28 October 2026: The Year Without a Long Weekend

Every year from mid-September onwards, the same search begins across Greece: «where to go for the 28 October long weekend». This year there is a problem with that phrase. 28 October 2026 — Greece’s Ochi Day holiday — falls on a Wednesday. That is not a calendar footnote. It changes the whole logic of the trip.

What it means in practice

In years when the holiday lands on a Friday or a Monday, you can be away three days without spending a single day of annual leave. The short escape makes sense: two nights somewhere near Greece, a European city two and a half hours away, quick and cost-free in leave days. This year, to make 28 October work for you, leave days have to be invested — so they had better buy a journey that deserves them. Thessaloniki plays this differently. 26 October, St Demetrius’ Day, is a public holiday for the city, and in 2026 it falls on a Monday. The city gets a three-day weekend from Saturday 24 to Monday 26, one working day on Tuesday 27, and another holiday on Wednesday 28. Which means that for a five-day journey from 26 to 30 October, a Thessalonian spends three days of leave and departs on a holiday. An Athenian spends four for the same trip.

The short-escape trap

You will see plenty of two- and three-day city-break ideas. They are good ideas — for another year. This year, a two-day European capital costs the same leave as a five-day journey somewhere that truly changes the scenery. The transfers, the airport, the check-in and check-out are nearly identical. What changes is how much journey is left once you subtract the travelling.

Where your leave days are worth spending this year

The last week of October is one of the best of the year for North Africa and the eastern Mediterranean. The heat has gone, humidity has dropped, and the cities move at their own pace rather than tourism’s. In Morocco specifically, October is the month locals themselves consider right for travelling. Days around 25°C, evenings that call for a light jacket, souks without the summer crowds. A five-day escape from 26 to 30 October 2026 to live the Colours of the East in their finest season is the ideal answer. Within a few days you will see four different faces of Morocco: cosmopolitan Casablanca, royal Rabat, vibrant Marrakech and Atlantic Essaouira. If you book early, prices start from 1,270 € departing from Athens and 1,385 € from Thessaloniki. It may cost more than a three-day stay in a Greek mountain village — but the experience will repay you.

And the other option: eight days with the desert

If you are based in Thessaloniki and can use St Demetrius’ Day, you can reach the Sahara itself on an 8-day Morocco journey from 19 to 26 October. You leave on a Monday and return on a Monday — on St Demetrius’ Day itself. Five days of leave for eight days of travel is not a bad trade. And if Morocco is not your call, Egypt is also waiting this October with a magical 5-day journey to Cairo.

One practical piece of advice

If you decide to travel in that window, book early. Precisely because there is no free long weekend this year, fewer people travel — but those who do decide earlier, to secure their leave in time and plan properly. For more autumn travel ideas abroad, have a look at our favourite destinations.