As the festive season unfolds, the city takes on a new air, with a 19‑meter fir glittering in Syntagma square, and the roads around it stretchinng out like decorated golden branches, to music from brass bands and jazz quartets filling the air and neighborhoods turning into small winter stages.
This year’s celebrations, which began in late November and will run through to early January, make the city feel both expansive and intimate. There are endless options for fun – concerts, street parties, children’s events, exhibitions and familiar traditions welcome people of all ages to participate and enjoy.
What stands out above all is how these festivities imbue every one of Athens’ key districts. From Kotzia Square’s new Christmas Market and the embroidered carols exhibition in Plaka to an AI‑driven musical event and live musiic in neighborhood squares, the colorfully varied program mixes Greek heritage with a global contemporary edge. Below are our favorite highlights. For the full program, click here (Greek only).
Must-do Events and Experiences in Athens
01
Citywide Christmas Experiences
Christmas Market
20 Dec 2025 – 6 Jan 2026 | Kotzia Square
Athens’ main festive hub returns with wooden chalets, street food, gifts, a free kids’ corner, carousel, live concerts and DJ sets throughout the holiday season. This year’s expanded edition includes daily broadcast partnerships with major radio stations, a dedicated Kids’ Corner with creative workshops, and a full concert lineup on the market’s stage – turning Kotzia into the center of the city’s holiday atmosphere. A reliable centerpiece for families and visitors.
Night of Wishes
24 Dec 2025 | Kotzia Square
A Christmas Eve tradition: biodegradable lanterns float over the square as crowds make wishes for the year ahead, with Athens 9.84 setting the soundtrack. The station begins broadcasting onsite from 17:00 as thousands gather for one of the most beloved rituals of the season.
Athens New Year’s Eve
31 Dec 2025 | Syntagma Square
The city’s official countdown with major live performances, dancing, and fireworks over the Parliament – Athens’ largest public celebration. The night opens with the Athens Philharmonic Band performing festive melodies before the main show begins.
Meet Market Christmas Edition
12-21 Dec 2025 | OSY Depot Gazi
The Old OSY Depot between Ermou and Pireos turns into one of Athens’ buzziest indoor hubs in the run‑up to Christmas, hosting a ten‑day Meet Market (12–21 December). Expect a sleek parade of Greek designers, artisan food producers, printmakers, natural beauty labels, and small studios in leather, textiles, and wood. Music is part of the DNA – rotating DJs set the daytime tone, and evenings skew more adult. It’s the kind of bazaar where you go in for ‘one gift’ and leave with a full bag.
Christmas Village
today-7 Jan 2026 | Pedion tou Areos
Pedion tou Areos dresses for the season once again, turning into a glowing Christmas Village from 28 November 2025 to 7 January 2026. Admission is free, and the park welcomes visitors daily into a warmly decorated landscape full of festive activity.
Christmas Factory
today – 22 Dec 2005 | Technopolis
The Christmas Factory returns to Technopolis, reanimating the industrial icon with warmth, color, and shine. Santa and his tireless elves helm a bright winter wonderland – workshops, shows, games, surprises at every turn. New this year: a Fun Park with rides for all – carousel, Ferris wheel, slides, ice train, bumper cars, mirror maze, and a sizable rink. Around it, the market overflows with gifts, ornaments, festive treats, and chocolates – the mood arrives on cue.
02
Music, Ballet & Performances
The Nutcracker – P. I. Tchaikovsky (Ballet)
20, 22, 23, 27, 29 Dec & 2, 3 Jan | Olympia Municipal Music Theatre ‘Maria Kallas’
A new two-act staging choreographed by Christiana Stefanou, with the Athens Municipal Symphony Orchestra conducted by Konstantinos Diminas. The production includes new costumes by Giuliana Bottino and aims to revive the ballet’s classic Christmas magic. A polished, classical Christmas fixture.
A Happy New Year – Athens Big Band with Penny Baltatzi & Philipp Weiss
30 Dec 2025 | Olympia Municipal Music Theatre ‘Maria Kallas’
Swing, crooner classics and golden-age big band energy in a festive concert by two standout vocalists and Athens’ own jazz orchestra – part of the theatre’s annual year‑end tradition.
Storyville Ragtimers – New Orleans Jazz
20 Dec 2025 | Voukourestiou Street
A street-stage dose of 1920s jazz glamour; one of the city’s liveliest outdoor performances, evoking the atmosphere of New Orleans’ Storyville district.
De Profundis Ensemble – Classical Street Concert
20 Dec 2025 | Ermou at Kapnikarea
A refined open-air classical program bringing chamber sound into the heart of the shopping district – a rare moment of quiet elegance in the season’s busiest pedestrian artery.
03
Street Parties & Open-air Culture
The Longest Night of the Year – City Festival
20 Dec 2025 | Multiple Venues
Athens’ big urban party night: Latin street feasts in Kerameikos; block parties in Lambrini; a live band stage on Protopageneias; yoga in the park; Balkan brass parades; jazz tributes; electronic DJ sets; and En Lefko’s nightlife takeover at the Moxy arcade. This year’s program also includes Piano Stories at Victoria Square and Sinatra-with-a-twist performances in Mesolongiou – the densest, most eclectic night of the holidays.
