Festivals you must have experienced
There are always many impressive and colorful festivals celebrated worldwide that are well worth considering when planning your next trip. Among others, visit one of the many matsuri (festivals) in Japan, Inti Raymi in Peru or celebrate carnival in Cuba or Brazil. Celebrate Holi and Diwali in India, Nepal or Sri Lanka or travel to the Baliem Valley in West Papua for a unique cultural happening. Together with the locals, enjoy the celebrations dressed with pomp and circumstance and impressive parades with lavish costumes, joyful music, dance and street food, Where the world can’t find you…
1. Carnival – Latin America
Carnival in Latin America is a great celebration before Lent. In July, many cities in Latin America, especially in Brazil, Colombia, Cuba, Trinidad & Tobago, are the setting for a lavish carnival, celebrated with colorful parades and many performances by musicians and dancers, before the time of Lent begins. Santiago de Cuba, Rio de Janeiro, Barranquilla, and Port of Spain are known for the most exuberant carnivals.
2. Hornbill festival – India
The Hornbill Festival is an annual event in Nagaland, India, celebrating the traditions of the Naga tribes. It takes place in the first week of December and features dance, music, rituals, sports and art. The festival brings together different tribes and attracts residents from across the province.
3. Baliem Festival – Indonesia
In August, different ethnic groups from the highlands of Wamena and the Baliem Valley such as the Dani, Lani and the Yali come together to celebrate their annual festival. Highlights include dances and demonstrations of how people used to go to war.
4. Inti Rami – Peru
The sun god Inti is at the center of this exuberant festival, a colorful celebration with all that beautiful traditional dress. Various ceremonies, songs and dances of ancient Inca culture are performed during grand performances in June.
5. Gion Matsuri – Japan
Many matsuri are held annually in Japan, including the famous Gion Festival in Kyoto with a spectacular parade and numerous food stalls with culinary highlights; many women dress these days in a traditional kimono. Tsukimi is the autumn festival where the full moon is festively honored throughout Japan at temples, shrines, castles and at beautiful locations in nature. Magical is a night boat ride where the light of the moon reflects on the water.
6. Ouidah Voodoo Festival – Benin
The coastal town of Ouidah in Benin home to the annual Voodoo Festival in January, where you can witness traditional ceremonies and rituals that have a deeply embedded history in beliefs of the voodoo religion.
7. Jambay Lakhang – Bhutan
Of the many Buddhist festivals that take place annually and attract hundreds of Bhutanese from far and wide, Jambay Lhakhang in Bumthang is a very special one. The highlight is the ritual fire dance in which masked men dance to drive out demons.
8. Tapati Rapa Nui – Easter Island
During the annual Tapati Rapa Nui festival, islanders choose their new queen through tradition-based competitions. Easter Islanders paint their faces, make clothes out of banana flower leaves and there are horse races, recited stories; the highlight is the descent on a huge banana trunk from Mount Maunga Pui.
9. Nadaam – Mongolia
Mongolia annually celebrates the colorful, three-day Nadaam festival in July, Mongolia’ s “Olympics” which features the country’s most popular sports: wrestling, archery and horseback riding.
10. Semana Santa – Spain
In Spanish-speaking countries and especially in Andalusia, “Semana Santa” is celebrated the week before Easter. In impressive parades, religious statues, often covered with cloths, are carried around amid great enthusiasm from the crowds that flock.
11. Fire Festival – Taiwan
Lanterns have great significance in Taiwan and Buddhist traditions dating back 20 centuries. The Lantern Festival (February) is celebrated throughout Taiwan, but the largest takes place in Pingxi, a remote mountain town near Taipei.
12. Akwasidae Festival – Ghana
Akwasidae is an important festival celebrated by the Ashanti people in Ghana, West Africa. It is held every six weeks on a Sunday and is a time for the community to come together to celebrate their cultural heritage and thank their ancestors. This festival has been celebrated for centuries and remains an essential part of Ashanti culture to this day.
13. Highland Games – Scotland
The Highland Games have been an important part of Scottish culture for centuries and are as popular today as ever. And it’s no wonder, because at the Highland Games in Scotland, you experience a sense of community and tradition in a festive atmosphere.
14. Día De Los Muertos – Mexico
Día de los Muertos is a celebration in Mexico that honors the deceased. It is celebrated on Nov. 1 and 2. People set up altars with pictures, flowers and food for deceased family members. They come together, reminisce, enjoy good food and cheerful music, while the streets and houses are colorfully decorated with garlands and flags.
