Guide of Eastern Macedonia & Thrace

The Municipality of Vistonida covers the central part of the plain of Xanthi. The Municipality is seated at Genisa, a town with long history that was the centre of the area of Xanthi during the Ottoman domination. Important archaeological sites have been found in the area of this Municipality dating from the Neolithic Age to the Byzantine times. Its inhabitants are Christians and Muslims who live together in harmony and mostly work in agriculture and livestock farming.
The Municipality was named after Vistonida lake, which was inhabited by the tribe of the Bistonians in antiquity. According to mythology, Heracles killed here the wild horses of Diomedes, who was a famous king of the Bistonians. The area was continuously inhabited since the ancient, classic, Hellenistic, roman, Byzantine and post-Buzantine times, whereas the route of the Via Egnatia was located north of the Municipality.
The natural environment is a wonderful combination of colours and scents. The inhabitants of the settlements of the Municipality organize cultural events with the assistance of cultural enterprises and the local government, aiming in the preservation of tradition. Popular festivals take place like the festival of “Alectoria” at the village of Peteinos on 29 June, the tanks parade in Polysito on Shrove Monday with a lot of traditional music and Lenten dishes or the “Patatiada” festival, which takes place on the first weekend after 15 August with a variety of potato dishes, theatrical performances, music concerts, etc. The festival of Culture and Tradition is held in Genisea every second week of July and includes concerts, theatre, exhibitions, dancing groups and sport events.