February events around the world
Africa
Argungu Fishing Festival, Nigeria
The festival culminates with up to 35,000 fishermen taking to the Malan Fada River, with hand nets and gourds for flotation – catch of the day gets a large cash prize and minibus – previous winners hauled an 80kg catfish from the waters
Cape Verde Mardi Gras, Cape Verde
Carnival procession flow through Mindelo’s streets in the days and fireworks and dancing create a jubilant atmosphere in the evenings
Festival on the Niger, Mali
A great alternative to January’s Festival in the Desert, this music fest takes place on the banks of the Niger by the town of Segou – it also features dance, art, puppetry, craft workshops, theatre and debates
Sauti Za Busara Festival, Zanzibar, Tanzania
Swahili and East African music rock the spice island for five days – held in great locations in Stone Town and ending on the beach at Kendwa, accompanied by fire-eaters and other Swahili entertainment
Australasia & Pacific
Art Deco Weekend, New Zealand
The town of Napier at Hawkes Bay – built largely in the Art Deco style – celebrates its architecture with dinners, dances, balls and bands, while the streets fill with vintage cars and classic aeroplanes buzz overhead
Big Days Out, Australia
Six different locations across Australia host this music festival-on-tour over successive weekends
New Zealand International Arts Festival, New Zealand
Wellington showcases theatre, music and dance acts, authors give readings and paintings and photography are exhibited at various venues across the city, all from local and international talents
Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras, Australia
Uniquely Australian, this uninhibited extravaganza is the single largest night-time parade in the world – full of drama, colour and wit the Mardi Gras also includes arts, sport and lifestyle festivals taking place throughout the month
Caribbean
Bob Marley Birthday Bash, Jamaica
Organised by the Bob Marley Museum and Mausoleum in Kingston, this celebration of the reggae icon attracts other great reggae artists – and often Ziggy Marley too – who play in his honour across a number of locations
Trinidad Carnival, Trinidad and Tobago
The Caribbean’s biggest carnival takes place over two days with the focus on Port of Spain – it’s a happy, rum-fuelled, celebration
Europe
Apokriatika, Greece
This three-week celebration, marked most raucously in Patras in the Peloponnese, sees the slaughtering of pigs in week one, feasting on all sorts of meats in week two and consuming vast quantities of cheese in week three. At its climactic dances there are up to 50,000 participants and 300,000 lookers-on
Basel Carnival, Switzerland
Around 12,000 people take part in this carnival that comes after Mardi Gras, building big bonfires and parading through Basel’s streets in papier-mâché masks
Battaglia delle Arance, Italy
The orange version of Valencia’s La Tomatina sees nine teams, comprising 3,500 people in total, battle it out over three days – sending 400,000kg of oranges flying
Berlin International Film Festival, Germany
Numerous films, from some of the world’s finest directors, are screened across a number of venues in the German capital – a children’s film festival also takes place
Binche Carnival, Belgium
The 400 year old festival sees 600 identically dressed and peculiar looking men march Binche’s streets, hurling blood oranges at rivals as they go, in the March of the Gilles – copious amounts of Belgian beer is also consumed
Cartier Polo World Cup on Snow, Switzerland
The world’s best polo players gather in St Moritz to play on a frozen lake in one of the top events in the polo calendar
Cologne Carnival, Germany
Five days of street parties and drunken revelry take over the city, while a five mile parade of floats, costumed people and jesters flow through the streets
Düsseldorf Carnival, Germany
A similar event to Cologne’s sees half a million people come to watch the parade – watch out for Old Hag’s Day in both cities, when women stalk the streets harassing men for a kiss
Jokkmokk Winter Market, Sweden
This open-air winter market, held in the middle of the Arctic wilderness, has been battling chills of -20°C for the last 400 years and features reindeer racing, dogsledding, reindeer sausages and up to 80,000 people
Lisbon Carnival, Portugal
The Portuguese capital’s carnival has the usual colourful costumes, food and drink, but with a distinct Latin American feel as many Brazilian stars join in the fun
Madrid Carnival, Spain
A week of festivities in the Spanish capital sees parades of costumed people and carriages filter through the streets – ending with a funeral procession to bury an effigy of a sardine, stopping at bars along the way
Maslenitsa, Russia
Russia’s only surviving pagan festival includes pancakes, horse-drawn sledges, storytelling clowns and beer drinking bears fill the streets across the nation – with the most action taking place in Moscow
Munich Carnival, Germany
Thousands of parties, balls and other festivities take place in the city in the lead up to a street parade on the Sunday before Shrove Tuesday, which goes on to fill the beer halls afterwards
Sa Sartiglia, Sardinia, Italy
Costumed spectacle in which equestrian events are judged by the mysterious, masked, King of Sartiglia and which ends with jousting, to fulfil the medieval feel of the event
Tenerife Carnival, Tenerife, Spain
