Saint Paul

Beautiful church and a great viewpoint! Note: The opening hours on Google Maps are incorrect and there is no schedule displayed at the entrance. It would be great if the hours could be updated for visitors!

It looks really nice, and we would have loved to visit it. We were there before 17:00 (5pm) as it opens at that time, then nothing at 17:15, still closed at 17:30 and all locals said it should’ve been open but ‘just to wait another 15 minutes’. We gave up which is a shame but do with that knowledge and experience what you will. 30 minutes waiting was long enough for us to go elsewhere.

Beautiful church on the inside and outside that me and my parents visited during a pilgrimage tour of Greece. The inside had an amazing chandelier and numerous icons. The most impressive part was a container which supposedly contains a relic of St. Paul specifically a part of his finger. While not the biggest or lavish of places during our pilgrimage, it was a nice stopover.

We didn't get in! There are parked cart inside the church's property but there is no way to get in. All entrances are locked. It seems operational but IF there are visiting hours, they are not available for public view. It is really beautiful from the outside and it seems very well taken care of, but this is as much as you will get 😔

Beautiful church… from the outside. Opening hours listed on google do not seem to meet the actual church hours. Others were waiting outside as well and were clearly disappointed at not being able to go in the church placed at a notable and historical location for Christians. Odd that such a significant place seems to be kept from so many wanting to visit. There is a nice prayer area located outside of the gate which can be visited.

Beautiful church, beautifully light at night. If you want to visit the inside you have to go early in the morning because they close le gates after the morning service. It is located on the neighborhood that has the same name in Ano Poli.

Beautiful? Yes. Open? Forget it. The gates are shut, you can't even come close to enjoy the views of the city at least.

Very nice church, great architecture but unfortunately it was closed on Tuesday around 15.30, there was no label or anything telling you about the opening hours and I saw other disappointed people who wished to visit it but they were also unaware of the opening hours. Sad story 😞

Walked like hell uphill and rushed before it closes at 7pm according to the website, well it was closed at 620pm. Managed to talk to a local neighbor, and said the operator opens and closes as per their wishes. Wasted my time and energy!!!

In the settlement of Agios Pavlos, northeast of Thessaloniki, dominates the magnificent temple dedicated to the Apostle of the Nations, as the area is associated with its passage from Thessaloniki in 50 AD. According to tradition, in this area, east of the later Monastery of Vlatades, at the foot of the Kedrinos hill, there was a spring of water that Apostle Paul cooled when the inhabitants escaped him from the city walls on the road to Veria. This source became known as the "Apostle Paul's Sanctuary" and was a place of pilgrimage for centuries. During the period of the Turkish occupation, in 1875, the Greek community gave up the site to the Philosophical Fraternity of Men of Thessaloniki and after the liberation of the city a small church dedicated to Apostle Paul was built here. The church was designed by the architect Xenophon Paionides and was inaugurated on April 10, 1922, Sunday of Thomas. In the 1970s the modern majestic temple was built a little higher. Today in the estate of Philopochos Brotherhood of Men of Thessaloniki, in the shadow of the imposing large temple, one can visit the small temple, browse through the beautifully landscaped courtyard, see the place where Apostle Paul traditionally rested, followed by the Apostle Paul its step up to the shrine, and admire the view of the Thermaic Gulf. Since 1922 the church has been the focus of a brilliant celebration on the day of the Apostles Peter and Paul Day, June 29. Today, every summer, Agiopalitika is held, a three-day celebration that combines religious events with folk tradition and modern culture. Στον συνοικισμό του Αγίου Παύλου, βορειοανατολικά της Θεσσαλονίκης, δεσπόζει ο μεγαλοπρεπής ναός που είναι αφιερωμένος στον Απόστολο των Εθνών, καθώς η περιοχή σχετίζεται με το πέρασμά του από τη Θεσσαλονίκη το 50 μ.Χ. Σύμφωνα με την παράδοση, στην περιοχή αυτή, ανατολικά της μεταγενέστερης Μονής Βλατάδων, στους πρόποδες του Κεδρηνού λόφου, υπήρχε πηγή νερού, στην οποία δροσίστηκε ο Απόστολος Παύλος, όταν οι κάτοικοι τον φυγάδευσαν από τα τείχη της πόλης στον δρόμο προς τη Βέροια. Η πηγή αυτή έγινε γνωστή ως «αγίασμα του Αποστόλου Παύλου» και αποτέλεσε τόπο προσκυνήματος των πιστών για αιώνες. Στην περίοδο ακόμη της Τουρκοκρατίας, το 1875, η ελληνική κοινότητα παραχώρησε τον χώρο στη Φιλόπτωχο Αδελφότητα Ανδρών Θεσσαλονίκης και μετά την απελευθέρωση της πόλης κτίστηκε εδώ μικρός ναός αφιερωμένος στον Απόστολο Παύλο. Ο ναός σχεδιάστηκε από τον αρχιτέκτονα Ξενοφώντα Παιονίδη και εγκαινιάστηκε στις 10 Απριλίου 1922, Κυριακή του Θωμά. Τη δεκαετία του 1970 οικοδομήθηκε λίγο ψηλότερα ο σύγχρονος μεγαλοπρεπής ναός. Σήμερα στο κτήμα της Φιλοπτώχου Αδελφότητος Ανδρών Θεσσαλονίκης, στη σκιά του επιβλητικού μεγάλου ναού, μπορεί κανείς να επισκεφθεί τον μικρό ναό, να περιηγηθεί στον όμορφα διαμορφωμένο προαύλιο χώρο, να δει το σημείο όπου κατά την παράδοση αναπαύθηκε ο Απόστολος Παύλος, να ακολουθήσει το μονοπάτι ως το βήμα του και ως το αγίασμα, και να θαυμάσει τη θέα στον Θερμαϊκό κόλπο. Από το 1922 ο ναός υπήρξε το επίκεντρο λαμπρού εορτασμού ανήμερα της εορτής των Αποστόλων Πέτρου και Παύλου, στις 29 Ιουνίου. Σήμερα, κάθε καλοκαίρι πραγματοποιούνται τα Αγιοπαυλίτικα, τριήμερος εορτασμός που συνδυάζει τις θρησκευτικές εκδηλώσεις με τη λαϊκή παράδοση και τον σύγχρονο πολιτισμό.