Portarlington Greek Festival 2026: Sun 1 Nov, 10am-5pm

This has now finished. The details below applied up to Sunday 1 November 2026 and are kept as a record.

At a glance

When: Sunday 1 November 2026, 10am to 5pm (Victorian time, AEDT)
Where: WG Little Reserve, 65–87 Newcombe Street, Portarlington, opposite the Portarlington Hotel
Cost: Gold coin donation, according to the City of Greater Geelong; Visit Geelong and The Bellarine lists free entry
On the day: Live music, belly dancers, traditional Greek dancing, Greek food, ouzo, beer and wine, and market stalls
Facilities: Food and drink, parking, seating, toilets, undercover areas and wheelchair access are all listed by the City
Who it’s for: Families and anyone after Greek food and music on the Bellarine Peninsula; no booking is mentioned
What to do now: Decide how you will get to Portarlington, bring a gold coin, and check the festival’s channels on the morning for any weather change
Last checked: Thursday 29 October 2026, against the City’s event page and the Visit Geelong and The Bellarine listing
Not yet confirmed: This year’s performers and running order, where to park, any shuttle or ferry plan, and the wet-weather arrangements

The Portarlington Greek Festival is on this Sunday, 1 November 2026, from 10am to 5pm at WG Little Reserve in Portarlington, and entry is a gold coin donation. It is the festival’s second year, and the organisers had not published this year’s performers or running order on the pages we could read.

Aerial view of Portarlington on the Bellarine Peninsula, with the shoreline and the town behind it — Portarlington from the air, January 2018. The photo is almost nine years old and shows the town, not the festival (photo: Bob T / CC BY-SA 4.0)

When and where is the Portarlington Greek Festival?

The City of Greater Geelong’s event page gives Sunday 1 November 2026, 10:00am to 5:00pm. The site is WG Little Reserve, at 65–87 Newcombe Street, Portarlington, which the City’s description places “opposite the Portarlington Hotel”. Visit Geelong and The Bellarine, the regional tourism body, lists the same reserve and the date 1 November.

Detail	What the City and Visit Geelong and The Bellarine say
Date	Sunday 1 November 2026
Hours	10am to 5pm
Venue	WG Little Reserve, 65–87 Newcombe Street, Portarlington VIC 3223
Cost	Gold coin donation (City); free entry (Visit Geelong and The Bellarine)
Contact	portarlingtongreekfestival@gmail.com

The two sources describe the entry slightly differently, and both are consistent with a donation at the gate. The City’s wording is “Gold Coin Donation”, and its description adds that entry by donation means “everyone can come along”. Bring a coin or two.

What is on at the festival?

The City’s description lists live music, belly dancers, traditional Greek dancing and “a feast of mouth-watering Greek food”. Ouzo, beer and wine are on offer, and there are market stalls. The regional tourism listing describes a day celebrating Greek and Australian culture, with Greek food, live Greek music, beer, wine, ouzo, market stalls and more.

What	Source says
Music	Live music; live Greek music (tourism listing)
Dance	Belly dancers and traditional Greek dancing
Food	Greek food
Drinks	Ouzo, beer and wine
Shopping	Market stalls

The pages do not name this year’s bands, dancers or food vendors, and they do not publish a stage program. If you want to catch a particular act, check the festival’s channels on the day rather than planning around a time you cannot confirm.

Dancers in traditional Greek costume performing at a Greek festival in Rochester, New York, in 2017 — Dancers at a Greek festival in Rochester, New York, in 2017. This photo was taken in the United States, not Portarlington, and shows the kind of traditional dancing the festival lists (photo: DanielPenfield / CC BY-SA 4.0)

What facilities are there?

The City’s page lists catering and dining, parking available, seating and viewing areas, toilets, undercover areas and wheelchair accessibility. Visit Geelong and The Bellarine adds family friendly, public toilet, bar, cafe, carpark, coach parking and public telephone, and marks the festival as catering for visitors who use a wheelchair, have vision or hearing loss, or need support. It lists “Pet Friendly – Enquire”, so ask the organisers before bringing a dog.

Neither source says where the parking is, how many spaces there are, or whether it costs anything. Treat “parking available” as a general listing and not a promise that a space will be free beside the reserve.

Can I park, and how do I get there?