More than 250,000 people descend on the island’s capital, Santa Cruz, to party hard in one of the world’s largest carnivals – with a similar feel to those across the Atlantic
Travellers’ Tales Festival, United Kingdom
This annual festival celebrates the world’s best travel writing and travel photography with a series of lectures, workshops and other events run by top professionals over two days in London’s Royal Geographical Society
Venice Carnival, Italy
One of the most spectacular settings for any carnival, Venice’s is renowned the world over – floats actually float along the canals, costumes are more ornate than anywhere else and the whole experience becomes a theatrical and visual delight
Viareggio Carnival, Italy
The Tuscan town of Viareggio hosts one of Italy’s most energetic carnivals, sees huge, intricate floats and costumed people take to the streets
Vienna Opera Ball & Season, Austria
The long held tradition of elegant dances, all silk gowns and top hats, continues in the Austrian capital, with the season of 300 balls running from January to March – the biggest being the Vienna Opera Ball the week before Ash Wednesday
Far East
Chinese New Year, China
Although its celebrated around the world, the best parties take place in Beijing, Shanghai and Hong Kong, where glorious decorations fill the streets for a number of weeks – though most celebrations are family affairs
Hong Kong Arts Festival, China
One of the most important cultural events in Southeast Asia, the internationally renowned festival features performances in theatre, opera, art, dance, and classical and popular music
Pasola, Indonesia
A raucous tournament at Sumba sees two teams of horsemen wield spears at one another – spilling blood to appease the spirits and bring a good harvest
Saidai-Ji Eyõ, Japan
Another naked festival much like Jadaka Matsuri in January, this one takes place at the Kanon-in temple outside Okayama – thousands of naked men jostle to gain possession of two wooden sticks, known as shingi
Thaipusam, Malaysia
Malaysia’s most spectacular Hindu festival in which the greatest sight is the kadavi carriers, who carry out masochistic acts such as carrying milk pots by hooks attached to their skin or pierce their tongues and cheeks with skewers, as thanks for answered prayers
Indian Subcontinent & Indian Ocean
Holi, India
Possibly the most vibrant Hindu festival in India – its all about showering friends, family and strangers with multi-coloured powders and having water fights, other festivities vary according to where you are
Kumbh Mela, India
By far the biggest religious festival in the subcontinent – and indeed the largest gathering of humanity anywhere – Kumbh Mela sees 70 million pilgrims bathe in the Ganges near Allahabad, to wash away their sins (it occurs roughly every three years, with 2010’s event in March/April and 2013’s in January/February)
Losar, Nepal
Drinking, feasting and fireworks are at the centre of this celebration to mark the end of the Tibetan year
Losar Archery Festival, Bhutan
Festival celebrating Bhutan’s national sport, archery, in which the build up summons help from shamans, astrology and mantras and the crowd are then encouraged to put the archers off
Shivaratri, Nepal
A Hindu festival based around the Bagmati River in celebration of Shiva – some of the stranger activities, which seem fairly normal at the time, include yogis stabbing their flesh with tridents and lifting weights without using their limbs...
Latin America
Fiesta de la Virgen de la Candelaria, Bolivia
This large festival honours a sixteenth century effigy of the Virgin Mary kept at Copacabana high up in the Andes on the shore of Lake Titicaca – includes devil dances by shamans, fortunetelling, street barbeques, drinking and celebrating
Mazatlán Carnival, Mexico
Mazatlán, the bustling fishing port and resort, transforms into a party capital for five days – at its centre is a parade along Paseo Olas Atlas which becomes very wild after midnight but beforehand is good time fun
Olinda and Recife Carnivals, Brazil
These two neighbouring festivals have stuck to their traditions without overly commercialising the events – it’s all about the floats, local music rhythms and the chance to participate
Oruro Carnival, Bolivia
A combination of devil dances and Mardi Gras sees the mining town residents dress in satanic masks and costumes and pretend to be in the devil’s grip until at the climax a water-bomb fight purifies them
Rio Carnival, Brazil
Rio is able to lay claim to the most famous, largest and wildest party on earth – the whole city comes to life to celebrate, but the central focus should be the Sambadrome where parades and floats perform their dances
Middle East
Jenadriyah National Festival, Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia’s major cultural event begins with a camel race between 2,000 participants across a 19km track, before focusing on more sedate songs, dances and poetry as well as falconry, and craft exhibits
North America
Mardi Gras, United States of America
New Orleans’ major party is a riotous, raucous event, yet totally accessible – featuring the usual floats and parades, its French Quarter setting, bohemian atmosphere, jazz and funk bands, and masked balls that make it what it is
Winter Carnival, Canada
The world’s largest winter carnival ion Québec features night parades, ice sliges, dog sledding, snow rafting, snow sculpting, snow baths and a canoe race across the frozen St Lawrence River
