Festivals in Europe: when and where to go

Venice · 📅 09.05 – 22.11

The Venice Biennale is one of the oldest and most influential contemporary art exhibitions in the world. Every other year, artists and national pavilions take over the Giardini, the historic Arsenale and dozens of palaces across the city, turning Venice into a giant open-air gallery.

• The first Biennale opened in 1895, making it older than almost any other major art exhibition.
• Countries present their own artists in national pavilions, a format often compared to the Olympics of art.

Budapest · 📅 13.11 – 31.12 · dates approximate

Vörösmarty Square in the heart of Pest hosts Budapest's best-known Christmas fair, with handicraft stalls, live music and plenty of hot food. The building of the famous Gerbeaud café becomes a giant Advent calendar, and the square fills with the smell of mulled wine and chimney cakes.

• The square is named after Mihály Vörösmarty, the poet whose statue stands at its centre.
• Vörösmarty tér is the terminus of the M1 line, opened in 1896 as continental Europe's oldest underground railway.

Vienna · 📅 14.11 – 26.12 · dates approximate

In front of Vienna's neo-Gothic City Hall, the Rathausplatz turns into the city's best-known Christmas market. Rows of wooden stalls, illuminated trees in the Rathauspark and the smell of punch and roasted chestnuts create a classic Viennese Advent atmosphere.

• Vienna's Christmas market tradition reaches back to a December market first mentioned in 1298.
• The Rathaus was completed in 1883 and its tower is crowned by the iron Rathausmann figure.

Gdańsk · 📅 20.11 – 23.12 · dates approximate

Gdańsk's Christmas market sets up on Targ Węglowy, right at the gateway to the historic Main Town and the Long Market. With a Ferris wheel, wooden stalls and gabled merchant houses glowing with lights, the old Hanseatic port feels especially atmospheric in winter.

• Gdańsk was one of the wealthiest Hanseatic trading ports on the Baltic for centuries.
• St Mary's Church is among the largest brick churches in the world.

Bratislava · 📅 20.11 – 23.12 · dates approximate

Bratislava's Christmas market fills the Main Square and neighbouring Franciscan Square in the compact Old Town. It is smaller and more relaxed than the big markets in Vienna, with local food, folk crafts and an easy-going, friendly crowd.

• Bratislava, then called Pressburg, was the coronation city of Hungarian kings from 1563 to 1830.
• The Old Town Hall on the Main Square grew out of several medieval houses joined together.

Tallinn · 📅 21.11 – 07.01 · dates approximate

Tallinn's Christmas market fills the Town Hall Square in the heart of its medieval Old Town. With a tall Christmas tree, snow-covered roofs and wooden stalls, it feels like a fairytale scene in northern Europe.

• Tallinn claims the first public Christmas tree, put up in 1441 by the Brotherhood of Blackheads.
• The Gothic Town Hall is the oldest surviving town hall in the Baltic region and Scandinavia.

Cologne · 📅 23.11 – 23.12 · dates approximate

Cologne hosts several Christmas markets, each with its own theme, spread across the old town. The most famous sits right under the twin spires of the cathedral, beneath a canopy of lights and a giant Christmas tree.

• Cologne Cathedral took over 600 years to finish, from 1248 to 1880.
• The Heinzels market is named after the Heinzelmännchen, legendary gnomes who secretly did the work of Cologne's citizens.

Amsterdam · 📅 26.11 – 17.01 · dates approximate

Every winter the Amsterdam Light Festival brings light installations by international artists to the city's canals and streets. You can follow the artworks on foot or from a canal boat, turning long dark evenings into a creative city walk.

• The festival was first held in 2012 and has returned every winter since.
• Artists respond to a different theme each edition, and the works are chosen by a curatorial team.

Strasbourg · 📅 27.11 – 24.12 · dates approximate

Strasbourg calls itself the Capital of Christmas, and its Christkindelsmärik is one of the oldest Christmas markets in France. Stalls fill the squares around the cathedral, half-timbered houses are richly decorated, and a giant tree rises over Place Kléber.

