Matsuri Travel

Cultural heritage festivals

Traditions handed down for generations: the festivals that show best how a place sees itself.

FireLanterns & lightCarnivals & paradesReligious & spiritualMusic & danceFood & drinkSeasonal & harvestWaterCompetitions & games
Crowds before the flower-covered image of the Virgin of the Pillar in Zaragoza's Plaza del Pilar during the Ofrenda de Flores
Happening nowOct 10–18, 2026

Fiestas del Pilar

Zaragoza buries its patron in flowers: a mountain of carnations and nine days of jota

Zaragoza, Spain$$$$
Trim Castle, the Norman fortress at the heart of the Púca Festival, above the River Boyne in autumn
Oct 29 – Nov 1, 2026

Púca Festival

Halloween goes home to its Celtic roots with fire, myth and music in County Meath

Trim, Ireland$$$$
A woman dressed as La Catrina carries an armful of marigolds through a night procession in Mexico City
Oct 31 – Nov 2, 2026

Día de Muertos

Marigold altars, candlelit cemetery vigils and skeleton parades as Mexico's dead come home

Oaxaca, Mexico$$$$
Burning crosses carried above the crowd on a Lewes street on Bonfire Night
Nov 5, 2026

Lewes Bonfire Night

Burning crosses, flaming barrels and exploding effigies: Britain's wildest November 5

Lewes, United Kingdom$$$$
A flaming tar barrel carried on a man's shoulders through a packed crowd in Ottery St Mary
Nov 5, 2026

Ottery St Mary Tar Barrels

A Devon town runs blazing tar barrels through its streets on its shoulders

Ottery St Mary, United Kingdom$$$$
A rider dressed as St. Martin in a red cloak leads children carrying lanterns through Cologne at night
Nov 11, 2026

St. Martin's Day

Children's paper lanterns, a rider in a red cloak and roast goose across the Rhineland

Cologne, Germany +3$$$$
Christmas market stalls and lights in front of Vienna's City Hall at dusk
Nov 13 – Dec 26, 2026

Vienna Christkindlmarkt

Punch, pretzels and a skating trail in front of Vienna's neo-Gothic City Hall

Vienna, Austria$$$$
Heart-shaped gingerbread for sale at the Nuremberg Christkindlesmarkt
Nov 27 – Dec 24, 2026

Nuremberg Christkindlesmarkt

One of Germany's oldest Christmas markets: gingerbread, mulled wine, a golden Christkind

Nuremberg, Germany$$$$
A Naga man in traditional dress holding a spear, shielding his eyes, at the Hornbill Festival
Dec 1–10, 2026est.

Hornbill Festival

All of Nagaland's tribes meet in one hill village for ten days of song, dance and games

Kohima, India$$$$
Light projections over a Lyon street during the Fête des Lumières
Dec 5–8, 2026

Fête des Lumières

Four December nights when Lyon turns its churches, squares and hills into light art

Lyon, France$$$$
The green dome and minarets of the Mevlana Museum in Konya
Dec 7–17, 2026

Şeb-i Arus (Mevlana Commemoration)

Whirling dervishes mark Rumi's 'wedding night' in the Konya city where he died

Konya, Türkiye$$$$
Illuminated ice castle towers glowing at night at the Harbin Ice and Snow Festival
Dec 18, 2026 – Feb 28, 2027est.

Harbin International Ice and Snow Festival

Castles carved from river ice glow neon in China's coldest big-city winter

Harbin, China$$$$
Fireworks over the Edinburgh skyline during Hogmanay
Dec 29, 2026 – Jan 1, 2027

Edinburgh's Hogmanay

Torches, a castle-lit street party and Auld Lang Syne at Scotland's New Year

Edinburgh, United Kingdom$$$$
Two men in red ceremonial dress preparing for a vodun ritual in Ouidah
Jan 2–9, 2027

Ouidah Vodun Days

Benin's national voodoo celebration: drums, masked spirits and libations on the beach

Ouidah, Benin$$$$
Priests in embroidered robes carrying the tabot during Timkat in Ethiopia
Jan 18–20, 2027est.

