If you think that, just like the migratory birds, we too migrate, you couldn't be further from the truth! Halkidiki and its people are slowly but steadily finding their way back to their everyday rhythms. This means more community gatherings, more long-running events, and the return of warm, perhaps even familiar, activities to our calendars.
Now that September is coming to an end and many seasonal businesses are closing, the mountains, nature, and local (year-round) tsipouradika are becoming the beating heart of the community. We have traditional dances to keep us warm, trail races (or simply hiking experiences for all levels), theatre, olive picking, and much more!
Konxa welcomes you to a month filled with new experiences…
*The list will be updated through our calendar, so make sure to check that out, too!
1. Xeskouriazo Trail, a Documentary Screening & a Solidarity Concert
A series of events bringing the community together around nature, culture and social causes.
October brings several days of events to Halkidiki, starting with a documentary screening, followed by the 13th Xeskouriazo Trail and a solidarity concert connecting the struggles of Tempi and Skouries.
3 October | Documentary Screening: Skouries Mining
Megali Panagia, Halkidiki | 19:00
As part of the opening events of the 13th Xeskouriazo Trail, a documentary about mining in Skouries will be screened on Saturday, October 3, at the Kakkavos Association's venue in Megali Panagia. The screening will be followed by an open discussion. The event is organised by the Women's Association of Megali Panagia and the Kakkavos Association for the Protection of the Environment, Culture and History.
4 October | 13th Xeskouriazo Trail
Megali Panagia, Halkidiki | Chorostasi Square
On Sunday, the 13th Xeskouriazo Trail returns to Mount Kakavos with 5 km, 15 km and 25 km routes. Organised by the Women’s Association of Megali Panagia since 2013, the event combines mountain running with the organisers’ environmental campaign opposing gold-copper mining in Skouries.
*After the races and awards, the day continues in Chorostasi Square with a traditional celebration featuring Dromolagnoi, a Thessaloniki-based traditional music group. The live celebration is scheduled to begin after 14:30.
++Xeskouriazo official website, race information++
++Traditional celebration with Dromolagnoi Facebook event++
9 October | Solidarity Concert: Tempi & Skouries
Ierissos, Halkidiki |Cultural Center Park of Ierissos 18:00
*Financial support ticket: €5
A solidarity concert in Ierissos will bring together Thanasis Papakonstantinou, Giannis Haroulis, Dimitris Mystakidis, Social Waste, Natasa Bofiliou, Giannis Aggelakas, Pavlos Pavlidis, Eirini Skylakaki, Matoula Zamani, Andriana Achitzanova and Dimitris Apostolakis. The organisers connect the experiences of Tempi and Skouries through questions of public interest, safety, the environment and accountability.
2. 21st Dragounteli Crossing
The 21st Dragounteli Crossing returns to Parthenonas (yes, Halkidiki also has one!) for a day dedicated to nature, movement and local tradition.
Six different routes invite participants to discover the mountainous landscape of Dragounteli through hiking, cycling and horse riding, with distances ranging from 2 to 26 km. The routes meet in the traditional village of Parthenonas at around 13:00, where the day continues with cultural activities, traditional music and a gathering for participants and visitors.
A beautiful way to experience another side of Sithonia, through its forest, trails and mountain villages.
3. Blood Donation Actions
Two blood donation initiatives (as far as we know! if there are more, please hit us up) will take place in Halkidiki this October, offering residents and visitors the opportunity to support people in need through a simple act of solidarity.
1 October, Emergency Blood Donation
Municipal Theatre of Nea Moudania | 12:00–18:00
An emergency blood donation will be held in support of 17-year-old Athanasios, following increased blood needs after a serious accident. The local community has been mobilising to support him and his family. ++Χαλκιδική Πολιτική++
For participation and information, you can call the following numbers:
+30 23733 50233, 23733 50508, 23733 50530
11 October, Voluntary Blood Donation
Association Library | Afitos
The Friends of Folklore and Tradition Association of Afitos is organising a voluntary blood donation to help strengthen local blood supplies and support those in need.
++More information about the Afitos blood donation++
Give blood. Give life.
4. Theatre Play vol.1
Wake up, sleepy beauties! Polygyros Municipal Theatre is calling, and this one is worth getting out of bed for.
10 October, Theatre: Giannoulis Chalepas , My Sleeping Beauty
Municipal Theatre of Polygyros, Halkidiki at 21:00
The theatrical performance “Giannoulis Chalepas: My Sleeping Beauty”, written by Giorgos A. Christodoulou, comes to Polygyros this October. Originally scheduled for September 26, the performance has been rescheduled for Saturday, October 10 at 21:00, at the Indoor Municipal Theatre of Polygyros. The play turns its focus to Giannoulis Chalepas, one of Greece’s most distinctive sculptors, bringing his life and artistic world to the stage.
*Attention, the play is in Greek
5. Theatre Play vol.2
Christmas may be a little early, but we’ve got a small present coming your way.