• The Christkindelsmärik dates back to 1570.
• Strasbourg Cathedral was the world's tallest building for over two centuries.

Nuremberg · 📅 27.11 – 24.12

Nuremberg's Christkindlesmarkt on the Hauptmarkt is one of the world's most famous Christmas markets. Its red-and-white striped stalls, the smell of grilled sausages and gingerbread, and the opening speech by the Christkind make it a true classic.

• The market has been documented since the 17th century, with roots in the 16th.
• It is opened by the Christkind, a young local woman, reciting a prologue from the Frauenkirche balcony.

Kraków · 📅 27.11 – 26.12 · dates approximate

Kraków's Christmas market fills the Main Square, one of the largest medieval squares in Europe, with wooden stalls around the Cloth Hall. The trumpet call from St Mary's Basilica, sizzling grilled cheese and hot spiced wine make it a cosy winter stop.

• Kraków's nativity scene tradition (szopki) is on UNESCO's intangible heritage list.
• A trumpeter plays the hejnał from St Mary's tower every hour, stopping mid-melody.

Brussels · 📅 27.11 – 03.01 · dates approximate

Winter Wonders turns central Brussels into a winter festival with markets, lights and rides. The highlight is the sound and light show on the Grand-Place, one of the most beautiful squares in Europe.

• The Grand-Place has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1998.
• The Gothic Town Hall dates from the 15th century.

Prague · 📅 28.11 – 06.01 · dates approximate

Prague's Christmas markets centre on the Old Town Square, where a giant tree stands between the Gothic Týn Church and the Old Town Hall. Smaller markets fill Wenceslas Square and other districts, all with mulled wine, sausages and handmade crafts.

• Prague's astronomical clock was installed in 1410 and is still working.
• Czech families traditionally buy a live carp before Christmas for the Christmas Eve dinner.

Zagreb · 📅 28.11 – 06.01 · dates approximate

Advent in Zagreb transforms the Croatian capital into a festive city full of lights, music and food stalls. Markets spread from the main square to parks and the Upper Town, creating a cheerful atmosphere every evening.

• Zagreb Advent was voted the best Christmas market in Europe for three years in a row from 2016.
• Licitar hearts, red decorated honey biscuits, are on UNESCO's intangible heritage list.

Lyon · 📅 05.12 – 08.12 · dates approximate

For four nights around 8 December, the Fête des Lumières turns Lyon into a giant open-air light show. Facades, squares and parks become canvases for projections and installations, while locals keep the old tradition of candles on their windowsills.

• The festival dates from 8 December 1852, when residents lit candles to honour a new statue of the Virgin Mary at Fourvière.
• Lyon families still place small candles in glass, called lumignons, on their windowsills.

Edinburgh · 📅 29.12 – 01.01

Hogmanay is the Scottish celebration of the New Year, and Edinburgh throws one of the best-known parties in the world. Concerts, a huge street party and fireworks over the castle mark midnight, followed by traditions that carry on into New Year's Day.

• Auld Lang Syne, sung at midnight around the world, was written down and adapted by Robert Burns.
• First-footing is the custom of being the first guest through the door after midnight, ideally bringing a gift.

Funchal · 📅 30.12 – 01.01

Madeira welcomes the New Year with one of the most spectacular fireworks displays in the world, launched around Funchal Bay. The hillside city forms a natural amphitheatre, and cruise ships anchor in the harbour to join the show, all in mild subtropical weather.

• In 2006 Madeira's New Year display was recognised by Guinness World Records as the largest fireworks show.
• Funchal is decorated with Christmas lights from early December until early January.

Pernik · 📅 29.01 – 31.01 · dates approximate

The Surva International Festival of Masquerade Games in Pernik is one of the largest masked festivals in Europe. Groups of survakari and kukeri in huge masks, furs and heavy bells parade through the town, performing old rituals meant to chase away evil and bring a good year.

• The festival has been held in Pernik since 1966.
• UNESCO lists the Surova folk feast in the Pernik region as intangible cultural heritage.

