Travel Guide Mont Olympe – Óros Ólimbos

The shapes of this mountain, its incredible beauty and its long untouched peaks inspired the famous legend of the 12 Olympian gods who, according to Homer, lived in the ravines dug between the peaks and gathered in their palaces on Mount Mytikas, the pantheon of the gods, while Zeus had his throne a little further up Mount Stephani. It was from here that he showed his power by releasing lightning and thunder on stormy days. The city of Dion, dedicated to Zeus around the 5th century BC, is 5 km away and is worth a visit! Today, Mount Olympus is a preserved national park. Wild cats, bears, squirrels, fallow deer and ibexes live quietly here. There were also 108 species of birds and more than 1,700 plants, 32 of which are endemic. In 1938 it became the first National Park in Greece and UNESCO declared it a Biosphere Reserve in 1981. Park rangers spend at least two minutes with each visitor at the park entrance to ensure that fire prevention, vegetation protection, wilderness camping and no animals are allowed. The highest peaks of Mount Olympus reach about 2,900 m. Mount Mytikas, the country's highest mountain, is 2,917 metres high. Temperatures vary between -20 and -10 °C in winter and between 0 and 20 °C in summer. Snow covers these peaks from November to April, which is why Mount Olympus was only conquered in 1913 by Boissonade, a Swiss mountaineer.