Ohrid Summer Festival

The Ohrid Summer Festival is North Macedonia’s most prominent classical music and performing arts event, running for approximately six weeks from mid-July to late August along the shores of Lake Ohrid. Founded in 1961, the festival has grown into a programme that draws international soloists, orchestras, and chamber ensembles to perform in Ohrid’s distinctive open-air settings.

Programme and venues

The festival’s primary venues include the Ancient Theatre of Ohrid — a partially restored Roman amphitheatre with views over the lake — and the courtyard of the Church of Saint Sofia, a Byzantine basilica within the UNESCO-listed old town. These two settings alone make the festival worth attending for the visual and acoustic experience as much as for the programme itself.

Classical music is the core of the programme, but the festival also includes theatre and dance productions. International guest orchestras and soloists appear alongside Macedonian performers; the programme typically spans everything from baroque works to 20th-century composition.

Practical information

Tickets for individual concerts are available through the festival box office and online. Popular performances — particularly those at the Ancient Theatre — should be booked as early as possible, as seating capacity is limited and the festival draws visitors from across the region. Prices are reasonable by Western European festival standards.

Ohrid is accessible by bus from Skopje (approximately 3 to 3.5 hours) and from Tirana (around 3 hours) via the A2/A3 motorway corridor. The town also has a small regional airport with seasonal connections. Accommodation in Ohrid ranges from lakeside hotels to private guesthouses; July and August are peak season and rooms fill quickly.

Tips for visitors

The Ancient Theatre is an outdoor stone amphitheatre — bring a cushion for seated performances, as the stone benches can be hard over the course of a full concert. The evening concerts begin at dusk and Lake Ohrid at night is one of the more atmospheric backdrops for classical music in the Balkans.

Ohrid’s old town is compact and worth a half-day of walking independent of any festival events. The lake, the medieval churches, and the town’s elevated position above the water all contribute to making it one of the most complete travel destinations in North Macedonia.

See our destinations section for more on Ohrid and the surrounding region.