Venice · 📅 30.01 – 09.02 · dates approximate

The Carnival of Venice is one of the world's most famous carnivals, filling the canals and squares with elaborate masks and costumes. Parades, masked balls and performances take place across the city, from St Mark's Square to the quieter campi of Cannaregio.

• Venice's carnival is recorded from the Middle Ages and flourished in the 18th century.
• After the fall of the Republic in 1797 it faded for almost two centuries and was revived in 1979.

Viareggio · 📅 30.01 – 27.02 · dates approximate

Viareggio's carnival is famous for its enormous papier-mâché floats, many of them biting caricatures of politicians and celebrities. The parades roll along the seafront promenade on several weekends, with music, confetti and crowds in costume.

• The first parade took place in 1873, making it one of Italy's oldest carnivals.
• The floats can rise over 20 metres and take local workshops months to build.

Cologne · 📅 04.02 – 09.02

Cologne Carnival is Germany's biggest street party, when the whole city dresses up and sings in the local dialect. The highlight is the week from Women's Carnival on Thursday to Rose Monday, when parades fill the streets with music, floats and flying sweets.

• The carnival season officially opens on 11 November at 11:11 am.
• On Weiberfastnacht, women traditionally cut off men's ties.

Cádiz · 📅 04.02 – 14.02 · dates approximate

Cádiz Carnival is Spain's most famous for its wit, with singing groups performing satirical songs about politics and daily life. The old port city fills with costumes, music and street performers for ten days of fun.

• Groups called chirigotas, comparsas, coros and cuartetos compete in an official contest.
• The singing contest takes place at the Gran Teatro Falla.

Mohács · 📅 04.02 – 09.02 · dates approximate

Every February the Danube town of Mohács is taken over by the busós, men in carved wooden masks and sheepskin coats. For six days they roam the streets with noise and fire to chase away winter, a tradition of the local Šokci community.

• Busójárás has been on UNESCO's intangible heritage list since 2009.
• Local legend says the masks were used to scare away Ottoman troops.

Rijeka · 📅 05.02 – 09.02 · dates approximate

Rijeka hosts one of the largest carnivals in this part of Europe, with weeks of events leading up to a big international parade. The port city fills with masks, music and noisy bell ringers from the surrounding villages.

• The bell ringers (zvončari) from the Kastav area are on UNESCO's intangible heritage list.
• Rijeka was European Capital of Culture in 2020.

Valletta · 📅 05.02 – 09.02 · dates approximate

Malta Carnival fills the streets of Valletta and Floriana with colourful floats, costumed dance groups and brass bands in the days before Lent. Its roots go back to the era of the Knights of St John, and today it is a cheerful family festival with a lively atmosphere.

• Carnival in Malta has been celebrated since at least the 16th century, under the Knights of St John.
• The village of Nadur on Gozo is known for a spontaneous, more satirical and darker carnival.

Nice · 📅 13.02 – 27.02 · dates approximate

Nice Carnival is one of the biggest carnivals in the world, with giant floats and parades on the sunny Riviera. Its famous Flower Battles see costumed performers throw mimosa, gerberas and other local flowers into the crowd along the seafront.

• Nice Carnival was first mentioned in 1294, when the Count of Provence spent the festive days in the city.
• Modern parades with decorated floats started in 1873.

Basel · 📅 15.02 – 17.02

Basel Fasnacht is Switzerland's biggest carnival, known locally as the three most beautiful days. It begins at exactly 4 am with the Morgestraich, when all the street lights go out and glowing lanterns, piccolos and drums slowly move through the dark old town.

• Basel Fasnacht was added to UNESCO's intangible heritage list in 2017.
• It starts on the Monday after Ash Wednesday, unusually late compared with other carnivals.

Patras · 📅 12.03 – 14.03 · dates approximate

Patras Carnival is the largest carnival in Greece, running for weeks with balls, children's events and themed parties. It reaches its peak on the final weekend, with a huge parade of floats and costumed groups and the burning of the Carnival King at the harbour.

• The tradition is usually dated to 1829, when a local merchant held a carnival ball in his home.
• The Treasure Hunt, a city-wide game of clues for teams in costume, is one of its best-loved events.

