Festivals in Greece hold the greatest cultural significance, according to its Greek Orthodox calendar.
Greek festivals are known for their traditional events, which include annual dance festivals, music festivals, and many more religious celebrations.
In a European Country, where you can celebrate your birthday on two different days, Greece is a wonderful catholic place where festivals are crucial, whether national holidays or cultural events.
Through the festivals in Greece, the Greek Orthodox church’s true Greek culture and tradition are communicated and celebrated. Apart from the cultural festivals in Greece, there are some fun and entertaining ones as well.
Some of them involve national holidays, traditional food festivals, or Christmas carols. Greeks celebrate an enormous number of festivities to keep you engaged throughout the entire day, which is wonderful.
Read ahead to learn about some of the most famous and important festivals in Greece, which are held annually by the Greeks, and the meaning of these unique events.
1. 11 Famous Festivals in Greece
1.1 Kalamata International Dance Festival
Taking place in the month of July, this festival is an annual dance festival held in Kalamata, Greece. In this event, various dance groups and singing artists gather locally and internationally.
If you’re an avid dance and music lover, this festival is the ideal time to discover more about contemporary dances and new genres of music throughout the world. It is also a wonderful event to socialize with new people and artists.
You can experience many different dancing styles from experienced famous artists and amateurs. Workshops are also held where you’ll be taught some incredible moves along with other side events as well.
By bringing both art and music together, this festival is one of the most expected festivals in Greece. From classical music to street-style dance moves, everything is exciting here.
1.2 Easter
Being one of Greece’s most crucial and traditional festivals, the event runs for a week until Easter Sunday. According to the Greek Orthodox church, Easter is the most significant in terms of its cultural festivals.
It begins on Clean Monday, a special holy day when you’ll see kites flying up in the sky to represent they are reaching the heavens to Jesus Christ. This day starts off the auspicious festival of Easter celebration in Greece.
Up to Holy Friday or Good Friday, church services are held every night. The crowd of people and pilgrims increases each day as Easter Sunday approaches. On Holy Saturday, the resurrection night of Jesus Christ is the most anticipated.
The great feast that is held for Easter celebrations, also known as the Holy Spirit Day, begins after the end of Easter. It generally starts 40-50 days after Easter’s end.
People hold their lighted candles up in the air to the eternal sky for blessings and a feeling of satisfaction. On some Greek islands, people take their candles at home and draw crosses on their doors for fortune and good luck.
On Holy Thursday or the Maundy Thursday of the Easter Week, the day is marked as the crucifixion and death of Jesus Christ. Catholics ruminate about Jesus Christ’s Last Supper on this holy week.
On Holy Friday, flowers are offered to the tombs, known as the Epitaphios of Jesus Christ. They are arranged in squares and toured through Greece’s towns and places.
Easter Sunday remains the most traditional festival in Greece that speaks about its cultural importance. On Holy Saturday, the event of Easter reaches its climax with fireworks and candles lighted and held up in the sky.
This stunning, dim-lighted scenario with Jesus Christ’s spiritual energy is filled with peace and satisfaction for the souls of the Catholics.
No wonder Easter’s Holy Week is such a famous festival in Greece, let alone one of the most favorite festivals in Greece.
1.3 Greek Independence Day
On 25th March, military parades march all over the places in Greece to celebrate Greek Independence Day. War was declared in 1821 against the Turks on this day in Greece.
Seeing Greek flags decorated and marching down the streets and through the towns is unsurprising. All museums, stores, and archaeological sites in Greece are closed on this day.
Another religious celebration is also held on this day, called the Annunciation of the Virgin Mary. On this national holiday, Angel Gabriel broke the auspicious annunciation of Jesus Christ’s birth to his mother, the Virgin Mary.
Celebrated as one of the major festivals in Greece, this day surely holds huge importance because it collided with two auspicious events on one day. That is why it is also a Public Holiday.
Several Greek families and islands also celebrate Greece’s independence day with pride and enthusiasm.
It was of the decline of the Ottoman empire along with the fortunate news of Jesus’s arrival, so it is no wonder this day is this special in Greece.
Among all the other religious festivals, on this day, you’ll see a colored march of Blue-White Greek flags walking through all the regions and islands of Greece.
