Graviera Festival 2023

The Graviera Festival is organized in Sfakia, a quaint village in the southwestern part of Crete. Locals are renowned across Greece for their vim and hospitality. Every year, they set up a hearty table full of traditional delicacies, including pilaf, boiled meat, Sfakian yakhni, stew salads, and ample wine.

Livestock farming is the vocation of several residents of Sfakia and their cheese-making tradition goes hundreds of years back. It is the Cretan village with the most mitata (tiny rural constructions used by shepherds), with some of them not being affected by the modern way of life at all. The festival's goal is to honor and promote the most valuable product of the village, the Cretan Graviera.

The celebration was first organized in 1985 and has been supported by thousands of locals and visitors ever since. Except for the palatable dishes, local musicians playing the lyre will excite you since their spirit makes everyone dance sooner or later.

The Graviera Festival takes place on August 15th, the day of the Assumption of Mary, which is a major religious feast day for Greeks.