Are you a festive traveller always on a hunt to see the festivals in different countries? If you want to explore the festivals around the world, then you are at the right place. We have prepared a list of the best festivals around the world that are worth experiencing. Therefore, it is time to pack your bags to travel around the globe to see the most incredible festivals in their true sense.
Stay with us till the end and learn about the 10 most incredible festivals that are worth attending.
10 Best Festivals Around The World Worth Your Presence
La Tomatina, Buñol, Spain
La Tomatina, one of the most celebrated, fun-filled, messiest and tastiest festivals of Spain. La Tomatina is celebrated in the Spanish town of Buñol near Valencia. It is a tomato fight festival that is played with the mood of joy and happiness. It is a tomato pelting festival where people throw ripe tomatoes on each other until streets become juicy with tomato pulp.
History of La Tomatina Festival
This is an age-old festival dating back to 1945. It was originally a real vegetable fight that occurred during a parade. But later on people started celebrating this festival as an annual ritual of joy, laughter, and fun.
After playing tomato fight for long hours, the festival continues with music, food, and drinks that goes late in the evening. It is one of the incredible and amazing festivals you don’t want to miss.
Dia de los Muertos, Mexico
As opposed to La Tomatina festival which is messy and filled with partying atmosphere, Mexico’s Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) is a festival honouring the deceased loved ones. The festival is older than a millennium and is a blend of indigenous rituals and Catholic culture. Dia de los Muertos takes place between October 31st to November 2nd every year.
This festival is celebrated differently across the regions of Mexico. However, Oaxaca and Michoacán are the best regions to witness this festival. During the celebration of this festival you will see marigold flowers decorations, skulls masks coloured vibrantly, and families happily commemorating those who have passed. The festival is a reminder to humanity that death is also a journey that needs to be celebrated equally.
Oktoberfest, Munich, Germany
Oktoberfest is a feast for all the beer lovers out there. This 16-day celebration draws over 7 million beer-soaked party-goers each year. This makes Oktoberfest the biggest and the world’s largest beer festival and a Bavarian cultural extravaganza.
Dressed in dirndls or lederhosen, take part in the celebration under a massive beer tent while downing liters of foamy beer served by waiters dressed in traditional Bavarian garb. Approximately 7 million liters are drunk annually, so expect lots of boisterous sing-alongs, chicken dances, and overall gemütlichkeit. Remember to fill up on the hearty festival fare as well, such as pretzels, sausages, and pancakes with shredded Kaiserschmarrn! Bravo!
Carnaval, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Rio’s Carnaval is truly “the greatest party on Earth,” an incredible, multicolored celebration of dancing, music, revelry, and pure madness, worthy of the moniker. Millions of people dress up in feathered costumes and swarm the streets every year in February or March, drawn by the exuberant floats and booming samba beats.
Over ten delirious days and nights of nonstop celebrations take place during the party. You can purchase tickets for the glitzy indoor samba parades and costume balls if you have the money. The real magic, however, is experienced at the free street parties, where exuberant crowds let loose in a sound and color frenzy that you have to see to believe, as they sing and dance in exaltation. This is the best way to fully immerse yourself in Brazilian culture and is the pinnacle of sensory overload.
Holi, Mathura, India
India is a nation that never compromises, particularly when it comes to celebrations. And India’s most vividly joyful occasion is Holi, the yearly Hindu celebration of the arrival of spring, fresh starts, and the unending love between the deities Radha and Krishna.
India celebrates Holi, but the epicentre is in Mathura, where the custom of flinging coloured powder is believed to have been initiated by Lord Krishna. After just one day in Mathura, you’ll be swept up into the largest playfight in history, as tens of thousands of people joyfully paint each other brightly coloured head to toe. It’s equal parts festival and kaleidoscope battlefield, full of unbridled joy and profound spiritual significance. Be ready to have your face painted rainbow-coloured!
St. Patrick’s Day, Dublin, Ireland
To partake in the festivities in Dublin on St. Patrick’s Day, you don’t need to be Irish. Ireland’s capital bursts into a riot of colour on March 17th, complete with pints of Guinness, boisterous pub hopping, parades, comedy shows, Celtic music, and some of the best craic (good times with friends and family) in the world.
The St. Patrick’s Festival Parade is the main event; it’s a boisterous celebration of Irish culture that features numerous leprechauns, marching bands, dancers, and intricate floats. The real party, however, is held in one of Dublin’s many pubs, where you can sing and dance late into the night and meet new people over frothy beers. Every year on one magnificent day, the whole city is engulfed in an enticing tornado of Irish happiness.
Mardi Gras, New Orleans, USA
One of the biggest festivals in North America, Mardi Gras in New Orleans, brings the spirit of Carnival to the United States. Mardi Gras, which translates literally to “Fat Tuesday,” was customarily the last major celebration of opulent food and drink before the fasting of Lent. And this joyful celebration is woven into the very fabric of the vibrant French Quarter.
The parade, the main attraction of Mardi Gras, features an incredible variety of vibrant floats, marching bands, and some of the most striking costumes you’ve ever seen—think lots of feathers, glitter, and pizazz. After the parades end, there are wild parties, dancing, music, and an abundance of Hurricane cocktails throughout the evening festivities. Make sure to dress in your best costume attire if you want to fully immerse yourself in New Orleans culture!
