Thessaloniki Film Festival 2026: films, tickets and travel
The 67th Thessaloniki International Film Festival takes place on November 5-15, 2026. Its newly announced Greek selection joins a Balkan Horror programme and tributes to Oliver Laxe and Nikos Grammatikos. For a first visit, shortlist films by interest, then check the screening date, cinema, subtitles and ticket conditions before arranging travel around one title.
The official festival guide confirms the November dates. This is the Greek festival, not Toronto's TIFF, and not Thessaloniki's separate March documentary festival. The organizer also runs cinemas throughout the year, so an October screening listing is not automatically part of the November event.
Choose a programme strand before filling your diary
| Your interest | A confirmed programme direction | What to check in the individual listing |
|---|---|---|
| New Greek cinema | October's announced feature and short-film selection | Premiere date, language and cinema |
| Horror beyond familiar English-language releases | Eight-film Balkan Horror tribute | Content, classification and subtitles |
| Films connected by landscape | Oliver Laxe's Welcome to the Desert | Runtime and whether it fits your available day |
| A Greek director retrospective | Nikos Grammatikos tribute | Screening format and any access provision |
You do not need to see something in every strand. Two films you can attend comfortably are a better short visit than four bookings that leave no time to cross between cinemas or eat.
The Greek selection: a reason to look beyond familiar names
The October 13 announcement names 26 feature-length and 27 short Greek films.
Three International Competition choices are *A Whole Person Almost* by Efthimis Kosemund-Sanidis, *A Day in the Life of Jo: Chapter Phaedra* by Jacqueline Lentzou, and *Titanic Ocean* by Konstantina Kotzamani. Use their official English titles when searching the programme; translated listings elsewhere can use different names.
The new Classics Revisited section opens with a restored version of Maria Plyta's *Eve* (1953). That gives a visitor a way to pair a recent production with an older Greek film rather than choosing only premieres.
The announcement also places Renos Haralambidis's *The Classic Masterpiece* at the open-air Apollon cinema. Do not assume every selection plays in the central festival buildings. Check the specific venue before adding another screening immediately afterwards.
These are selection suggestions, not reviews based on a viewing or promises that tickets are available. Read a synopsis and classification before booking, particularly if your group includes children or anyone avoiding particular subjects.
Balkan Horror: check the content as carefully as the language
Announced on October 8, Balkan Horror brings eight films into the Meet the Neighbors+ programme. Its selection includes *Evil* (Greece, 2005), *Be My Cat: A Film for Anne* (Romania, 2015) and *You Won't Be Alone* (2022).
The programme covers different forms of horror, including graphic material. A regional or folklore theme does not make a film suitable for a family outing. Read the individual content and admission information instead of treating the strand as one shared age recommendation.
For a genre-focused weekend, choose the film you most want to see first, then look for a second screening that leaves enough time for the journey and a break. Keep an alternative title in case your preferred session is unavailable.
Oliver Laxe's desert films and a separate installation
The Welcome to the Desert tribute names Laxe as guest curator of a 17-film selection. Announced titles include *Lawrence of Arabia*, *Stalker*, *Beau Travail* and *Sirat*. This is a useful route into the programme if you would rather compare filmmakers' approaches to landscape than follow one national selection.
The organizer also announces an open talk with Laxe and a multimedia installation at MOMus-Experimental Center for the Arts, Warehouse B1 in the port. The installation uses a three-channel video work with a soundscape by Kangding Ray.
Check the talk and exhibition's own dates, admission and hours. A cinema booking does not establish access to either. Leave enough time for a long feature rather than placing another event close to its advertised start time without checking the runtime.
Nikos Grammatikos and accessible presentations
The Grammatikos tribute includes his feature and short films, an honorary Golden Alexander and an open conversation. The organizer specifically announces accessible presentations of *Truants* and *Night Flowers*.
If that provision matters to your visit, identify the exact screening and ask which support it includes. An accessible presentation of one title does not establish that every session has audio description, hearing support or the subtitles you need.
Likewise, ask about the actual route into the assigned hall, wheelchair space, companion booking and toilets before paying. The building name alone is not a complete access description.
Tickets: use the November festival page, not another price list
The currently posted festival ticket page lists a EUR7 individual ticket and a EUR50 package for ten physical screenings. Treat those as the published reference checked on October 15, not proof that every 2026 screening is already on sale. Confirm the edition, session and final total in the official purchase flow.