Timkat

Ethiopia's Epiphany: white-robed crowds, sacred processions and a blessing by water

Gondar, Ethiopia$$$$
A Thaipusam devotee holding an offering tray, portrait
Jan 22, 2027

Thaipusam

A million devotees climb 272 rainbow steps carrying burdens of devotion

Batu Caves, Malaysia +2$$$$
Costumed revelers in blue masks and tricorn hats at the Venice Carnival
Jan 23 – Feb 9, 2027

Venice Carnival

Masks, capes and candlelit balls in the canal city's pre-Lenten masquerade

Venice, Italy$$$$
A procession of burning torches at Up Helly Aa in Lerwick
Jan 26, 2027

Up Helly Aa

Torch-bearing 'Vikings' burn a longship through a Shetland winter night

Lerwick, United Kingdom$$$$
A giant white bull float rolling through a New Orleans street during a Mardi Gras parade
Jan 29 – Feb 9, 2027est.

Mardi Gras

New Orleans parades, krewes and flying beads through carnival season to Fat Tuesday

New Orleans, United States$$$$
A carnival float with a giant jester figure during the Cologne Carnival parade
Feb 4–9, 2027

Cologne Carnival

Six days of costumes, Kölsch and the Rose Monday parade on the Rhine

Cologne, Germany$$$$
Drummers and dancers filling a Salvador street during Carnival
Feb 4–9, 2027

Salvador Carnival

Trios elétricos and Afro-Brazilian blocos take over Bahia's capital for six days

Salvador, Brazil$$$$
Ice sculptures lit up at night in Sapporo
Feb 4–11, 2027

Sapporo Snow Festival

Building-sized snow sculptures and glittering ice art down the length of Odori Park

Sapporo, Japan$$$$
Fireworks over the city for Tet Nguyen Dan in Vietnam
Feb 4–10, 2027est.

Tết Nguyên Đán

Vietnam goes home for the lunar new year, in a riot of peach blossom and red

Hanoi, Vietnam$$$$
Red paper lanterns hung for Chinese New Year
Feb 5–20, 2027

Chinese New Year (Spring Festival)

Red lanterns, reunion dinners and firecrackers as China welcomes the lunar new year

Beijing, China$$$$
A smiling woman in a feathered costume holding flowers at the Barranquilla Carnival
Feb 6–9, 2027

Barranquilla Carnival

Cumbia, marimondas and the Battle of Flowers in Colombia's Caribbean carnival

Barranquilla, Colombia$$$$
A troupe of blue devil dancers in motion at Trinidad Carnival
Feb 7–9, 2027

Trinidad and Tobago Carnival

J'ouvert mud at dawn, steelpan and soca, then feathered mas bands on the road

Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago$$$$
Hundreds of glowing paper sky lanterns rise into the night sky over Pingxi during the Sky Lantern Festival in Taiwan
Feb 13–20, 2027est.

Pingxi Sky Lantern Festival

Hundreds of paper wishes rise from a Taiwanese mountain valley at Lantern Festival

New Taipei City, Taiwan$$$$
Rows of glowing red paper lanterns hanging for the Lantern Festival
Feb 20, 2027

Lantern Festival (Yuanxiao)

The first full moon of the lunar year lights up lantern fairs, riddles and sweet dumplings

Nanjing, China$$$$
A giant dragon figure in the St Patrick's Day parade in Dublin
Mar 13–17, 2027

St. Patrick's Festival

Dublin's parade, céilís and a city in green for Ireland's national day

Dublin, Ireland$$$$
A falla sculpture engulfed in flames during the Cremà, the burning night of Las Fallas in Valencia
Mar 15–19, 2027

Las Fallas

Valencia builds an open-air museum of giant satirical sculptures, then burns it down

Valencia, Spain$$$$
Masked dancers in red and pink costumes performing at a tshechu festival in Bhutan
Mar 18–22, 2027est.

Paro Tshechu

Masked dances in a fortress courtyard and a giant thangka unveiled at dawn

Paro, Bhutan$$$$
Pink cherry blossoms in full bloom during hanami season
Mar 20 – Apr 5, 2027est.

Hanami (Cherry Blossom Season)

Picnics under pink clouds as Japan follows the cherry blossom front north

Tokyo, Japan$$$$
A crowd with raised hands covered in colored powder at Holi
Mar 21–22, 2027est.

Holi

India throws color at winter, and everyone within reach

Mathura & Vrindavan, India +1$$$$
Riders competing in a buzkashi match during Nowruz celebrations in Mazar-i-Sharif
Mar 21, 2027est.