Dublin · 📅 14.03 – 17.03 · dates approximate

Ireland's national day is celebrated in Dublin with a multi-day festival of music, performance and a big parade on 17 March. Landmarks are lit in green, pubs overflow with traditional music, and visitors from around the world join the party.

• Saint Patrick, Ireland's patron saint, lived in the 5th century and is said to have used the shamrock to explain the Trinity.
• The modern St Patrick's Festival in Dublin began in 1996.

Valencia · 📅 15.03 – 19.03

Las Fallas transforms Valencia into a city of giant satirical sculptures, gunpowder and flowers every March. Hundreds of monuments appear on street corners, daily firecracker shows shake the centre, and on the final night nearly everything is set on fire.

• Las Fallas has been on UNESCO's intangible heritage list since 2016.
• Each year one figure, the ninot indultat, is saved from the flames by public vote and kept in the Fallas Museum.

Lisse · 📅 18.03 – 09.05 · dates approximate

Keukenhof near Lisse is one of the world's most famous flower gardens, open for only about eight weeks each spring. Millions of tulips, daffodils and hyacinths bloom in carefully designed beds, surrounded by striped bulb fields stretching across the countryside.

• Around seven million bulbs are planted by hand each autumn.
• The name means kitchen garden, as the estate once supplied herbs to the castle of Countess Jacoba of Bavaria in the 15th century.

Seville · 📅 21.03 – 28.03

Holy Week (Semana Santa) in Seville is one of Spain's most moving religious celebrations. For a week, around 60 brotherhoods carry ornate floats with sculptures of Christ and the Virgin from their churches to the cathedral, followed by thousands of robed penitents.

• The floats, called pasos, are carried by teams of costaleros hidden underneath them.
• Penitents known as nazarenos wear tall pointed hoods and walk in silence.

Seville · 📅 11.04 – 17.04 · dates approximate

Two weeks after Holy Week, Seville celebrates its April Fair, a week of dancing, drinking and socialising in a city of striped tents. Women wear flamenco dresses, horse carriages parade through the grounds, and sevillanas are danced late into the night.

• The fair began in 1847 as a livestock market.
• More than a thousand tents called casetas fill the fairground in Los Remedios.

Amsterdam · 📅 26.04 – 27.04

King's Day (Koningsdag) celebrates the birthday of King Willem-Alexander, and Amsterdam turns into one huge orange party. The streets become a giant flea market, canals fill with boats, and music plays on every corner.

• King's Day replaced Queen's Day in 2014, when Willem-Alexander became king.
• On this day anyone can sell goods on the street without a permit in the vrijmarkt.

Prague · 📅 12.05 – 03.06 · dates approximate

The Prague Spring International Music Festival is one of Europe's leading classical music events. For three weeks, orchestras, soloists and chamber ensembles perform in the city's most beautiful concert halls and churches.

• The festival was first held in 1946, marking the 50th anniversary of the Czech Philharmonic.
• It traditionally opens on 12 May, the anniversary of Bedřich Smetana's death, with his cycle Má vlast.

Madrid · 📅 13.05 – 17.05 · dates approximate

San Isidro honours Madrid's patron saint with concerts, dancing and picnics. Madrileños dress as chulapos and chulapas and gather at the Pradera de San Isidro, the scene Goya painted over two centuries ago.

• Saint Isidore was a farm labourer who lived in Madrid in the 11th and 12th centuries.
• Goya's painting of the Pradera de San Isidro hangs in the Prado Museum.

Barcelona · 📅 02.06 – 06.06 · dates approximate

Primavera Sound is one of Europe's top music festivals, held by the sea at Barcelona's Parc del Fòrum. Its line-ups mix indie, rock, pop, electronic and hip-hop, attracting music fans from all over the world.

• The festival started in 2001.
• The Parc del Fòrum was built for the Universal Forum of Cultures in 2004.

Lisbon · 📅 12.06 – 13.06

On the night of 12 June, Lisbon celebrates Saint Anthony with its biggest street party. The old neighbourhoods fill with grilled sardines, music and decorations, while marching groups parade along Avenida da Liberdade.

