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Religious Feasts
Dormition of the Virgin Mary
On August 15, the Greek Orthodox church celebrates the Dormition of the Virgin Mary (Theotokos). One of the most important holidays on the Greek calendar, Dekapentavgoustos (literally the 15th of August), commemorates the repose (dormition and in the Greek “koimisis”) or “falling-asleep” of the Mother of Jesus Christ and the assumption into heaven of the body of the Theotokos.
Throughout Greece, locals celebrate with unique church liturgies of particular splendor. The top pilgrimage destination is the Cycladic island of Tinos with the glorious church of Virgin Mary, also known as Panagia Evangelistria, seeing scores of pilgrims from all over the world crawling up the carpeted street seeking miracles from the Theotokos.
The miraculous icon naming the church was found in January 1823 by the nun Pelagia at the historic Monastery of the Dormition of the Virgin/”Lady of the Angels” on the island, who was directed to its location.
After the divine liturgy religious services in Tinos on Aug. 15, the Miraculous Icon of the Virgin Mary is carried via procession to the port. This is a very large celebration as the Virgin Mary of Tinos is considered the protector of all Greece. Festivities honouring the Virgin Mary run until August 23 when the island also marks the anniversary of the sinking of the Greek warship Elli by the Italians in the harbor in 1940.
Dekapentavgoustos, also known as “the Summer Easter” of Greek Orthodoxy, is also celebrated with traditional local fiestas, known as panigiria.
Other islands famous for their Dekapentavgoustos celebrations include Paros, Ikaria, Nisyros, Koufonisia, Andros, Serifos, Kea, Astypalaia, Lesvos,Amorgos, Rhodes, Patmos, Karpathos, Kasos, Kefalonia, Corfu, Paxi. The Monastery of Panayia Soumela on Mount Vermio in Imathia regional unit is also popular for religious pilgrimage in Greece at this time of year.
Cultural Events
1. Athens Epidaurus Festival
Founded in 1955, the world-famous Athens Epidaurus Festival is Greece’s leading cultural institution and one of Europe’s oldest arts festivals. Held annually from June to August, the festival, incorporates a full programme of music, theatre, dance and visual arts. Read more about it here.
2. Sani Festival (Halkidiki)
Every summer, from July to August, Sani Festival, a cultural institution and Greece’s most historic privately organized festival, brings together Greek and international artists in the Sani Resort, in Halkidiki, northern Greece. Read more about it here.
3. Olympus Festival (Pieria)
Taking place annually in the months of July and August, Olympus Festival is a music and theater festival held in the town of Dion, just 10 km away from Katerini, in Pieria, northern Greece. Read more about it here.
4. Peloponnese Beer Festival only craft (02-04/08/24)
The Peloponnese Beer Festival takes place on the first Friday Saturday and Sunday of August each year in Kalamata city Peloponnese region making it an annual tradition that many people look forward to. It is a three-day event filled with Γreek craft beer, delicious flavors, great music, and positive energy.
5. Undefined Shapes II Lesvos (03-04/08/2024)
The Undefined Shapes International Electronic Music Gathering promises a weekend full of performances by international DJs and producers, and many more happenings dedicated to the electronic music scene.
6. Pulsar Samothrace Art Festival (07-10/08/2024)
Pulsar Samothraki Art Festival is a three-day music and cinema festival taking place in the unspoiled and majestic Greek island of Samothrace of the Thracian Sea.
7. Molyvos International Music Festival (09-19/08/2024)
The Molyvos International Music Festival (MIMF) was founded in 2015 by Danae and Kiveli Dörken and is a unique project in the northern Aegean that brings together the greatest international young talents for acelebration of classical music. The festival’s main venue is Molyvos on the Greek island of Lesvos.
8. August midsummer full moon (15/08/2024)
Both the Acropolis Museum and the National Archaeological Museum are open until midnight and offer free entry from 8:00pm onwards to all their galleries. Both museums will also present free musical concerts from 9:00pm in their forecourts.
9. Shapes Festival Zakynthos (22-27/08/2024)
Globe-trotting music event gathering original party promoters, artists and festival goers in stunning and unusual locations in Europe. It’s all about sun, beaches, music & vibes: house, techno, jazz, electronic music and its associated genres.
10. Barbarossa Pirate Festival of Paros (23/08/2024)
The Festival of the Pirates marks the anniversary of the pirate raid on the Cycladic island, led by Barbarossa in 1537. The legendary pirate’s men kidnapped the women of Naoussa village of Paros and the locals engaged in battle to get them back.
11. Kastellorizo International Documentary Festival (25/08–01/09/2024)
Beyond Borders is an International Documentary Festival held in Kastellorizo island on an annual basis. It showcases a diverse selection of documentaries from all over the world, whilst it hosts film industry events , side cultural activities , educational programmes, book launches, art exhibitions, lectures and musical performances.
12. International Film Festival Kefalonia (25/08-01/09/2024)
Launched in 2022, it is the only film festival in the Ionian Sea and takes place in the Municipal Building Complex of Thalassomilos, which is located next to the sea, about 2 km from the center of Argostoli, Kefalonia island.
13. Rebetiko Festival “Syra of Markos Vamvakaris” (28-31/08/2024)
The Rebetiko Festival “Syra of Markos Vamvakaris” is an annual institution established in 2015. It includes a full program of events on “Rebetiko” (the urban folk music popular among working class Greeks from the 19th century to the 1950s and associated with the Cycladic island of Syros through Markos Vamvakaris, one of the most famous rebetiko musicians and composers, who was born in Ano Syros.)
14. Free Earth Festival (29/08-01/09/2024)
A one-of-a-kind beach event in Europe rooted in the 1990s rave culture, the Free Earth Festival is a meeting point of music, art, ecology and peace in Asprovalta, Central Macedonia. The psytrance festival features two music stages, three cultural spaces, a children’s space, exclusive decoration, explosive sound systems, stunning images, visionary artists.
Ecotourism
Stefaniada Lake Festival 2024 (03-11/08/2024)
The inaugural Stefaniada Lake Festival 2024 is set to take place in Thessaly’s Agrafa, a historic area and mountain range of central Greece. This ecotourism festival, hosted at Greece’s youngest natural lake, caters to outdoor enthusiasts and individuals who love cinema and photography, painting and woodcarving and music.
Sports
Idean Routes: Voritsi Trails Crete (31/08/2024)
Three routes of 12km, 5km and 1,500m through the nature of the Cretan peninsula, inviting runners to test their strengths, while highlighting the benefits of mountain running races in one of Crete’s small villages.