Nowruz

The spring equinox new year, with sumalak, plov and bonfires across the Silk Road

Samarkand, Uzbekistan +4$$$$
A red and white sawdust carpet laid out in the street for Semana Santa in Antigua Guatemala
Mar 21–28, 2027est.

Semana Santa in Antigua

Purple-robed processions walk over carpets of dyed sawdust and flowers

Antigua Guatemala, Guatemala$$$$
Rows of candles lit on a procession float in Seville during Semana Santa
Mar 21–28, 2027est.

Semana Santa in Seville

Candlelit floats, hooded penitents and saetas in the narrow streets of Holy Week

Seville, Spain$$$$
Villagers with spears gathered in the forest on Pentecost Island, Vanuatu
Apr 3 – Jun 26, 2027est.

Naghol (Land Diving)

Men leap from wooden towers with vines tied to their ankles on Vanuatu's Pentecost Island

Pentecost Island, Vanuatu$$$$
Crowds in front of Jenn Lann Temple in Dajia, the temple where the pilgrimage begins and ends
Apr 9–18, 2027est.

Dajia Mazu Pilgrimage

Nine days on foot behind the sea goddess's palanquin across central Taiwan

Taichung, Taiwan$$$$
Horse-drawn carriages carrying riders in traditional dress at the Feria de Abril in Seville
Apr 12–18, 2027est.

Feria de Abril

A week of sevillanas, flamenco dresses and horse carriages in Seville's fairground

Seville, Spain$$$$
An ornate gilded yatai float hung with lanterns stands in its open storehouse during the autumn Takayama Festival
Apr 14–15, 2027est.

Takayama Festival

Gilded festival floats and mechanical puppets in a mountain town of old merchant houses

Takayama, Japan$$$$
A boat full of people in orange celebrating King's Day on the Amsterdam canals
Apr 26–27, 2027

King's Day

The Netherlands turns orange for a nationwide street market and canal party

Amsterdam, Netherlands$$$$
Crowds pack a Corfu Town street beneath balconies hung with red cloths during Orthodox Easter celebrations
Apr 30 – May 2, 2027est.

Orthodox Easter in Corfu

Philharmonic bands, candlelit processions and clay pots smashed from Venetian balconies

Corfu Town, Greece$$$$
Bearers in happi coats carrying a portable shrine through the streets at Kanda Matsuri
May 11–17, 2027est.

Kanda Matsuri

Tokyo's great Edo-era festival sends portable shrines through Akihabara and Nihonbashi

Tokyo, Japan$$$$
A drummer riding a festival cart through the streets of Asakusa during Sanja Matsuri
May 14–16, 2027

Sanja Matsuri

Asakusa's rowdy shrine festival, with a hundred mikoshi bouncing through old Tokyo

Tokyo, Japan$$$$
Thousands of glowing lanterns released into the night sky for Waisak
May 19–20, 2027est.

Waisak at Borobudur

Monks process to the world's largest Buddhist temple and lanterns rise under the full moon

Magelang, Indonesia$$$$
The Sydney Opera House lit with green projections during Vivid Sydney
May 28 – Jun 19, 2027

Vivid Sydney

Light art on the Opera House sails, drone shows and a harbour-side walk of installations

Sydney, Australia$$$$
A giant lizard-shaped kite flying over the crowd at the Bali Kite Festival
Jun 1 – Sep 30, 2027est.

Bali Kite Festival

Village teams launch 10-metre fish, bird and dragon kites over Sanur to gamelan thunder

Denpasar, Indonesia$$$$
Teams paddling hard in a dragon boat race
Jun 9, 2027

Dragon Boat Festival (Duanwu)

Drums, dragon-prowed boats and sticky rice dumplings on the fifth day of the fifth moon

Yueyang, China +2$$$$
Rows of paper lanterns glowing on a Yamaboko float during the Yoiyama nights of Gion Matsuri in Kyoto
Jul 1–31, 2027est.

Gion Matsuri

A full month of rites builds to towering floats hand-hauled through downtown Kyoto

Kyoto, Japan$$$$
Young riders on horseback on the Mongolian steppe at Naadam
Jul 11–13, 2027est.

Naadam Festival

Wrestlers, child jockeys, and archers: Mongolia's three games under steppe skies

Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia$$$$
A towering carved wax float with an elephant and mythical figures at the Ubon Ratchathani Candle Festival
Jul 18–19, 2027est.

