The streets are already adorned with tiny lights, and the shop-windows have put on their holiday best. The countdown to the joyous days has begun, wishes flung in all directions, and the question hanging in the air: “where shall we go this year?” We hope the following will help to answer that question, and help you with whatever you need this holiday season.
 
Rest & Relaxation?
Here, the options are innumerable, since for relaxing by the fireside, the picturesque villages all over Greece offer inviting guesthouses literally too numerous to list. As exemplars, we would mention Zagorochoria (whichever you choose, will be brilliant), Mikro and Megalo Chorio of Evrytania district, Kalarrytes in the Tzoumerka (Pindos) mountain range, Milies and Zagora at Pelion...
 
Sports?
The range of options in this department is somewhat more finite, since in the whole country there are twenty-two ski centers where you can try your hand at the ultimate winter sport. Sure, there is also snowshoeing, but that hardly compares with the fresh powder at Vassilitsa. . . .
So, depending on the place of your stay and the number of days you have at your disposal, click on the ski center’s website, check the weather, and wax up your skis. But, you know, as a travel portal we would like to suggest that you pick a lesser-known destination for your stay and combine your winter sports with a bit of exploring in the countryside. New entry in ski resorts, Anilio just a few kilometers from Metsovo!
 
Romance?
We return to the unlimited, as the simple sharing of a glass of wine by the fireside tends to imbue almost any atmosphere with a touch of romance. Let’s enrich it, however, by preceding it with an exchange of vows under the spectacular sunset at the lighthouse of Heraion, ice skating on the frozen surface of Lake Dasiou – it pairs nicely with a stay at the lovely Trikala of Korinthia District, a stroll along the Avenue of Love, in Vytina (Peloponnese), a picnic in the oak forest of Kouri at Magnisia, breakfast at the Castle at Nafpaktos, and later a return to the mountains of Nafpaktia for that fireside glass of wine we mentioned earlier.
 
 To add to the above, consider including some of the following time-tested customs to bring people together, which after all is the whole point of the holidays.
 
 Widespread, and with particular warmth is the “Momogeri,”. Groups of masqueraders that wander around the streets in several villages in northern Greece, and cheer up the atmosphere with their teasing throughout the course of the twelve days of holidays.
In Arta, and in Ioannina, it is customary to light a sprig of oak, or laurel (bay) leaves during one’s visit, and as they burn offer glad tidings to the man of the house. In the Ionias islands, a pleasant note to the new year is meant to come from the sprinkling of perfume on friends as well as passers-by. In the Peloponnese, it is customary to smash a pomegranate on the doorstep as a blessing of good luck upon the household in the coming year. On Crete, there is the kneading of the Christ-bread, which is considered a divine work and an essential part of the Christmas table, among many other customs. Wherever you end up, “get local” and take up your part in these time-honored rituals.
 
Be advised, however, that there are mischievous imps (kallikantzaros) among us from Christmas to Epiphany (6 January). They are released during this period from their underworld labor of sawing down the tree that holds up the Earth, to walk among us and get entangled in the affairs of the world above.  This explains a lot.  Fear not; they will be gone again soon enough, so don’t let them ruin these days that are meant for joy.