10, 11, 17 & 18 October, Theatre: Merry Christmas, Mr. Twitter
Cultural Center of Nea Triglia, Halkidiki at 20:00
October brings four evenings of theatre to Nea Triglia with the newly founded Theatroparmenoi, Nea Triglia Theatre Association. Established in 2026, the group was created to encourage theatre education, performance and participation in the local community, under the direction of Zouboulis Papaparaskevas.
Four dates, one local stage, and a new theatre group beginning its story in Halkidiki.
*Attention, the play is in Greek
6. For Bike lovers
Bike lovers, this one’s for you. Forget Route de France, Kassandreia is where the real action is!
10 & 11 October, Panhellenic Mountain Eliminator Championship 2026
Kassandreia, Halkidiki
Kassandreia shifts into race mode this October with the Panhellenic Mountain Eliminator Championship 2026, bringing competitive mountain biking action to Halkidiki for two days. Expect speed, technical riding and plenty of adrenaline as riders battle it out for the national title.
Two wheels, one championship, and absolutely no time to take it slow.
All our best regards to the wonderful group of people behind this active cultural-athletic association from Pefkochori, ++GroundBreakers++. More outdoors events coming!
7. Folk dances to keep our hearts, souls, and feet warm.
Autumn may be getting windier and cloudier, but Pefkochori is keeping things warm with dance, music and plenty of folk spirit.
27 September – 2 October, Kassandra Festival of Traditional Dance & Music
Pefkochori, Halkidiki
Cloudy skies? We’ll take folk dances and a little cultural fire instead.
The Kassandra Festival of Traditional Dance and Music brings together groups and artists from different countries, creating a meeting point for traditional music, dance, costumes and cultures from around the world. At its heart, the festival is less about competition and more about bringing people together, sharing traditions and celebrating cultural exchange against the backdrop of Halkidiki.
Want more details? Check our ++Calendar++.
8. From Green Bean to Greek Coffee
If your day doesn’t officially begin before the first coffee, this one is for you.
++Coffee-Making Workshop++
Together with Michalis, Mirka and Eleftheria, you’ll follow coffee from the green bean all the way to the cup: roasting, grinding and finally brewing it slowly in a briki buried in hot sand.
Along the way, you’ll discover how coffee became such an important part of everyday Greek life and finish the experience the proper way: with Greek coffee, loukoumi and a glass of tsipouro. And because leaving empty-handed after talking about coffee for an hour would simply be rude, there’s a little bag of coffee waiting for you to take home.
Check out this experience through Konxa: ++Coffee Workshop++
9. Keeping Tradition Alive, One Saturday at a Time
More folklore adventures
Saturdays, Experiential Workshops in Cultural Heritage & Folklore
10 weekly sessions
For ten Saturdays, cultural heritage steps out of the display case and becomes something to touch, explore, discuss and experience. This series of experiential workshops looks at folklore, traditional objects, materials, stories and collective memory as living parts of contemporary culture, not simply remnants of the past.
All our warmest regards to Themistoklis Moschidis, the creative mind behind Decumanus Maximus, for keeping folklore, memory and traditional craftsmanship very much alive and definitely not gathering dust in a museum corner. More heritage-filled Saturdays are coming!
++Discover Decumanus Maximus and Themis++
10. BLS/CPR Training
17 October, BLS / CPR Training, Kids Save Lives
Simantra, Halkidiki
A practical BLS and CPR training session by Kids Save Lives, focused on giving participants the confidence and basic skills to respond in an emergency. Because knowing what to do in the first few minutes can make all the difference.
And if Simantra is a little too far, you can check when Kids Save Lives will be holding a training session closer to you:
11. Wine Tasting with Sommelier
On Thursdays, we planned for you a Wine Tasting with Sommelier
Afytos, Halkidiki
What if you could travel across Greece without leaving a wine cellar in Afytos? Basically, as Nolan intended.
With Stathis, a certified sommelier and international wine competition judge, you’ll taste five wines from different parts of Greece and discover how soil, climate and local culture find their way into every glass. No wine expertise required, the idea is to learn how to recognise aromas and flavours yourself rather than being told what you’re supposed to taste. You’ll get a blank map of Greece, clues from each region and a tasting that includes white, red, rosé, sweet wine and premium retsina, accompanied by Greek cheeses, fruits and jams.
Odysseus needed ten years to travel around Greece. We’ve got five glasses.
++Discover the Wine Tasting experience++
OTHERWISE
11. Places We Carry With Us
3, 10 & 17 October, The Place Within Us, Experiential Workshops
Kallithea Cultural Space, 17:00–20:00
What does a place leave inside us, in our memories, emotions and personal stories?
Inspired by the photography exhibition “Whispers of Nature, Traces of Time”, The Place Within Us is a series of three experiential workshops exploring our relationship with landscape, memory and collective experience. Participants are invited to observe images and familiar places, reflect on what they awaken, and express those connections through the group process.