From August 18 to 23, the town of Ptuj will once again turn into a stunning summer stage for the Days of Poetry and Wine festival, organized by the Beletrina Academic Press. Known as one of the most special festivals in Slovenia, it’s now happening for the 29th time. For a week, poetry from around the world, good wine, and music will take over the town and its surroundings. The festival has been showing for years that poetry – often marginalized in the public eye – can be brought closer to people in an engaging and appealing way.
This year, visitors can look forward to more than sixty events – from grand poetry readings and panel discussions to cozy courtyard performances, poetry walks, wine tastings, art exhibitions, film screenings, a program for kids and teens, and concerts.
This year’s festival will welcome two honorary guests – internationally acclaimed poets Gioconda Belli from Nicaragua and Nikola Madžirov from North Macedonia. The author of the Open Letter to Europe 2025 will be Serbian poet and essayist Gojko Božović. The Open Letter to Europe is a special tradition of the Days of Poetry and Wine festival, started in 2017. Each year, a selected writer uses the letter to highlight, in his opinion, the most pressing issues Europe is facing today. Gojko Božović will read his letter publicly for the first time on August 21 at 8 p.m. on Vraz Square in Ptuj, marking the official opening of the festival.
This year’s focus will be on Croatian poetry. Ptuj will host poets Miroslav Mićanović, Monika Herceg, and Olja Savičević Ivančević, who will take part in a Slovenian-Croatian translation workshop alongside Slovenian poets. Croatian culture will also be featured through film screenings as part of the pre-festival event Cinema and Wine. Among the Slovenian authors performing are Boris A. Novak, Kaja Teržan, and Karlo Hmeljak, joined by a number of established international guests. Selected works by the main guests will be published in attractive, free booklets, while the honorary guests’ poetry will be published as standalone books.
