Mushrooms + Music:
Good Food, Live Music + Mushroom Foraging in Greece
October 30 - November 1, 2026
Mushrooms + Music
October 30- November 1st, 2026
We ask for you to read everything thoroughly and honor our agreements and terms upon registration to this small, hand crafted assembly of folks on their way to extraordinary places of antiquity and incomparable beauty.
$800 deposit is needed to hold your space, this is added towards your total registration
Current prices listed ARE Early Bird
All Registrations must be paid in full no later than 30 days prior to the start date of a seminar unless other arrangements have been made ahead of time
Sign ups and registration made within 20 days prior to the opening day of their seminar and are not considered Early Bird, a $400* charge will be added to the final invoice total.
We will extend Early Bird price/dates to anyone who shows us they donated at least $200 to a migrant + refugee mutual aid support network listed on our website
Once a deposit is made, we reach out to you with your next steps in the process.
Final payment(s) options are given once we have received your signed agreements contract. This is sent via email.
You must sign this to join us.
For more info, you can contact us directly via the website or through email
smugtownmushrooms@gmail.com
*these charges are needed due to the fact we have to resecure and re-book rentals
4 Spots
Left
This is a personal invite to those who want to see and be a part of an experience in Greece that you will never forget.
As always, our curated offerings in Greece assemble people who want to learn about the natural world, eat great food, and travel in a way that is in direct relationship to the place, people and ecology.
We will submerge in the land, the fungi, and the natural splendor of mainland Greece.
For the past handful of years, we have been graciously invited to teach and share our expertise with locals and Athenian hiking/outdoor clubs in a mountainous region of northeast Peloponnese.
This time with locals is a delight! Truly a gift to witness, this multi-generational gathering solely exists for the love of nature, fungi, food, and music! It’s in fact our favorite event in Greece, and we are now opening up this experience to a handful of folks to join us and be part of this really special annual event.
We gather mushrooms in an amazing fir forest and often come back with dozens upon dozens of baskets full of edible mushrooms. These are then brought to a nearby village to be processed, cooked, grilled, and more, while other food is collectively prepared for everyone to enjoy and feast on. Once our bellies our full, we will start hearing the sounds and instruments of the ancients. Listen and dance along to traditional songs from Epirus, Macedonia, Anatolia, the Islands, and of course, the Peloponnese.
Our gathering in the mountains is garnished with strolls through bustling markets, eating at delicious tavernas serving the best food of your life, and visits to the crystal clear waters of the Corinthian Gulf and mountain spring fed lakes.
Join us during the time of the Olive and Pomegranate.
Tentative Itinerary for our Three Days Together
Day 1 /Athens, Markets + the Sea
Meet us in the center of Athens and let’s comb the stalls at our favorite local neighborhood market. From there, we eat at my favorite café in Athens—a worker owned café called To Pangaki—and after, we head to our coastal home for the night to kiss the sea and swim in the seasonably warm waters of the Corinthian Gulf. We’ll enjoy dinner and a seaside and stroll on pomegranate and citrus-lined streets of our coastal village. We’ll end with a chill evening to make sure we are rested for the upcoming days ahead.
Lunch and Dinner provided.
Day 2 / Mushroom Foraging + “Glenti”
We wake along the sea and leisurely make our way toward the mountains. Our small but mighty group, together with locals, will harvest mushrooms from a lovely fir forest dotted with sheep-grazed meadows that gift us blewits, saffron milk caps, porcini, shaggy parasols, almond agarics and more! After our group harvest, we return to our nearby village, and we start prepping for a long fun-filled night ahead of cooking, grilling, mushrooms and live music on traditional instruments.
Breakfast, Picnic snacks + Dinner included
Day 3 / Lichens, Aromatics + Lake visits
We wake slowly, after a long night of music and dancing. Breakfast is at the lodge and folks have an open morning to enjoy the small and bustling village on their own. We then visit a nearby lake for a gentle scenic hike to enjoy more fungi, lichens, and giant trees. On our way back towards Athens, we stop at a farm to table taverna that is so, so delicious. You won’t believe the size of the potatoes they grow! We return to Athens by 8pm at the very latest, traffic being considered.
