Palea District is located at the western entrance of Volos, at the site of ancient Iolcus, and is one of the most important historical districts of the city. It is one of the small towns that in the early 3rd century BC surrounded the famous Demetrias, the capital of the kingdom of Demetrios Poliorcetes, king of the Macedonians, with the city of Pagasae at its center. In the settlement, which was fortified in 551 AD during the reign of the Emperor Justinian, the inhabitants of the Christian Phthiotic Thebes fled at the end of the 6th century AD under the fear of Slavic invasions. Today, Palea is the city’s most popular district, a meeting point for residents, especially students, for day and night walks. Cafes, tsipouradika, taverns, restaurants and nightclubs coexist with neoclassical buildings, old businesses, warehouses and shops that bring images of the past to the young, revive memories to the old and leave everyone with a sweet taste of another era.

To the north of the district is the low hill of Palea, which features a continuous residential activity from prehistoric times until the 18th century AD. There, during the early Christian and Byzantine periods, a fortified settlement, known as ‘Palea Castle’, flourished. The castle, which was four-sided with two gates, a perimeter of 1 km in length and a surface area of about 60 hectares, had a view of the harbor and the sea. In its 4 corners there were towers, four-sided in the north sides and round in the south sides. In the northeast corner there was a four-sided acropolis, while the north, east and west sides were protected by a moat. Today the eastern and western sides of the castle are preserved, up to 7 m high. Inside the castle, excavations have brought to light the remains of an early Christian Basilica with mosaic floors, two baths, cemeteries and various residential remains. In 1423, Palea Castle was taken over by the Ottomans and its Christian inhabitants were forced to move to the hills of Pelion, while in 1830 the present-day city of Volos began to be built outside the castle. In 1889, unfortunately, a large part of the walls was demolished.