Christmas in the City – Radio Street Parties
20 & 27 Dec 2025 | Korai Square & Agia Irini Square
Athenian radio stations occupy central squares with pop-up studios, live guest sets and all-day music programming — a recurring highlight for spontaneous city energy.
Athens All Star Party
30 Dec 2025 | Kotzia Square
A heavyweight DJ lineup (Street Outdoors Soundsystem, Yucatan, Deerislnd, Tropical) turns the square into a pre–New Year open-air dance floor, framed by the Christmas Market lights and City Hall backdrop.
04
Exhibitions & Cultural Highlights
Carols – Embroidered Songs of Christmas
Until 11 Jan 2026 | Museum of Folk Art and Tradition ‘Angeliki Hatzimichali‘
A beautifully curated exhibition presenting Christmas and New Year carols across Greece, Southern Italy and Cyprus as embroidered narratives, accompanied by ceramic and metal artworks produced by the city’s Clay Centre – a quiet, atmospheric highlight in Plaka.
AI Christmas Orchestra
21 Dec 2025 – 4 Jan 2026 | Multiple Neighborhoods
A collaboration between OPANDA and the Athens Digital Arts Festival: live musicians improvise while an AI engine reacts in real time, generating evolving sound and light patterns across neighborhood squares including Kypseli, Thymarakia, Agios Dimitrios, Mesolongiou and Sepolia.
05
Family & Kids Events
Christmas Bubble Shows & Parades
20, 21 & 28 Dec 2025 | Kotzia Square & Athens Book Space
Aerial artists, giant bubble performances and festive parades – reliably packed and visually charming. The La Petite Marguerite troupe appears throughout the city with bubble parades and fantasy characters.
Christmas Mystery
21 Dec 2025 | Kypseli Market
A well-designed interactive treasure-hunt game inside the historic market, using the permanent exhibition spaces for clues. Particularly popular with families.
Salt-Dough & Festive Boat Workshops
27 Dec 2025 | Athens Children’s Museum
Drop-in holiday workshops for children three to twelve, making Christmas boats and ornaments – part of the museum’s ‘Hello Pythagoras’ exhibit area.
Wolf Zacharias & AI Santa – Interactive New-Tech Christmas Play
27 Dec 2025 | Kalouta Cultural Centre
A high-energy performance combining theatre, music and digital storytelling – one of the season’s more modern kid-friendly productions, featuring performers like Matthíldi Maggira and Giorgos Kopsidas.
Karagiozis Shadow Theatre (Christmas Series)
20 Dec 2025 & 3 Jan 2026 | Melina Cultural Centre
Holiday editions of Greece’s classic shadow theatre tradition performed by the Haridimos troupe, with voices by Konstantinos Koutsoumplis.
06
Community, Libraries & Learning Events
Astronomy Night – Athens Book Space
21 Dec 2025 | Parko Eleftherias
A winter stargazing session with astronomers from the National Observatory, featuring Saturn, the Moon and guided telescope observation.
Guided Tours of the Municipal Library of Athens
27 & 30 Dec 2025 | Municipal Library
Behind-the-scenes access to one of the city’s major public libraries, including archival areas not normally open to visitors.
Dickens: The Christmas Writer
31 Dec 2025 | Municipal Library
A literary session for adults exploring Dickens’ Christmas legacy, with reading and writing elements — held on the final morning of the year.
Visit-worthy Venues Around Athens
07
SNFCC
Various Dates | Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center
The Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center morphs into a winter village from late November to early January – ice rink on the theCanal, soft lighting, sculptural installations, and dusk fountains choreographed to seasonal playlists.
From 21 December to 7 January, the Lighthouse’s 360° Pop-Up Bar adds views over the Saronic Gulf and the lit Acropolis, with concerts, intimate sets, and open-air screenings rounding out the rhythm – winter cocktails, warm lights, late‑evening DJs, distinctly cosmopolitan. Inside Niarchos Park, the Makers’ Market (13 December–7 January) lines the walkway with limited-edition gifts- ceramics, jewelry, small‑batch candles, prints, festive decor – plus quick demos and micro‑workshops that slow the browse and make it hands‑on. It’s an easy stop for anyone already skating, strolling the lights, or catching a show.
08
M.E.C. Peania
Santa Claus Kingdom
Today – 6 Jan 2025 | Conference Center
If Christmas has a capital, it’s Santa Claus Kingdom. From 29 November 2025 to 6 January 2026, M.E.C. Peania (Paiania) expands into Greece’s most ambitious holiday realm – joy, sparkle, and nonstop activity on tap.
09
Acharnes
Paradise Park
today – 6 Jan 2025
This year, Paradise Park in Acharnes invites families into a fully immersive holiday experience. From 6 December 2025 to 6 January 2026, two themed villages come to life – the Christmas Village and the New Year’s Village – built around themes of wishes and new beginnings. Children join activities in age-specific groups, guided by experienced educators through three-and-a-half-hour sessions filled with creative, playful, and educational moments designed to bring the magic of the season to life.
10
Marina Flisvos
Marina Flisvos unveils a seasonal destination filled with events and family-friendly activities throughout December. The waterfront transforms into a vibrant Christmas village with a trampoline, train ride, carousel, bumper cars, roller skates, and more. Young visitors can also enjoy face painting, a photo booth, the Wishing Phone, Santa’s workshops, and appearances by the Fivos Mascot.
