The 16th edition of Greece's biggest bar and hospitality event takes over Technopolis, while Athens Bar Week brings guest shifts, pop-ups and parties to bars across the city from 1 to 5 November.
On 3 and 4 November 2026, Technopolis City of Athens in Gazi hosts Athens Bar Show, the largest professional event for the bar industry and modern hospitality in Greece and one of the most significant in Europe. Now in its 16th edition, the show brings together bartenders, brands, bar owners and creators from Greece and around the world for two days of exhibition, education and networking.
Last year's edition drew more than 17,000 professional visitors, a third of them from abroad, along with 130 exhibitors, 124 speakers and over 90 seminars and masterclasses. Almost half of the visitors were attending for the first time.
What's on at Technopolis
The exhibition gathers leading Greek and international brands, producers and suppliers, with new products, launches, tastings and interactive experiences. Three themed areas stand out this year:
Tomas Estes' Agave Embassy, a space dedicated to the memory and legacy of the late agave pioneer, with presentations, seminars and tastings exploring agave spirits.
Newcomers / Boutique Brands, showcasing new products and independent brands from Greece and abroad.
Hospitality Tech & AI, focused on technology and new solutions for modern hospitality.
Munich's iconic Schumann's Bar will pop up in the exhibition area as an exclusive, invitation-only bar. On Tuesday 3 November, Stage E hosts the world final of the METAXA Twelve Competition 2026 from 11:00 to 15:00.
The education programme of seminars, masterclasses and talks covers everything from bartending, coffee and spirits to gastronomy, business management, sustainability, technology and the future of hospitality. Speakers and the full timetable are announced on the show's official channels.
The party starts before the doors open
On Monday 2 November, the Athens Bar Show Welcome Night at STOA Culture brings the community together with 16 pop-up bars from Greece and abroad and a soundtrack played exclusively on vinyl. Grand Sponsor METAXA greets guests with a welcome drink, and bartenders pour signature cocktails with METAXA and Three Cents mixers, alongside non-alcoholic options. Entry is open to all Athens Bar Show ticket holders, who can also collect their show wristbands there.
To get around safely all week, Freenow by Lyft is the event's official mobility partner, with dedicated pick-up and drop-off points under the message "Don't Drink and Drive".
Top 500 Bars: the best 100 revealed in Athens
Bar week opens with another big moment for the industry. On Sunday 1 November, the Top 500 Bars Awards Ceremony takes place at the Ploes floating venue from 17:00 to 20:00, revealing the remaining 100 best bars of the 2026 ranking. The ceremony is invitation-only, and it is only the second time it has been held away from its home base.
Top 500 Bars was created by Le Cocktail Connoisseur and takes a different approach from voted lists. An algorithm gathers what is written and said about bars across thousands of online sources in more than 20 languages, from journalists, experts and other rankings to guest reviews, social media and search data. Last year's edition covered 125 cities in 53 countries.
Co-founder Anthony Poncier calls Athens the place where the energy of the European bar industry is strongest. As he told HorecaNews: "An awards ceremony is a celebration. A bar week is an investment in the future of the industry." He also stressed that the partnership with Athens Bar Show does not influence the ranking, or the other way round.
Guest shifts and takeovers around the city
From 1 to 5 November, Athens Bar Week fills the city with guest shifts, pop-ups and takeovers, with more than 200 events across around 70 venues according to the Greek press. The live schedule and map are at athensbarweek.gr/events and are still growing, so check there for every shift. Below are the highlights confirmed so far.
Don't miss Mirror Bar takeover at Line. On Monday 2 November from 19:00 to 21:00, Bratislava's Mirror Bar (No.34 in The 50 Best Bars 2026 and No.8 in Europe's 50 Best Bars 2026) takes over Line, No.5 in the world, The Best Bar in Europe 2026 and winner of this year's Ketel One Sustainable Bar Award.
See you in Athens
The Cocktail Balance team will be in Athens for both days of the show and for the whole of Athens Bar Week. We'll be walking the halls at Technopolis, sitting in on seminars and masterclasses, and making the rounds of guest shifts across the city. On Monday night we'll also be at Line, cheering on our friends from Mirror Bar, where our founder Stanislav Harciník with Peter Marcina will shake cocktails together with Satan’s Whiskers.
Stanislav will also take the stage himself. On Tuesday 3 November at 16:30, he presents the seminar Carbonation – The Art of Enhancing Flavour on Stage E. A masterclass of the same name follows straight after, from 17:10 to 17:55. Both sessions are a collaboration with Angelos Zaimpekis of Line Athens.
Can't make it to Athens? Follow along on our Instagram, @thecocktailbalance, for daily stories from the show floor and the bars. If you're in town, come and say hello.