Breakfast + an Early Sunday Dinner Included
The activities we participate in on Saturday, October 31st are not public and are invite only. Therefore, we are not sharing the exact town and village we are staying in and gathering on this webpage. You must register to receive this information. As mentioned, we are guests to an annual tradition of gathering with hiking clubs, nature enthusiasts from Athens, and locals from the nearby villages in the Corinthian/Northeast Peloponnese region.
What can we say? This is a perfect mix of what we love to do while in Greece:
Visit markets, eat good food, swim in the sea, spend time in the woods collecting mushrooms, and now, we are lucky enough to bask in the sounds and dance to traditional live music played by amazing musicians.
Join us for a short but sweet time into the utterly passionate and beautiful world of multi-generational mycophiles in Greece.
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Lodging
2 meals a day with snacks, picnics or meze in between (local & seasonal)
Supplies for all activities
Ample time for rest & reflection
Ground transport
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Read our Community agreements
To make sure this offering is the right fit, we ask everyone to read and agree to our Community Agreements + Cancellation Policy.Make a Deposit + Sign Agreements
Register and pay a $800 deposit to reserve your spot. After payment is sent we will send you a PDF of the agreements to sign + return digitally or through the mail.Final Payment + Steps:
After sending in your deposit + signed agreements we will send you an invoice with the remaining balance and all the other info you need to know—exact locations, maps, more detailed itineraries, packing list recommendations, add-ons to consider, and more.
Book Your Travel
We'd recommend booking your transportation to and from Mushrooms + Music as soon as possible, to ensure you can arrive without any complications or delays.Get Packed & Join Us
Now all that's left to do is pack your bags and get excited for your new adventure. Heres a packing list! -
Like our other offerings in Greece we offer Traditional Lodging and Western Style Lodging with Double + Single Occupancy options, scroll down for more details and prices.
Your Hosts + Guides
Olga Tzogas
Olga Tzogas is a community mycologist and founder of Smugtown Mushrooms. She has been hosting classes, events, art shows, music events, and lastly and more importantly, mushroom and biocentric events for over a decade. She is a co-creator and organizer for the New Moon Mycology Summit, a justice-focused mycology and biocentric gathering. She has been hosting mushroom-minded people in her ancestral homeland of Greece since 2016. Her passions include teaching about fungi and plants, especially their uses in the kitchen and medicine cabinet.
Charlie Aller
Charlie Aller aka Charliceps is a mycologist and lover of nature, born and raised in Central Virginia, USA. A life-changing encounter with fungi in 2012 changed the course of Charlie's life and sent him deep into the mycelium underground. He currently works on low-tek mushroom farming and mycological research at Farfields Farm, a diversified research and educational farm in Afton, Virginia. Charlie also grows and forages mushrooms for Mush Luv, a small business founded with partner Nina O'Malley in 2017 that seeks to facilitate closer relationships with mushrooms in our local community and at large.
Nina O’Malley
Nina O’Malley is a medicine maker constantly building relationships with plants and fungi. Nina’s background is in soil, environmental and wetland science. Post college she pursued self-study in mycology and studied herbalism at Sacred Plant Traditions. Nina handcrafts local medicinal products for an apothecary in Afton, VA and her business Mush Luv. Connecting to the land where she lives in the Blue Ridge (Monacan territory) and connecting to her Irish, Lebanese and Swiss ancestral roots in the kitchen are central to her life. She teaches workshops to the community in central VA and wherever the fungi and plants call her. Nina is passionate about helping connect people to the land through direct experience.
Prices + Accommodations
Western Style Lodging
Double Occupancy - Travelling with someone? Enjoy your own private room with an ensuite bathroom, often in a full private* residency that's fully furnished.
Single Occupancy - Accommodations geared for folks traveling solo and who want a private room or residency, with a private full ensuite bathroom.Traditional Lodging
Fully shared lodging- Accommodations often look like a shared traditional home with private* rooms with shared bathrooms and living spaces.Western Style Lodging
Single, Double + Traditional Style accommodation options:
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Ground transit once we meet up on Day One
Clean and charming lodging
Most meals! You will not go hungry!
