The “Martaki” Bracelet Greek Custom

Every March 1st, local custom has it that all Greeks make and wear a twisted-woven-threads white & red bracelet.

This is the ‘Martaki’ (little March) bracelet, typically made by children on the first day of the month using red and white woven threads twisted around each other. The bracelet is worn in Greece as a celebration of the start of spring and as tradition has it, people wearing it will be protected from sunburns from the early spring sun.

The color of the threads symbolizes the rosy cheeks and the white skin combination of young girls. Red denotes love, life, the colors of the sky while the sun rises and sets, while white signifies purity, clarity and the feeling of happiness.

As such, and in order for the valued guests of Hotel Grande Bretagne, a Luxury Collection Hotel to be Surprised and Delighted, 500 bracelets were ordered and placed in all guests’ rooms. Two complimentary bracelets were placed in every room, along with a creative storytelling card explaining the roots and the meaning of that unique custom. The hotel’s guests were warmly welcomed, treated like locals and encouraged to take back home with them a piece of some indigenous authenticity right from the heart of Athens!

This ‘Martaki’ bracelet has been created by SOS Children’s Villages Greece, a member of SOS Children’s Villages International, an international non-governmental organization that supports children without parental care and families at risk; an action which is also part of the Marriott Worldwide Business Councils for Greece & Cyprus.