Started 1 year ago
Cretan Diet Festival
The Cretan Diet Festival 2026 (Γιορτή Κρητικής Διατροφής) runs from 3 to 7 July in the Rethymno Municipal Garden. The Cretan Diet Festival gathers island producers for a week of food, wine, and music, so visitors taste Crete’s olive oil, cheese, wine, and honey straight from the farmers and makers who bring them.
Last updated: 19 August 2026
When and where is the Cretan Diet Festival 2026?
The Cretan Diet Festival 2026 takes place from 3 to 7 July in the Rethymno Municipal Garden, in the centre of Rethymno on Crete’s north coast. Festival dates can move by a few days from year to year, so confirm the exact schedule on the organisers’ official website and social pages before you travel.
- Dates: 3 to 7 July 2026
- Venue: Rethymno Municipal Garden
- City: Rethymno, Crete
- Tickets: available at the entrance
- Also known as: Γιορτή Κρητικής Διατροφής
What to expect at the festival
The festival fills the Municipal Garden with producer stalls, food and wine tastings, craft and cookery exhibitions, and nightly Cretan music and dance. Producers pour local wine, cut graviera and other island cheeses, and sell olive oil, honey, and herbs from their own farms. The daily programme changes each year, so check the organisers’ official page for the day-by-day line-up.
Who runs the Cretan Diet Festival?
The Municipality of Rethymno, the Regional Unit of Rethymno, and the Chamber of Rethymno organise the festival. The event is one of Rethymno’s established summer gatherings and, according to TasteAtlas, has been held since 2012.
Cretan products and the Cretan diet
The Cretan Diet Festival shows the Cretan diet through the ingredients that define it: extra-virgin olive oil, island cheeses, local wine, wild herbs, and honey. Cretan producers use the week to bring these products directly to visitors, so guests learn how each one is grown, made, and used in everyday Cretan cooking.
Getting to Rethymno and the festival
Rethymno sits midway along Crete’s north coast, within about 90 minutes’ drive of both Chania and Heraklion airports, and the Municipal Garden is a short walk from the old town and the seafront. Crete Locals follows the island’s events on the ground, and this one is easiest to reach on your own schedule, with time afterwards to visit the mountain villages behind Rethymno where the same food is made. To drive from the airport to Rethymno and on to those villages, book a car rental in Crete.
The venue
Cretan Diet Festival is located at Rethymno Municipal Garden, Crete 741 50, Greece. The map below shows the exact spot; Google Maps and Waze give turn-by-turn directions.
