The Lower Lavra

Although you can get to the caves from the Upper Lavra, most tourists traipse down the hill so they can take in the lovely churches on the grounds. The Caves contain burial places for saints, many of them buried nearly a thousand years ago. Visitors can only use a beeswax candle for illumination in the caves, out of respect for the saints buried in the alcoves of the caves and the preservation of the frescoes.