Thessaloniki for Cypriot and Israeli visitors

Why Thessaloniki matters to visitors from Cyprus and Israel

Thessaloniki once held one of the most significant Jewish communities in Europe. By the early twentieth century, roughly half the city's population was Jewish — primarily Sephardim who had settled here after the 1492 expulsion from Spain, making the city one of the foremost centres of Sephardic culture in the world. The Jewish Museum of Thessaloniki documents this history in depth. Beyond the heritage dimension, both Cypriot and Israeli visitors find Thessaloniki a particularly comfortable destination: a genuine, compact Greek city without the mass-tourism overlay of the islands, with a food scene that consistently earns the country's highest reviews.

Getting here — flights from Cyprus and Israel

From Cyprus, several carriers operate direct routes from Larnaca (LCA) and Paphos (PFO) to Thessaloniki Macedonia Airport (SKG) — roughly a one-hour flight. From Israel, direct flights from Ben Gurion Airport (TLV) to Thessaloniki (SKG) are operated by a number of carriers, particularly in July–August — approximately 2–2.5 hours. From the airport, an express bus or a taxi reaches the centre in 30–40 minutes. Inside the city, the Jewish Museum, the historic monuments, and Ladadika are all on foot from each other — a compact centre that takes no more than twenty minutes end to end.

• Thessaloniki airport to city centre →
• Thessaloniki food guide →
• Discover Thessaloniki →
• The suite in the centre →

The best of the city — Jewish history, the centre, and food on foot

The Jewish Museum of Thessaloniki (Agiou Mina 13, near Aristotelous Square) is the most complete documentation of Sephardic history in Greece and is worth unhurried time. Around it, the city opens up: the Arch of Galerius, the Rotunda, the White Tower, and the seafront promenade. For food, Thessaloniki's reputation is Greece's highest: Sephardic influences left traces in the local cuisine, and the meze houses and tsipouradika of Ladadika — two minutes from Loena — are among the liveliest in the country. The food guide covers the curated set.