1.4 Christmas Day
How can we forget the infamous worldwide favorite festival of Christmas that the Greeks absolutely adore? Being among the most popular festivals in Greece and worldwide, Christmas deserves a big mention.
That special festival at the end of the year brings every family together to celebrate this quiet and happy time of Christmas. You’ll see young locals singing Christmas carols on Christmas Eve, whether it is on buses or trains or knocking on people’s doors.
The beautiful melody on Christmas Eve fills the air, and Greeks celebrate this day by decorating the Christmas trees, lighting their houses, and feasting with their families.
In the Greek tradition, the older Greeks used to adorn wooden boats with lights and other furnishings. However, decorating Christmas trees became a tradition as Christmas went through international evolution.
Among the Greek holidays in the Greek calendar, Christmas could be that one holiday that children love and adore. It has become a storytelling culture of how children receive gifts on Christmas day.
Their family prepares a great warm feast day, which includes delicious sugar-coated butter cookies for children and other sweet desserts with savory items to complete the day.
It is a marvelous, important festival after the Greek Easter Sunday that steals the hearts of children, especially in Northern Greece.
1.5 The Carnival Season
Running through the February-March months of the year, the Carnival Season is one of the most favorite festivals in Greece, especially for children. It lasts for three weeks with wild dancing and enormous feasting to the point of excess drunkenness.
Everyone, from young children to older people, dresses in costumes of different themes. Be it dark, eccentric, horror, or seductive, costumes are versatile in this quirky festival with make-up!
The exact dates of the Carnival often change every year due to the Greek Easter days and Holy Spirit day coming up right after. The Carnival season can also be described by a Greek word called the Apokries.
Several exotic and outrageous parties are held in Greek islands like Naxos, Corfu, Patras, and Xanthi. During these hot-blooded parties, people enjoy huge feasts with wine boozes and tireless dancing on the streets.
It is often said that the Carnival festival has been modernized from the ancient Greek holidays of a wine-drinking week. During those weeks, the Greek God of Drunkenness and Theatre, Dionysus, was being worshipped.
A few days into the aggressive carnival festival, a special day arrives when the people consume a ton of grilled meat. This day is also known as Grilled Meat Thursday.
It is the ideal day for the Greeks who love eating meat in grill houses or restaurants. It is one of those during the carnival when people eat like it is their last day on earth, which is quite fascinating to witness.
Being an important holiday in the Greek calendar, the Carnival festival is not only about culture but also about fun and entertainment among the Greeks.
The festival may not be well-known internationally, but it is one of the most popular festivals in Greece.
1.6 OHI Day
Still being one of the most important festivals in Greece, Ohio Day is a pride day for Greece in memory of their Greek Prime Minister and Former Military General, Ioannis Metaxas.
On 28th October, you’ll witness a hoard of military parades and Greek flags celebrating this important day with everyone, from children to old people.
During World War II, the Prime Minister of Italy, Benito Mussolini, asked Greece to surrender to the Italian Government or else they would seize the country and threaten Greece with a War warning.
Consequently, as a response, the Greek Prime Minister declined the proposal with a simple “No’ or “Ohi’ in Greek. So, the result led to the War between Italy and Greece.
When the Italians attacked the Greek border in Albania, The Greeks fought like heroes, surrendering their lives on the line and surviving Mussolini’s harsh attacks.
Later on, Greece sought help from Hitler and German troupes and finally won over the Italians by embarrassing Mussolini on his words. This proud moment of joy and victory began with that strong decision made by the Greek prime minister.
No wonder this incredible holiday with such a deep backstory greatly impacted the Greeks. You’ll witness the parades marching and shouting ‘Ohi’ throughout the journey along the Greek country.
It may not be among the most popular cultural festivals in Greece, but it is still really important since it showcases the bravery and economic side of Greece during war times.
1.7 Labor Day
Also known as the Protomagia, a huge feast is held on this day in Greece since it is a public holiday. All the museums, stores and other places are closed on this day.
People often visit Athens for a family picnic on this day or go to the beach or countryside for a breath of fresh air. Even all means of transportation, like metros and trains, are also closed.
Apart from Greece, in many other countries, Labor Day is regarded as the strike day for laborers. Basically, everything, including stores and systems, stays closed since nobody works on this important public holiday.
