Ancient Dodona

Dodona was consulted long before Delphi, and its method was stranger: petitioners put a question to Zeus, and priests interpreted the sound of wind in a sacred oak. Thousands of thin lead strips with those questions scratched onto them have been dug up here, and they are mostly domestic, about marriage, livestock, debts and whether to move. The sanctuary lies in a quiet valley under Mount Tomaros, with the foundations of the oracle precinct, a council house, a stadium and a huge theatre built into the hillside, restored enough that its scale registers immediately. A single oak stands where the sacred tree once did.

What you actually see

• The theatre - a hillside auditorium among the largest in Greece, heavily but effectively restored.
• The oracle precinct - low foundations of the Zeus sanctuary and the tree that marks the oak's place.
• The stadium - the outline of the running track along the flank of the theatre.
• The valley setting - open pasture under Mount Tomaros with almost nothing modern in view.

When to go

Spring is the best of it, with green pasture, wildflowers and a snow line still on Tomaros. Autumn works too. The site is fully exposed, so summer visits want the first two hours after opening. Occasional summer performances use the theatre; if one is scheduled, the auditorium may be closed for rigging in the days beforehand.

Honest expectations

Beyond the theatre very little stands above knee height, and without reading up first the sanctuary is a field of stone outlines. Interpretation on site is sparse and the finds, including the lead question tablets, are in Ioannina rather than here. There is no shade and no cafe. Allow for a return drive on narrow roads and treat it as a half day.

Nearby

Ioannina and its lake are half an hour north, with the Zagori villages beyond.