• Saint Anthony, known as Anthony of Padua, was born in Lisbon in the late 12th century.
• Couples marry in group ceremonies known as Santo António weddings.

Pilton · 📅 23.06 – 27.06 · dates approximate

Glastonbury Festival is the UK's most famous music festival, held on Worthy Farm in the Somerset village of Pilton. Beyond the big headliners on the Pyramid Stage, it is a vast temporary city of theatre, circus, art fields and late-night areas, with a strong hippie spirit.

• Farmer Michael Eavis held the first festival in 1970, and tickets included free milk from the farm.
• The festival usually takes a fallow year about every five years to let the land recover.

Porto · 📅 23.06 – 24.06

On the night of 23 June, Porto celebrates its patron saint São João with the city's biggest party. Streets fill with music, grilled sardines and people playfully tapping each other on the head with plastic hammers, until fireworks light up the Douro at midnight.

• Plastic squeaky hammers replaced the older tradition of tapping people with garlic leeks.
• Pots of basil called manjericos, with paper flowers and short poems, are given as gifts.

Stockholm · 📅 25.06 – 26.06

Midsummer is Sweden's most beloved celebration, held on the Friday closest to the summer solstice when the night barely gets dark. People gather outdoors to raise a maypole, dance, wear flower crowns and share a long lunch of herring, potatoes and strawberries.

• Midsummer Eve always falls on a Friday between 19 and 25 June.
• Dancers hop around the maypole to the song Små grodorna, imitating little frogs.

Roskilde · 📅 26.06 – 03.07 · dates approximate

Roskilde Festival is one of Europe's largest music festivals, held just west of Copenhagen. It combines big international names with art, activism and a huge campsite that comes alive days before the main stages open.

• The first festival took place in 1971.
• Roskilde is non-profit, and its surplus goes to humanitarian and cultural causes.

Gdynia · 📅 01.07 – 04.07 · dates approximate

Open'er is Poland's biggest music festival, held on an airfield on the edge of Gdynia. Its line-ups mix global pop, rock, hip-hop and electronic stars with theatre and art, and the Tricity of Gdynia, Sopot and Gdańsk makes a great base.

• Open'er has been held in Gdynia since 2003.
• Gdynia grew from a small fishing village into a major port in the 1920s and 1930s.

Pamplona · 📅 06.07 – 14.07

San Fermín is Pamplona's famous week-long festival, known worldwide for its morning bull runs. Beyond the encierro, the city celebrates with parades, music, fireworks and non-stop street parties, with everyone dressed in white and a red scarf.

• The festival opens at noon on 6 July with the chupinazo rocket fired from the town hall balcony.
• Ernest Hemingway's 1926 novel The Sun Also Rises made the festival world famous.

Dubrovnik · 📅 10.07 – 25.08

For seven weeks each summer, the Dubrovnik Summer Festival turns the walled old town into an open-air stage. Theatre, classical music, opera and dance are performed in squares, palace courtyards and fortresses, using the medieval city itself as the scenery.

• The festival has been held every summer since 1950.
• Shakespeare's Hamlet has often been staged at the clifftop Lovrijenac fortress.

Boom · 📅 16.07 – 25.07 · dates approximate

Tomorrowland is one of the world's best-known electronic music festivals, held in the De Schorre recreation park in Boom, between Antwerp and Brussels. Fans from around the world come for top DJs, elaborate fantasy-themed stages and a friendly, international atmosphere.

• The first edition took place in 2005.
• The festival now runs over two weekends, with a different line-up each weekend.

Cluj-Napoca · 📅 05.08 – 08.08 · dates approximate

Untold is Romania's largest music festival, held each summer in Cluj-Napoca, the lively student city of Transylvania. Stages fill the Central Park and Cluj Arena, with top international DJs and pop acts playing until sunrise.

• Untold was first held in 2015, the year Cluj-Napoca was European Youth Capital.
• Its name and theme play on Transylvania's legends and mystery.

