up the building materials to the top of the peak.

This is the third oldest among all the religious houses of Meteora. The main cathedral on the peak was constructed in 15th century. It was decorated with frescoes in 1741 by two monks. The wall-paintings surviving today are the work of the hagiographers Antonios the priest and his brother Nicolaos.

In 1988 Meteora monasteries were included in list of UNESCO World heritage sites.

Access to Holy Trinity Monastery 

Until 20th century monks accessed this monastery with ropes and ladders. We saw some old trolleys, ropes and rails. In 1925 a series of steps was cut through mountain sides for easier and quicker approach.

This monastery is the farthest from main road in the mountains. You have to walk quite a bit and then there is a final climb of 146 steps too. One of the reasons why very less number of tourists visit this. Even the day tour buses from Athens avoid a stop at Holy Trinity Monastery.

Climb up towards Holy Trinity Monastery

Ropes and rails - Holy Trinity Monastery

Ropes and rails – Holy Trinity Monastery

Dramatic Location on a Slender Peak

A trivia connected with this monastery is: Part of it was used as the setting for the final scenes of the James Bond film For Your Eyes Only.

The effort to reach the top was worth it. Lovely setting; understandable why this was chosen as a film location. The view below and around is terrific. It is a small monastery, the tour inside gets over very fast but we whiled away some more time soaking in the peace of the place.

Road to Holy Trinity Meteora

Road to Holy Trinity Meteora – I paused to look back and was amazed at the distance I covered.

View of mountains from Holy Trinity Monastery Meteora

View of mountains from Holy Trinity Monastery Meteora – they looked like tiny giant mountains.

Plundered during WWII

Holy Trinity monastery had accumulated 124 manuscripts over the years. These manuscripts are now kept in St Stephen’s Monastery (Nunnery) Meteora.

Sadly this monastery was looted of its treasures during World War II, so those are gone. Just one treasure that survived is a Gospel Book with a silver cover that was printed in Venice in 1539.

Old frescoes on walls of Holy Trinity Monastery

Restored old frescoes of 17th century on walls of Holy Trinity Monastery, many of them are restored.

View from Holy Trinity Monastery

Here are photos from Holy Trinity Monastery. There were hardly any tourists around.

View of Church exterior Holy Trinity

Step out to see the brick and tile exterior of the church, its domes and bell.

Balcony for great views - holy trinity

In the picture below you can see 4 other active monasteries of Meteora. Can you name them?

To your extreme left is Great Meteoron Monastery, next to it slightly lower is the Varlaam Monastery, the next lower one is St Nicholas Monastery and next to it is Roussanou Monastery.

Open Timings of Holy Trinity Monastery

Summer timings: Apr to Oct: 9 am to 5 pm, closed on Thursdays
Winter timings: Nov to Mar 9 am to 4 pm closed on Thursdays.

Pin this for later

Holy Trinity Monastery Meteora Greece

Varlaam the Second Biggest Monastery in Meteora Greece
Monastery Hopping in Meteora, Photo Essay from Greece

35 Responses to “Holy Trinity Monastery in Meteora, Greece

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.