Photo: Thomas Gravanis

From outdoor movies and free jazz festivals to avant-garde theatre in ancient venues, Athens offers a festival for every age, interest, and appetite—any time of year.

With year-round sunshine and a passion for cultural enlightenment that harks back to antiquity, Athenians have always known how to put on a good show. Use this guide to discover the highlights of Athens’ annual festival calendar and plan your next trip around these unforgettable events.

Arts & Culture

people playing music and dancing at the street
actors perfmorning on stage in an ancient theatre, night time.
people in front of a neoclassical building in athens
people walking under an art installation with many lights and a moon in a square, nighttime.
people in diverse dancing costumes dance in a circle
people walking around an exhibition space
three girls performing synchronized high kicks in a dance or performance setting.

Music Festivals

a band standing on stage with their backs to the camera, facing an enthusiastic audience in a large open-air concert venue
A live outdoor concert captured from the stage, showing a shirtless vocalist performing, beside him, a guitarist with long hair
A security man stands among the crowd in an outdoor concert venue.
Clouds of coloured powder at a festival
nighttime drone view of a city, crowd gathered at a concert at an industrial space
Crowd gathered in front of an open-air stage during sunset
a woman performing live on stage
a band performing on stage, crowd cheering

Cinema

people watching a movie, on the screen there is lettering that reads "Kurosava"
popcorn machine in outdoor movie theatre
people watching a movie at a movie theatre
people on a hill watching a movie, city lights behind them
people watching a movie at a movie theatre

Food & Drink

a burger served on a tray.
people at a street food festival sitting in benches and tables
a beer bottle in front of the city lights
a dish with many colourful vegetables and a green juice.
people sitting at a bar

Urban Culture

a woman tattooing someone
a cosplay costume in front of libraries full of comics
inflatable model of the Earth at a park, people around
a woman talking to a crowd in a house
people playing videogames on computers

LGBT+

people holding a rainbow flag, crowds gathered in square
three women on stage talking to a crowd
a back round sign that says Be Proud, Be You
people sitting in a movie theatre, nachos and a programme that reads "queer movie nights" around