If we still haven’t given you enough reasons to visit Greece, here’s another one: Carnival Season! Also known as Greek “Mardi Gras”, in 2008 it lasts from mid-February to mid-March.

Weather

In this period, the weather is still cold and wet but you can expect really clear days. On the islands, the sunny days start to become quite common, but the weather in general is cold, wet and windy.

Here is more information about the weather in Greece.



Carnival Schedule

The carnival dates are tied to Greek Orthodox Easter, which is a movable holiday and is usually different from Western Easter. The most interesting part of the carnival –and the most vigorous party –is on the weekend prior to the end of Mardi Gras (and the start of Easter lent).

The Carnival Schedule is as follows:

• Triodion: Saturday, February 17th
• Burnt Thursday (Tsiknopempti): Thursday, February 28th
• Tsiknopempti Weekend: Friday, February 29th to Sunday, March 2nd
• Main Carnival Weekend: Friday, March 7th to Sunday, March 9th
• Clean Monday (Kathari Deftera): Monday, March 10th

Burnt Thursday is celebrated eleven days before the start of Easter lent. The term “burnt” is linked to the grilling of meats. The weekend following Burnt Thursday, called Tsiknopempti Weekend is also filled with parties. Technically, that Sunday (this year March 9th) is the last day when Christians are allowed to eat meat. On this day, all restaurants in Greece are crowded (except the seafood ones).

Clean Monday (this year March 10th) is the first day of Lent. Although there is a still a carnival atmosphere in the air, only “pure” food is eaten. Traditionally “lagana” is eaten on this day. This flat bread is made of flour, water, yeast, olive oil. The loaves are baked in the oven and then served with olive oil and sesame seeds on top.

Carnival History

Most of the carnival related events have their roots in ancient Greece and are linked to the worship of Dionysus, the Greek god of wine and divine intoxication. The costumes and processions derive from the ancient ceremonies which honored Dionysus and other gods and goddesses, while carrying the models of ships in processions have the roots in the similar processions which date from Ancient Egypt.

Tips

Rethimno and Patras are two large cities known for the great celebrations during the Carnival. In these cities, pretty much every weekend during the Carnival is filled with activities. The Carnival in Patras ranks in the top of the carnivals in the world, right after the carnivals in Rio de Janeiro and New Orleans.

On Crete, in Corfu and Rethimno, the carnival has a nice Venetian “flavor”, a reminder of the period when the island was under Venetian control.