1.8 Cretan Diet Festival
Held in the month of early July, the Cretan Diet Festival is another one of the most anticipated festivals in Greece, exclusively for food lovers.
If you’re for a food adventure involving Cretan diet routines and how this diet is beneficial and can be produced, then this festival is for you.
Every Cretan dish is filled with flavor and taste, from delicious dairy products and refreshing citrus fruits to exotic fish dishes. Even the food stalls and restaurants also offer Cretan diet food during this time of the festival.
This event markets a healthy diet into your routine, which is also promoted in Greek hotels and other restaurants for awareness. Along with other events held during this time, it is one of the most entertaining festivals in Greece.
1.9 Dormition of Virgin Mary
On 15th August, the day regarded as one of the most important festivals in Greece, the Mother of God arrived in Heaven. Catholics commemorate that the Virgin Mary closed her eyes without any pain and led her spiritual way to Heaven.
Every Church in the Greek country is seen celebrating this auspicious day with large groups of people, praying and ringing the Church bells for the peaceful journey of the Virgin Mary.
This important event is followed by many other side events, such as dancing with live music, feasting, and other rituals known as Panigiria.
On the Tinos island of Greece, the Panagia Evangelistria Church is known for its huge festivity event arrangement for the Dormition of Virgin Mary Day. It is regarded as the most popular church to visit because of its grandeur celebration.
But every other church in Greece celebrates this fortunate spiritual day in the Greek Orthodox calendar, so it is no surprise how crucial this festival is in Greece.
1.10 Athens Polytechnic School Uprising
It is a Memorial Day festival in Greece for the anniversary of the Polytechnic School Uprising. The event started with a revolutionary war demonstration by the students of Polytechnic School to oppose the Junta Greek Dictatorship.
On 17th November 1973, the students of the Polytechnic School in Exarchia, Athens, began revolting against the ongoing dictatorship in Greece from the year of 1967 to 1974.
The day ended in a great tragedy when a tank broke down the gates of the school, and a massive number of people and students lost their lives. Even though there’s no proof of how many people died, the number is still note-worthy.
Afterward, the Greek Junta Dictorship came to an end in 1974 for those brave school students who fought for this glory. Even today, on this day every year, several marches and parades are released, especially in Athens.
Once again, the day often ends in hot-blooded fights and riots every time, especially in the streets of Exarchia and Pattison.
Even though this holiday may not be among the happiest festivals in Greece, it still deserves mention for the brave young students who gave up their lives for the end victory.
1.11 The Feast of Saint George
On 23rd April, it is celebrated as the feast day of Saint George, the patron saint or the patron of the shepherds. If the day falls on the Greek Easter Celebrations time, it is considered Easter Monday.
He is celebrated for being the knight who killed the dragon in ancient Greek times. Many stories portray that Saint George fought with dragons for the welfare of the Greek citizens.
He tamed and killed the dragons, which were alive to feed on human bodies that were sacrificed to them. So, on this fortunate day, Saint George is commemorated, and a grand feast is prepared in his memory and his greatness.
2. Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
2.1 What are the Most Famous Festivals in Greece?
Among the listed important holidays, some of Greece’s most traditional and cultural festivals are Easter Sunday, Christmas Day, the Dormition of the Virgin Mary, Carnival Season, Ohi Day, and Thessaloniki International Film Festival.
Other festivals in Greece hold as much importance as the others, but since some of them are very much anticipated throughout the year, they have made it to the list since they are famous and popular, in Greece and worldwide.
2.2 What is the Most Important Festival in Greece?
When it comes to importance and cultural significance, Easter still holds the strictestness and value, according to the Greek Orthodox Calendar.
Other cultural festivals hold very similar significance, but Easter holds the highest priority among the festivals in Greece all year.
3. Conclusion
An enormous number of festivals in Greece are held throughout the year. It is true that Greece holds among the top positions worldwide in celebrations when it comes to events and festivities.
There are other festivals in Greece, like Saint Helen on the 21st of May, Saint John on the 24th of June, and Saint Constantine and Whit Monday, which are holy days for Greek tradition and culture.
If you ever visit Greece, it is best to visit during the summertime when the festivals are at their peak so that you can witness the gorgeous festivity it holds.
Which Greek festival is your favorite and why? Let us know in the comments!
We would love to hear from you.
Last Updated on July 11, 2024 by Sathi Chakraborty