The City and the tourism listing both say parking is available. Neither names a car park or a shuttle. A report on last year’s festival in Neos Kosmos, a Greek-Australian newspaper, said the site is “within walking distance of the Portarlington ferry terminal”, so a ferry trip is one way to avoid the drive. That is a 2025 article, and it is not a 2026 timetable. Check Port Phillip Ferries for sailings on 1 November before you rely on it.

The Grand Hotel at Portarlington with a bandstand in the foreground — The Grand Hotel at Portarlington, with the bandstand in the foreground. The photo is more than a decade old (photo: Peterdownunder / CC BY-SA 3.0)

A map of the Bellarine Peninsula showing Geelong, Portarlington and the surrounding towns — Map of the Bellarine Peninsula, showing where Portarlington sits relative to Geelong (photo: Nick carson at English Wikipedia / Public domain)

What do the ferries to Portarlington look like?

The Greek festival’s own pages do not give a ferry plan, but the Portarlington Mussel Festival’s transport page, which is undated and written for that January event, describes the usual options. Port Phillip Ferries runs a fast catamaran from Melbourne’s Docklands to Portarlington for foot passengers only, and the page gives the trip as 70 minutes. For visitors from the Mornington Peninsula, it points to the Searoad ferry between Sorrento and Queenscliff, with hourly departures each way between 7am and 6pm, seven days a week.

That ferry lands at Queenscliff, not Portarlington, so it still leaves a drive across the Bellarine. These are general descriptions from a different festival’s page. Check the current timetables for Sunday 1 November before you plan a day around them.

The Searoad ferry MV Sorrento approaching Queenscliff on Port Phillip Bay — The Searoad ferry MV Sorrento approaching Queenscliff in October 2025. The Sorrento–Queenscliff ferry lands at Queenscliff, not Portarlington (photo: Alison Newman / CC BY-SA 4.0)

What happened at the first festival in 2025?

This is last year’s information, not this year’s plan. Neos Kosmos reported on 1 October 2025 that the first Portarlington Greek Festival would run on Sunday 2 November 2025 from 10am to 5pm at WG Little Reserve and the Seniors Community and Parks Hall on Newcombe Street. It named the Melbourne Greek band Anagenisi as a headline act and said Greek radio station 3XY would broadcast live from the grounds. Entry was free, with donations welcome.

The same article said organiser Alexandra Dascarellos dedicated the festival to her late father Nicholas and her mother, both from Patra in Greece, and that securing approval took three months. She told the paper she hoped it would become an annual fixture on the Bellarine calendar. Visit Geelong and The Bellarine says the festival is back for 2026 and is now in its second year.

Nothing on the 2026 pages repeats the 2025 performers, the radio broadcast or the Parks Hall venue. If you are planning around them, ask the organisers first.

Can I run a stall?

The City’s page invites anyone interested in hosting a stall to “secure your spot or get in touch via email” through the festival’s contact address, portarlingtongreekfestival@gmail.com. It does not give a stall fee or a closing date, and with the festival this Sunday, stall places are likely to be settled already. Ask before assuming.

What else is on in Portarlington this summer?

WG Little Reserve is also the venue for Portarlington Community Carols 2026 on Friday 18 December from 7pm, according to the City’s Christmas page. The Portarlington Mussel Festival follows on Saturday 9 January 2027, listed by the City at Littles Reserve on Newcombe Street. The Bellarine’s other big dates are on the City’s events page.

What should I check before I go?

The festival’s own channels on Sunday morning for the day’s program and any weather change; the wet-weather plan has not been published
How you will arrive: no car park or shuttle has been named, and last year’s walking distance from the ferry terminal is a 2025 note
That you have a gold coin or two for the donation
Whether your dog can come: the tourism listing says to enquire

Sources

City of Greater Geelong: Portarlington Greek Festival 2026 (read 29 October 2026)
Visit Geelong and The Bellarine: Portarlington Greek Festival (read 29 October 2026)
Neos Kosmos: Portarlington to host first-ever Greek festival on Melbourne Cup weekend (1 October 2025; last year’s festival)
Portarlington Mussel Festival: Transport (undated page; ferry descriptions)
City of Greater Geelong: Christmas in Geelong (Portarlington carols)

Featured image: Portarlington from the air, January 2018 (photo: Bob T / CC BY-SA 4.0) (text added)

OZ Local Updates is an independent local guide and is not affiliated with the Portarlington Greek Festival or the City of Greater Geelong. Event details can change; check the festival’s own channels before you go.