Songkran, Thailand
Want to avoid the heat on your upcoming trip to Thailand? Arrange your vacation to coincide with the nation’s well-known Songkran water festival, which takes place in the middle of April to commemorate the Thai New Year and is essentially one big water fight.
Although the original meaning of Songkran was the symbolic washing away of bad luck through spiritual rituals, this festival has developed into a gloriously drenched celebration of warm weather and unrestrained fun. Armed with buckets, hoses, and water guns, everyone, young and old alike, takes to the streets to thoroughly drench one another (and any unwary tourists!). Take part in the full-fledged water war zone in Bangkok or stay slightly cooler but still wet in Chiang Mai. Just remember to bring along a waterproof bag!
Carnival, Venice, Italy
The Venice Carnival is a centuries-old tradition marked by ornate masks, lavish costumes, and indulgent revelry before Lent. For around two weeks leading up to Ash Wednesday, the canals and piazzas of Venice transform into an epic masquerade party. Glamorous masked balls, thought-provoking artistic exhibitions, lively street performers, and colorful parades fill the city. The culmination is a flight of elegant costumes on display during the contest for La Maschera più Bella (the most beautiful mask). It’s a bucolic celebration of Venice’s decadent past.
Tomorrowland, Boom, Belgium
Tomorrowland reigns as one of the premier electronic dance music festivals globally. Staged in the medieval town of Boom, Belgium, this massive two-week party is a kaleidoscope of pounding beats, pyrotechnics, circus performers, interactive art installations, and unabashed hedonism. Hundreds of the world’s top DJs perform to frenzied crowds sporting wildly creative costumes and accessories. Beyond the music, the fantastical fairytale-inspired staging and productions are unmatched, turning the festival grounds into an adult playground dripping in psychedelic whimsy.
Diwali, India
Diwali, the “festival of lights,” is India’s biggest and brightest annual celebration. During this five-day observance, millions attend fireworks shows, light candles and clay lamps, share sweets, exchange gifts, and decorate homes and businesses with vibrant colors and rangoli designs. Diwali marks the Hindu new year and commemorates the victory of good over evil and light triumphing over darkness. From Delhi to Mumbai, cities are engulfed in a radiant atmosphere of joy, hope, and spiritual renewal.
Chinese New Year
Chinese New Year is the biggest, most vibrant event on the Chinese calendar, filled with age-old traditions. The multi-day lunar festival welcomes the new year with deafening firecrackers, colorful lion and dragon dances, hanging red lanterns, giving monetary gifts in red envelopes, family feasts with special dumplings, and elaborate temple fairs. The streets swell with parades featuring elaborate floats, costumes, music, and symbolic gestures like sweeping away ill-fortune to clear the way for a prosperous new year.
Inti Raymi, Peru
Every year around June 24th, the winter solstice, time seems to stop in Cusco, the ancient Incan capital of Peru. At that time, there is the magnificent nine-day Inti Raymi festival, also known as the “Sun Festival,” which honours the Sun God Inti with colourful displays of dance, costumes, music, and ceremonial rites.
As you stroll through the plazas and streets, you will come across people dressed in vibrant costumes who are reenacting Inca Empire rituals and dances. An Incan sacrifice is symbolically reenacted, which is the highlight (no actual llamas are harmed!). What’s most fascinating, though, is the profound sense of history and tradition that ties contemporary Peruvians to their ancestors—beyond the breathtaking pageantry. It is an unparalleled spiritual and cultural journey.
Gion Matsuri, Kyoto, Japan
Gion Matsuri may be one of Japan’s most spectacular festivals, with its sparkling processions, energetic street fairs, and soaring floats that combine ancient artistry with contemporary marvels. Every July, Kyoto’s streets come alive for a month-long celebration that began as a custom to help drive out disasters and plagues.
Gion Matsuri is still a remarkably colourful showcase of Japanese customs and culture today. The two grand yamaboko parades, which feature amazing floats that are real works of engineering and art, are the highlights of the event. Yoi-Yama street parties come alive as dusk falls. People dressed in vibrant yukata robes enjoy beer and yakisoba, among other delicious street foods, until the wee hours of the morning. It’s a visual, auditory, and gustatory kaleidoscope that captures the essence of Japan’s rich history.
Final Thoughts
These top festivals highlight the amazing diversity of our world’s cultures, from the silly tomato warfare of La Tomatina to the solemnity of Peru’s Inti Raymi. By going to witness them, you can join in on the fun, mingling with the locals and getting sucked into the contagious enthusiasm and celebration.
These gatherings are more than just parties; they are vibrant, living traditions that showcase the identities, values, and customs of the people and places they honour. Experiencing the extravagant splendour of Rio de Janeiro’s Carnival or the profound devotion of Dia de los Muertos allows you to appreciate and comprehend the human stories that lie behind the parades and costumes on a deeper level.
These festivals are ultimately opportunities to extend your horizons, break through barriers, and embrace the sheer joy of celebrating life itself in all its messy, colourful, spectacular glory—not just crazy fun blowouts. Now go out there, join the fun, and get ready for encounters that will upend your senses and make you yearn for your next amazing cultural journey. The biggest parties on earth are coming soon!
