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The Cretan Diet Festival 2026 is scheduled to return in early July at the Rethymno Municipal Garden. The exact date will be announced later. Tickets are available at the entrance.
Cretan Diet Festival promotes local food culture and supports regional producers. The event highlights Cretan products and encourages trade for local farmers and artisans.
Each year, the Rethymno municipal garden hosts a week of culinary and cultural activities. Visitors explore Cretan cuisine through direct interaction with wine producers, cheesemakers, and small-scale farmers. The festival offers food tastings, exhibitions, and traditional music and dance events.
Cretan Diet Festival presents a direct experience of Cretan life. The focus remains on ingredients sourced from the island and the community built around them.
Date: July 2026
Location: Rethymno Municipal Garden
Tickets: Tickets are available at the entrance
Matala Beach Festival celebrates music, freedom, and the spirit of community. Set against the iconic caves of Matala, it brings together people of all ages for three days of live performances, beach energy, and shared moments. Matala Beach Festival 2026 is expected to take place in early July on Matala’s main beach. The exact dates will be announced and updated closer to the event.
But the Matala Beach Festival is not just about the music; it’s a celebration of unity, freedom, and the indomitable spirit of human connection. It’s a place where strangers become friends, where barriers are broken, and where love and acceptance reign supreme.
The Matala Beach Festival is one of Europe’s biggest free music festivals.
In June 2011 the Festos Municipality threw a festival on the beach to celebrate the launch of the ‘Myth of Matala’ book featuring photos of the hippie cave residents during the 60s & 70s. It was a hippie reunion. 35,000 people heard about it and flocked to Matala beach.
In June 2012 over 58,000 people visited the festival weekend and the word is quickly spreading. It was a huge success as free events which brought together music and arts fans from all generations together on the beach beneath the caves to celebrate peace, love and happiness.
Matala Beach Festival 2013 introduced to 70.000 people the meaning of LIFE! In June 2013, they have invited Harry Keyworth to be the first solo artist to drive the Road To Matala Tour along the original ‘hippie trail’ of the 1960s and 1970s.
Overland from London to Crete in the VW Beetle. The tour culminated in Harry performing on stage at Matala Beach alongside artists including Hugh Cornwell, former frontman of The Stranglers, The Doors Tribute, Janis Joplin Tribute, Locomondo, Pink Floyd Tribute, Tonis Sfinos and many more!
During the Matala Beach Festival, there are several accommodation options available in and around Matala. You can camp for free at Matala campsite. It offers basic services on a large 40,000 m2 area next to Matala beach. It’s a low-cost option with showers, toilets, and hot water, allowing visitors to experience the “Myth of Matalas” like in hippie times in the 60s and 70s. It’s important to note that the campsite offers basic services and may have limited capacity, so it’s advisable to arrive early to secure a spot.
You can also check the following hotels in the area:
Learn more about Matala village.
Chania Rock Festival is one of the most significant rock and metal music festivals in Greece.
Since 2002, the Chania Rock Festival has presented the best of the best in metal on stage in Chania, Crete. From the Greek rock scene to the international rockstars, if you like to headbang and jam out to metal, then the Chania Rock Festival is the music festival in Greece you’ve been searching for to live it up with fellow metal fans.
The Feast of the Dormition of the Theotokos on August 15th is one of the most significant holidays in the Greek Orthodox calendar, celebrating the “falling asleep” and Assumption of the Virgin Mary. Neapoli hosts the largest festival in the prefecture, attracting thousands of visitors and Cretan musicians.
Celebrations begin on August 14th with a cycle race and a long-distance run ending in Neapoli’s central square. After the evening church service, young men race up and down the steep mountainside to the Timios Stavros summit. The square transforms into a lively party with traditional singing, dancing, live music, and a market offering toys, icons, and clothing, continuing into the early hours.
On August 15th, a lengthy church service is followed by a grand procession of the Virgin Mary’s icon through the town, accompanied by priests, dignitaries, and the Neapoli Town Band. The festivities, combining religious, sporting, and cultural events, make this a unique and vibrant two-day celebration.
Rethymno Rocks! #5 returns to Fortezza Castle from 27 to 30 August 2025 with four nights of live rock and metal. Fans created the festival for fans, bringing leading acts and diverse sounds to one of Greece’s main summer stages.
Tickets for Thursday, Friday and Saturday start at €20 (£17, $22) and are available online.
Chaniartoon – International Comic & Animation Festival was started in 2017.
Since then the festival has been embraced by locals and by people from around the world with short animation entries from all corners of the globe. The animation films are viewed at the open air cinema of the Municipal Garden.
The Chestnut Festival in Elos Village is a cherished autumn tradition on Crete, celebrated every year on the third Sunday of October. Located in the picturesque West part of Crete, near Kissamos, the village of Elos is surrounded by scenic chestnut trees that mark the harvest season.
This vibrant event offers visitors a taste of local culture and cuisine, with the spotlight on chestnut-inspired dishes. Along with indulging in these seasonal treats, festival-goers can enjoy live music, traditional folk dances, and the island’s famous spirit, tsikoudia. The festival also showcases traditional Greek costumes, hosts various competitions, and provides a lively atmosphere perfect for immersing yourself in Cretan culture. Whether you’re a local or a curious traveler, the Chestnut Festival is a delightful way to celebrate autumn in Crete.
Chania Film Festival (CFF) is an international festival in the last week of October every year.
An organisation that quickly became an institution with international collaborations, with many parallel events, recognition. A cinematographic event that aspires to host the best films in the field of cinema, from all around the world. A meeting place for fiction films, documentaries, and animation films, as well as directors, producers, and actors.
During its eleven-day duration (the last week of October and the first week of November every year), more than 22.000 viewers (including the school audience) attend the screenings and the parallel events, such as workshops, master classes, and exhibitions. The CFF is also active throughout the year, as it produces and presents several events, special screenings, educational workshops, film productions, etc.
OXI Day, meaning “The Day of No” (Oxi or Όχι, which means ‘No’ in Greek), is a significant national holiday celebrated on October 28 in Greece, Cyprus, and by Greek communities around the world. It commemorates the courageous refusal of Greece’s Prime Minister, Ioannis Metaxas, when he denied Italian Prime Minister Benito Mussolini’s demand to allow Italian troops to enter Greece on October 28, 1940. This bold rejection marked Greece’s entry into World War II and is admired globally as a symbol of bravery and resistance.
On Crete, Ohi Day is celebrated with parades held in most towns, including Chania, Rethymnon, Heraklion, and Agios Nikolaos. Schoolchildren and military personnel march proudly, accompanied by live music and local festivities. If you’re in Heraklion, Kournaros Square is a prime location to view the parade.
Expect road closures and traffic delays, as streets will be blocked for parades, and buses filled with schoolchildren will be transporting participants. In addition to the parades, special Orthodox services are held in the main cathedrals across the island. Note that all archaeological sites, along with most businesses and services, will be closed for the holiday.
Ohi Day is not only a time to celebrate Greece’s historical bravery, but also an opportunity to experience the local culture and pride that defines Crete.
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