At a glance
21 June
Whit Monday. The Sunday before is Pentecost.
Closed
Banks, public services, schools and tutoring schools.
Open
Most shops, supermarkets, cafés and restaurants.
90%
How full the ferries from Piraeus were on the Friday of the long weekend in 2026.
What closes and what stays open
The day is not a compulsory holiday for everyone. Those who have it by law or by collective agreement close. In practice, in central Athens it looks like this:
| What | Whit Monday |
|---|---|
| Banks | Branches closed. ATMs work. |
| Public services | Closed. |
| Schools, tutoring schools | Closed. |
| Supermarkets | Open, with their usual hours. |
| Shops in the centre | Most open. Some bookshops, diagnostic centres and private clinics close because their agreement provides for it. |
| Cafés, restaurants, tavernas | Open. |
| Acropolis and archaeological sites | The day is not one of those on which they close (1/1, 25/3, 1/5, Easter Sunday, 25 and 26/12), so they open on summer hours. |
Need a bank? sort it out by Friday. On Monday the banks are closed and some interbank transfers are not processed until Tuesday. For cash, the ATMs around Victoria work as normal.
What is being celebrated
Pentecost commemorates the descent of the Holy Spirit on the apostles, fifty days after the Resurrection. It is one of the major feasts of the Orthodox Church and is linked to the doctrine of the Holy Trinity. On Sunday afternoon churches hold the Kneeling Vespers, when people kneel for the prayers for the first time since Easter.
On Monday the churches dedicated to the Holy Trinity (Agia Triada) celebrate their feast. In Athens and Piraeus this means festive vespers on Sunday evening and a liturgy on Monday morning.
The apostles seated in a semicircle with the flames of the Holy Spirit above them. An icon from the early 18th century.
A mosaic of Peter and Paul on the façade of Agia Triada in Piraeus.
Icon: Dionysios of Fourna (public domain) · mosaic: Ljuba brank, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons.
The feast of Agia Triada in Piraeus
The Metropolitan Church of Agia Triada, at Ethnikis Antistaseos 2, is the cathedral of Piraeus, a few steps from the port. It celebrates on Pentecost Sunday and on Whit Monday. In 2024 the Sunday vespers were led by the Metropolitan of Piraeus. It is the biggest Holy Trinity feast in the area and goes well with a walk around the port and Mikrolimano.
The bell tower and the arches of the entrance. The Sunday vespers take place here.
On Monday morning the liturgy can often be heard from the steps outside too.
Christ Pantocrator at the centre of the dome, with angels and prophets around him.
There are shaded benches around the church, a good stop before the vespers.
The dome stands out from the quays. On a clear day you can see the Parthenon too.
The church is an 8-minute walk from Piraeus station.
Photos: Paweł Szubert, G Da, A.Savin (CC BY-SA 3.0), Julian Lupyan (CC0), Wikimedia Commons.
How to get from Ioulianou 50 to Agia Triada
- Ioulianou 50 → Victoria station: 3 minutes on foot.
- Line 1 (green): towards Piraeus, to the end of the line, no change. About 30 minutes.
- Piraeus station → Agia Triada: leave the station and walk south towards Ethnikis Antistaseos, about 600 metres, 8 minutes.
🕊️ From Piraeus station to Agia Triada
From Victoria, Line 1 goes to Piraeus without a change. Tap the church to open the route in Google Maps.
The long weekend: Athens empties
Whit Monday always falls in late spring or early summer, and for many families it is the first trip to the sea. The exodus starts on Friday. On the morning of Friday 29 May 2026 the ferries from Piraeus left about 90% full. In 2025, on a single day of the long weekend, 20 sailings were scheduled from Piraeus with almost 14,000 passengers. On the roads, traffic builds up at the exits towards Corinth and Lamia.
They fill up first. If you want an island over the long weekend, book weeks ahead.
Aegina, Poros, Hydra: closer, but the Friday and Monday sailings fill up too.
On Friday and Monday evening the port gates are very busy. Arrive an hour early.
Photos: K. Krallis (CC BY-SA 3.0), Jebulon (CC0), Jean Housen (CC BY-SA 4.0), Wikimedia Commons.
For those staying in Athens, the long weekend has a good side: less traffic, quiet neighbourhoods and free tables at the tavernas. June is a good month for a day trip. The KTEL Liosion bus station, a 10-minute walk from Ioulianou 50, has buses to Delphi; for the sea, Aegina is an hour away by boat. If you are also coming back by ferry on Monday evening, expect queues at the port taxi rank; Line 1 to Victoria is the safer bet.
Frequently asked questions
When is Whit Monday in 2027?
Monday 21 June. Pentecost Sunday is on 20 June. The date changes every year because it follows Easter.
Is it a public holiday?
For the public sector, banks and schools, yes. For the private sector it is not compulsory; only the sectors that have it in their collective agreement close.
Are shops open in Athens?
Most of them, and the supermarkets too. In other parts of Greece, such as Thessaly, shops usually close.
Is the Acropolis open?
The day is not one on which archaeological sites close, so it opens as normal. Go early: in June it gets hot from midday.
Will I find a ticket to an island?
For the Friday and Monday of the long weekend tickets go early. Book at least two weeks ahead, especially for the Cyclades.
— Kathy