Tea, coffee and wine during meals
Guided tours and hikes with mushroom and plant experts
Guest cooks, speakers and herbalists
Visits to local markets, ancient holy sites, springs, tavernas, and shops
Interactive learning experiences about Fungi, plants and their gifts.
Supplies and materials for making food, tea, art and medicines made during the trip.
Visits to world renown beaches, and remote inlets of nature to tenderize ourselves
Experiencing Greece, Athens and these lands on the offseason of the tourist season, which is a true joy.
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Transportation and flights to and from Greece and to our Day One meet up spot
Transportation to our meeting points on Day One
Pre- and post-trip accommodations
Travel insurance (recommended)
Additional meals and drinks outside of our collective meals + offerings
Most alcoholic beverages
Passport and visa fees, if applicable
Ear plugs + white noise machines
A La Carte accommodation options:
Attendees would be responsible for their own breakfast, ground transport, and rental accommodations for the duration of the seminar.
$1000
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Join us on the full day-to-day offering with all guest teachers and activities
Snacks and dinner are included
Tea, coffee and wine during offered meals
Visits to local markets, ancient sites, springs, tavernas + shops
Interactive learning experiences about Plants, Mushrooms and their gifts.
Supplies and materials for making our group made food, medicines + other concoctions
Visits to world renown beaches, and remote inlets of nature to tenderize ourselves
Experiencing Greece, Athens and these lands on the offseason of the tourist season, which is a true joy.
Our help, suggestions and recommendations on any independent bookings and needed accommodations
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Transportation and flights to and from Greece and during the 3 days of Mushrooms + Music.
Transportation to our meeting points on Day One
All accommodations + lodging
Travel insurance (recommended)
Additional meals and drinks outside of our collective meals + offerings
Most alcoholic beverages
Passport and visa fees, if applicable
ADDITIONAL IMPORTANT INFO
This offering is only open to 5 sign ups!
$800 deposit is needed to hold your space. This is added towards your total registration.
Payment plans available-contact me directly
ALL PRICES above ARE EARLY BIRD
PAYMENT AGREEMENT:
Please visit our Community Agreements + Cancellation policy for more info
Registrant agrees to pay a $800 deposit to save their spot.
100% of the registration is required/paid in full no later than 30 days prior to the start date of the seminar.
Sign ups and registration made within 20 days prior to the opening day of their seminar will acquire a $400 charge to the final invoice total unless another arrangement is made.
For further info about clarity on our policies you can email us at: smugtownmushrooms@gmail.com
CANCELLATION + REFUND POLICY:
50% of deposit is held for admin fees when you cancel
121 days and earlier: 50% deposit refunded, 100% of registration refunded
120-91 days til departure: 25% of deposit refunded, 75% of registration refunded
90-61 days to departure: No refund on deposit, 50% of registration refunded
60-31 days to departure: no refunds on deposit, 25% of registration refunded
30 days or less to departure: no refunds on any payment towards registration of deposit
** we will extend early bird pricing to anyone who shows us they donated at least $200 to a migrant + refugee mutual aid support network listed on our website
Please call with any questions, ask for Olga (585)690-1926
Traveling solo?
You’re in good company. Solo travelers typically make up about half of our small groups.
If traveling solo and you choose Traditional Style Lodging or Double Occupancy, you may be sharing accommodations with other solo travelers, dependent of location.
Please visit our Terms, Agreements + Cancellation for more info
FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION
We strive to create and manage everyone’s expectations for accommodations, however, when we are in small villages and in mountain towns it is always not possible for us to uphold western hotel standards. We do however make sure everyone’s rooms and bathrooms are secure, private and clean.
*Solo travelers staying with us under Traditional Lodging or Double Occupancy may be put in shared rooms or often upgraded to Western Style lodging depending on location.
Sometimes these rooms will be in shared living spaces in traditional homes that aren’t getting the standard hotel treatments, no turn over services, no room service. What we can guarantee is that your needs will be met and people are cozy and feel good in their temporary home. We like to think that even though you may not always be staying in a hotel, sharing a home or villa with your fungal friends enriches the seminar and makes your time more intimate while still having autonomy and personal space.