The package requires exchanging its allowance for individual tickets. It does not cover online viewing, opening or closing ceremonies, or special screenings. Package-issued tickets are non-refundable and non-exchangeable under the posted terms.
For cinema admission, the page requires a readable barcode on a printed or digital ticket. Seats are unnumbered, and entry stops when the screening begins. The published individual-ticket policy allows a refund until the preceding day; confirm that it applies to the ticket you are buying.
Follow the organizer's booking links and read the selected event carefully. Neither an old ticket screenshot nor a general cinema tariff proves the November festival price. Save the issued ticket, not just the payment email, before leaving for the venue.
Will your film have English subtitles?
Check the language and subtitle fields for the exact screening. A film's production country does not tell you its spoken language, and Greek subtitles do not help a visitor who cannot read Greek. Do not assume that an English description on the website guarantees English subtitles in the cinema.
For a group, confirm that everyone can follow the chosen version before buying several tickets. If the listing is unclear, ask the festival rather than relying on another year's audience comments.
Online screenings are a separate choice. Check the platform's current territory restrictions, viewing window and film availability before purchase. A mobile data plan does not remove rights restrictions or turn a physical cinema ticket into a streaming ticket.
Olympion and the port: keep the hall name with the address
The organizer's year-round venue guide identifies two useful clusters:
| Building | Cinemas inside |
|---|---|
| Olympion, Aristotelous Square | Olympion and Pavlos Zannas |
| Warehouse 1, Port of Thessaloniki | John Cassavetes and Stavros Tornes |
This is orientation, not a claim that these are the only venues in the 67th edition. Save the hall name from your ticket as well as the building's map pin. Warehouse B1, associated with the Laxe installation, is not Warehouse 1's cinema address.
For a short stay, choose accommodation based on the screenings you can book and the return route you will use. Keep a meal break between clusters and allow time to find the correct entrance. For a wider family holiday, use the Greece with kids guide rather than treating the adult festival programme as a children's itinerary.
Airport arrival and useful transport tools
Thessaloniki Airport's current bus guidance lists 1X/1N services connecting the airport with the city centre, railway station and KTEL Makedonia. It also lists 2X for the Nea Elvetia metro interchange and 3X for Mikra. These are bus connections; do not book on the assumption that a train collects you at the terminal.
The airport places the bus terminal outside Arrivals, in front of Exit 4 of Terminal 1. It lists a ticket booth and OSETH ticket machines. Check current fares, operating times and your destination stop before travelling.
Use the Thessaloniki transport authority's website for current transport information and notices. Compare the validity of the actual ticket you select for buses, metro and airport travel instead of assuming one product covers everything. A map or translation app can help you read a stop name, but the operator's current service information should decide your route.
Do not make a festival screening your first fixed appointment immediately after landing. Allow for baggage, transport and finding your accommodation. For a late film, check the return service for when it finishes, not just when it starts.
Data for cinema changes and meeting up
Save ticket barcodes, cinema names and a map backup before heading out. Mobile data is useful for checking a changed session, finding the right warehouse or telling a friend which entrance you are using. Keep your phone charged, and silence it once the screening begins.
OpenSim's Greece plans give international visitors a separate prepaid allowance for those tasks. On October 15, the public catalog listed 5GB for 30 days at USD4.76 with top-up support. Confirm the current price and terms of the selected package.
That can suit a trip where you want a fixed data budget and can add data to an eligible plan. If your existing mobile package includes sufficient Greece roaming, using it may be simpler. Neither choice guarantees reception in a particular auditorium or supplies festival admission.
Use the travel data calculator to estimate an allowance. Check phone compatibility and installation timing before departure.
Thessaloniki programme sources and updates
Programme announcements, venue descriptions, the posted ticket terms and transport references were checked on October 15, 2026. Recheck the individual screening when the final timetable and sales details are available, and again before travelling. This guide needs revision for changed films, booking rules, subtitles, access arrangements or transport, and after the November 15 festival finish. Agora's November 6-14 industry programme is separate from the public festival dates and admission choices.
Photograph: Olympion on Aristotelous Square, June 1, 2016, by Mick D Kirkov, via Wikimedia Commons.jpeg), available under CC0. Cropped, resized and compressed. It shows the cinema building, not the 2026 festival.
