Thessaloniki – “Mother of Israel”

There are only two cities in the world that Jews lovingly call Jerusalem: Jerusalem of Lithuania and Thessaloniki, the Greek Jerusalem. Appearing in Thessaloniki for the first time in the II century BC, the Jewish diaspora existed until the middle of the XX century. Thessaloniki was not only one of the largest Jewish centers of the Mediterranean, but was the first and only city in medieval Europe where Jews made up the majority of the population.

At one time, the city was visited by Benjamin from Tudela, it preached Shabtai Zvi, built and erected the famous Baron Hirsch. More than 50,000 Jews from all over the world visit our city every year. During the tour we will visit those few places that remain in the city, but which can give a complete picture of the Jewish diaspora of Thessaloniki.