On the island of Karpathos, especially in the villages, the customs and the traditions are maintained unaltered. In Olimbos, in particular, which is considered to be a "live museum", the locals maintain, even in their daily routine, customs 100-years-old, wearing the traditional costumes and speaking with Doric idioms. The island is famous for the custom of "the ceremony of the seven days", since the locals consider 7 to be the most powerful number. Thus, the feasts last seven days and the wedding ritual here is very significant, as the wedding preparation is very traditional and the feast lasts 15 days after the wedding ceremony. On June 26, the locals celebrate the day of Agios Ioannis Klidon by putting apples and pears in a jar with the name of their sweetheart on top and, after blessing them with the "silent washer", the locals pick a fruit to see what their destiny will be. On all of these occasions, the people of Karpathos wear their traditional costumes. The women wear white shirts decorated with embroidery, a dark silk scarf on the head tied with a golden ribbon with pounds, while men wear vests, blue "vraka" with a broad belt, "mizoro" and Cretan "stivania".

The people of Karpathos adore music, and they express this every time they have the opportunity. The traditional music of Karpathos is performed with a three-string lyre, an eight-string lute and "tsambouna", while the Cretan and Ionian "mantinades" cover a wide spectrum of local events, sometimes being performed even for political reasons. The people of Karpathos are true to their ceremonies, thus the position of the dancers is always followed. The leading dancer is always a man which obligates the rest of the dancers to follow his lead, while women are not allowed at the end of the dancing circle. The most known Karpathian dances are "Zervos", danced during the Halloween, "Foumistos", which is danced after the wedding and "Sousta" and "Epano Horos" by which a feast begins and ends.

Like all the Dodecanese islands, Karpathos was inhabited by several nations which left their marks on every aspect of the island's life. Karpathos is not characterised by a single architectural style as most of the houses are newly built by Greeks returning from the USA. Some imitating the Epirotian style and some resembling beautiful American farms. Among these buildings, one can admire the beautiful old stone mansions with their beautiful, full of flowered, balconies. The traditional houses of Karpathos, most of which are located in the village of Othos, are painted outside, while inside they have a remarkable wooden decoration and pebble floors. The interior of these houses is beautifully decorated with ribbons and silk scarves, traditional embroidery and woven fabrics.