Edinburgh · 📅 06.08 – 30.08 · dates approximate

Every August the Edinburgh Festival Fringe takes over the Scottish capital with thousands of shows in theatres, pubs, churches and pop-up venues. Comedy, theatre, cabaret and street performance fill the medieval Old Town from morning until late at night.

• The Fringe began in 1947, when eight theatre groups performed uninvited alongside the new Edinburgh International Festival.
• It is open access: anyone with a venue and a show can take part.

Budapest · 📅 11.08 – 16.08 · dates approximate

Sziget is one of Europe's biggest music and culture festivals, held on Óbuda Island in the Danube in northern Budapest. For a week, the leafy island becomes a festival city with dozens of stages, art, circus and a huge international crowd.

• Sziget began in 1993 as a small student event.
• Its nickname is the Island of Freedom.

Málaga · 📅 14.08 – 21.08 · dates approximate

The Feria de Málaga is the biggest summer fair in southern Spain, a week of music, dancing and celebration. By day the party fills Calle Larios and the historic centre; at night it moves to the fairground at Cortijo de Torres, with tents, rides and flamenco until dawn.

• The fair commemorates the entry of the Catholic Monarchs into Málaga in August 1487.
• It traditionally opens with a fireworks display over La Malagueta beach.

Buñol · 📅 25.08

On the last Wednesday of August, the small town of Buñol near Valencia hosts La Tomatina, a giant tomato fight in its main street. For one hour, thousands of people throw ripe tomatoes at each other until the streets run red, followed by a big clean-up with hoses.

• La Tomatina began in 1945 as a spontaneous food fight among young locals.
• Since 2013 entry has required a ticket, limiting the number of participants.

London · 📅 29.08 – 30.08

Notting Hill Carnival is Europe's biggest street festival, celebrating Caribbean culture in west London over the August bank holiday weekend. Costumed mas bands, steel pan orchestras and booming sound systems fill the streets, along with the smell of jerk chicken.

• The carnival's roots go back to an indoor Caribbean carnival organised by activist Claudia Jones in 1959.
• The first street event in Notting Hill took place in 1966.

Munich · 📅 18.09 – 03.10

Oktoberfest in Munich is the world's largest beer festival, drawing millions of visitors to the Theresienwiese each year. Huge beer tents, brass bands, traditional costumes and funfair rides create an unforgettable Bavarian atmosphere.

• The first Oktoberfest was held in 1810 to celebrate the wedding of Crown Prince Ludwig and Princess Therese.
• Only beer from Munich's six traditional breweries may be served in the big tents.

Barcelona · 📅 23.09 – 26.09 · dates approximate

La Mercè is Barcelona's biggest street festival, held around 24 September in honour of the city's patron saint. For several days the streets fill with human towers, giant figures, fire-spitting devils and free concerts, almost all of it free to watch.

• The festival honours the Mare de Déu de la Mercè, patron saint of Barcelona.
• Catalan human towers (castells) were added to UNESCO's intangible heritage list in 2010.

Stuttgart · 📅 24.09 – 10.10 · dates approximate

The Cannstatter Volksfest fills the Cannstatter Wasen in Stuttgart with beer tents, rides and Swabian food every autumn. Less touristy than Oktoberfest but just as lively, it offers brass bands, traditional costumes and long tables full of locals.

• King Wilhelm I of Württemberg founded the festival in 1818 as a harvest celebration after years of famine.
• Its symbol is the Fruchtsäule, a tall column topped with a huge crown of fruit.

Berlin · 📅 01.10 – 10.10 · dates approximate

Each October the Festival of Lights turns Berlin's most famous landmarks into giant canvases for light projections and video art. From dusk until late evening, visitors stroll, cycle or ride between illuminated monuments across the city.

• The festival was first held in 2005.
• All projections are outdoors and free to see.

Amsterdam · 📅 20.10 – 24.10 · dates approximate

Amsterdam Dance Event is the world's biggest club festival and electronic music conference. For five days and nights, hundreds of venues across the city, from famous clubs to churches and warehouses, host DJs, live acts and talks.

• ADE was first held in 1996.
• By day it is a conference for the music industry; by night it becomes a city-wide festival.