The holiday countdown has already begun all over Greece. Christmas decorations adorn the cities and villages, ready to welcome you for this special season. Countless ornaments, traditional Christmas boats, and lights decorate public streets, squares, and private properties. Let your childhood fantasies about Christmas come true in numerous cities around Greece, where events such as long-established festivities, outdoor concerts with bands, and children’s choirs singing Christmas carols promise you a magical atmosphere.
Athens
Christmas
Take advantage of the season’s cultural events that you can attend, at the Athens Concert Hall, the National Opera, the Onassis Cultural Centre (S.G.T.), the Foundation of the Hellenic World, and more.
Take a stroll around the Greek capital’s open-air bazaars as well as its numerous markets and purchase Christmas gifts for your loved ones or simply enjoy the view of decorated store windows.
Attend the holiday concerts on the eve of Christmas and New Year’s, organized in Syntagma Square and other well-visited locations. Accompany your children at Technopolis, Gazi, where the Christmas Factory is set, ready to offer a merry fun time to all your family members, young and old! Head to the Santa Claus Kingdom held at Paiania’s Mediterranean Exhibition Centre, where events and interactive workshops promise a Christmas atmosphere for your children. Next on the list is a stop by the Stadium, Arena & Sports Venue, Taekwondo, in Palaio Faliro, where your whole family can enjoy fabulous shows on the ice ring arena; this year starring Peter Pan and Friends.
Thessaloniki
Christmas
Imagine a place in which the Christmas spirit is lived in… now snap out of it, because it exists. The holiday atmosphere is located in and around the areas of Aristotelous Square, the Ancient Agora Square, and Thessaloniki’s International Fair.
Visit Santa Claus’ home resembling a Rubik’s Cube, a wonderful Christmas Bazaar, and an amusement park. Take a picture at Aristotelous Square with a backdrop of an impressive manger in the shape of a boat, a symbolic reference to the refugee crisis. During your after-dark strolls on the city’s seaside promenade, make a stop by a telescope and enjoy the view of the sky. Walk down Tsimiski and Mitropoleos Streets and get a head start in your Christmas shopping as this is one of the best markets in town. Modiano and Kapani are the two most renowned markets of Thessaloniki; these shopping centers have all you need and more; shops, cafes, and metropolia (restaurants serving Greek tidbits) are aligned to offer you the best a market can offer as well as tastes and flavors of the town!
Trikala
Chistmas
In the city of Trikala, people flock to the Magical Mill of the Elves (Mylos ton Xotikon in Greek) to experience the Christmas celebrations. Visit a Candy City with Santa’s Home, the Elves’ Post Office, the Chocolate Factory, the Playmobil Castle, the Mill’s Bakery, and other attractions, which guarantee fun for the whole family.
Drama
Visit Oneiroupoli, a Christmas theme park in Drama Town! It is a magical setting in the Municipal Gardens of Drama, which reaches the town’s central square transforming the whole area into a fairytale Christmas Village. The Forest of Wishes and Hope, the House of Fairytales, and the Planetarium are some of this year’s additions for your little ones. Furthermore, music bands that fill the city streets with Christmas carols, make it all more delightful.
Then again, if you are in search of something different, pass by Volakas Village, where local customs and traditions revive!
Ioannina
The Paralimnio Fun Park in Ioannina will once again become the Christmas Village you should visit this year! Loads of events and activities for the young and old promise to fill your day with Christmas magic.