Dionysiou Solomou 49, Serres, 62123
Cave of Alistrati
The Alistrati Cave
The cave of Alistrati is considered one of the most beautiful and largest not only in Greece but also in the whole of Europe. It was discovered in 1958 by the teacher D. Iatridis and a group of young people from the village of Συμβoli in Serres.
The total length of the known main corridors, as well as the secondary ones, is about 3 km.The floor is almost horizontal with small slopes. The initial feeling that grips the visitor is one of awe as he crosses the 1,000 meter long corridor of the cave. The temperature is a constant 20o C and the humidity is 70 - 75%. The exuberant display of stalactites and stalagmites, which in silent majesty project from all sides, make for a spectacular sight.
The visitor feels part of the dreamlike beauty of a place that the cave has kept inside it for millions of years as an unsealed secret.Among stalactites and stalagmites and next to all kinds of cave deposits, the visitor can see tufts of small, thin stalactites, which seem to ignore the laws of gravity, forming a beautiful composition with a thousand edges and no beginning. These are the "naughty" stalactites, the famous eccentrics. In addition to the crystallized reality, thousands of bats of various species and several species of microorganisms are its permanent inhabitants. The "Alistratia Beroni" stands out, a 3 mm isopod, unknown in the world literature until the moment it was discovered here.
Useful information
The Cave of Alistrati is located 6 km southwest of the homonymous seat of the municipality, at the location "Petroto". It is 50 km from Serres, 25 km from Drama and 55 km from Kavala. It can be visited all days of the year from 9.00 a.m. to 7.00 p.m. There is a guide and the tour lasts about an hour.
In the Cave of Alistrati, an Information Centre has been created, where visitors can be informed, through 3D photographs (3-D) about the whole area, such as: the Gorge of Aggitis, the other four Caves that exist in the area, the Zoological Garden of Alistrati, the ancient Mines of Alistrati, the Macedonian tombs of Aggistas and all the sights of the prefecture of Serres.
