This is one of the most beautiful caves in Greece. It is located 6 km. southeast of the historic town of Alistrati. The cave is at “Petroto” location, it is 25,000 sq.m. big, and it is almost flat.
The residents of the area knew about the cave from the stories of others and decided to descend to its depths either to hunt wild pigeons or just out of curiosity such as the cave exploration organized by the teacher Dimitrios N. Iatridis in September 1958. In 1975 the community of Alistrati sent a letter to the Speleological Society of Greece. The Society was under the guidance of Professor of Geology and Paleontology of the University of Athens, N. Symeonidis and he immediately started research in the cave.
The "rooms" of the cave were created by chemical and mechanical erosion, caused by the flow of water which formed various phenomena, such as underground pipelines, tunnels, sinkholes and caves. Therefore, the wonderful cave of Alistrati owes its creation to such phenomena which began 2.000.000 years ago.
Visitors to the cave of Alistrati will follow a path, which leads from the magnificent cave entrance right into the main hall, which is 60 m wide, 100 m long and 20-30 m high. Due to the continuous flow of water drops, you will see stalactites hanging from the ceiling and stalagmites rising from the floor. What is even more unique in sight are the columns which have been created by the union of stalactites and stalagmites. As you continue your exploration into the cave, you will meet more naturally formed rooms, equally impressive because of the stalactites and the weird shapes they make. After about 1.100 m you will come across a unique “forest” of stalagmites of up to 10 meters tall and 7 meters wide. The sight will definitely take your breath away. Starting from the entrance to the cave, there is also another path to follow. The rooms you meet taking this route are equally mesmerizing and some stalactites go up to 15 m length. There are points in this path that the height of the cave is over 35 m and it finally unites with the main tour route.
Inside the cave, the temperature is constantly at 20 degrees Celsius, and the humidity level is at 70-75%. Because of this climate, several dwellers such as Dolichopoda, Myriopoda and bats still live in the cave. Many years ago, when the bats were still found in abundance in the cave, their feces had produced a rich organic matter called “Guano” which today is the main food source of the rich fauna of the cave.
When to visit:
- Summer: Daily: 09:00 - 19:00
- Winter: Daily: 09:00 - 17:00