Ubon Ratchathani Candle Festival

Carved wax gods on wheeled floats roll through Isan as Buddhist Lent begins

Ubon Ratchathani, Thailand$$$$
People gather around a blazing torch tower in a town square at night during the Torch Festival in Xiangyun, Yunnan
Jul 27–29, 2027est.

Yi Torch Festival

Torch parades, Yi wrestling and mass bonfire dances turn Chuxiong into a fire city

Chuxiong, China$$$$
A giant illuminated Nebuta warrior float glowing at night as it moves down an Aomori street
Aug 2–7, 2027

Aomori Nebuta Matsuri

Four-ton illuminated warriors glide through the night to chants of rassera

Aomori, Japan$$$$
A temple-shaped structure outlined in thousands of lights glows at night during Keelung's Ghost Festival in Taiwan
Aug 2–31, 2027est.

Hungry Ghost Festival

For one lunar month the gates open, and the living throw a party for the dead

Keelung, Taiwan +3$$$$
Warriors in body paint and feather headdresses line up at the opening ceremony of the Baliem Valley Festival in Papua
Aug 5–7, 2027est.

Baliem Valley Festival

Highland tribes of Papua stage mock battles a mile above sea level

Wamena, Indonesia$$$$
Dancers in bright floral costumes on a parade float at the Kadayawan Festival in Davao
Aug 6–15, 2027est.

Kadayawan Festival

Eleven tribes, street-dance showdowns, and durian season in Davao every August

Davao City, Philippines$$$$
A street mural of two children on a bicycle in George Town, Penang
Aug 7–15, 2027est.

George Town Festival

Nine August days when clan temples, shophouses and streets become free stages

George Town, Malaysia$$$$
Dancers in traditional hats and happi coats performing Awa Odori in a black and white street scene
Aug 12–15, 2027

Awa Odori

Japan's best-known dance festival, where the fools who watch join the fools who dance

Tokushima, Japan$$$$
The Daimonji bonfire burning on the hillside above Kyoto at the end of Obon
Aug 13–16, 2027

Obon & Gozan no Okuribi

Japan welcomes its ancestors home, and Kyoto sends them off with mountains on fire

Kyoto, Japan$$$$
A light projection covering a historic building facade at the Singapore Night Festival
Aug 20 – Sep 4, 2027est.

Singapore Night Festival

Sixteen free nights of projection-mapped facades and light art in Bras Basah.Bugis

Singapore, Singapore$$$$
Crowds gather before an ancient Hindu temple on the Dieng Plateau for the dreadlock-cutting ceremony of the Dieng Culture Festival
Aug 27–29, 2027est.

Dieng Culture Festival

Sacred dreadlock-cutting, highland jazz and sky lanterns beside ancient temples

Dieng Plateau, Indonesia$$$$
A dancer in a deep woven hat dancing through the night streets at Owara Kaze no Bon
Sep 1–3, 2027est.

Owara Kaze no Bon

Three hushed nights of braided-hat dancers and kokyū strings in lantern-lit Yatsuo

Toyama, Japan$$$$
Colorful silk lanterns glowing in Hoi An
Sep 12–15, 2027est.

Tết Trung Thu

Star lanterns, lion dances and mooncakes light Hoi An's Old Town at the eighth full moon

Hoi An, Vietnam$$$$
Performers carry the Tai Hang Fire Dragon, bristling with burning incense sticks, through a night crowd at a Hong Kong performance
Sep 14–16, 2027est.

Tai Hang Fire Dragon Dance

A 67m dragon of smouldering incense snakes through Tai Hang's lanes for three nights

Hong Kong, Hong Kong$$$$
A giant white hahoe mask sculpture towering over visitors at the Andong Mask Dance Festival
Sep 24 – Oct 3, 2027est.

Andong Mask Dance Festival

About ten autumn days of masked satire: UNESCO talchum and troupes from abroad

Andong, South Korea$$$$
A brass band in traditional costume marches past the Fruchtsäule at the Cannstatter Volksfest
Sep 24 – Oct 10, 2027est.

Cannstatter Volksfest

Stuttgart's answer to Oktoberfest: beer tents, a fruit column and Swabian swagger

Stuttgart, Germany$$$$
Men riding a sacred log in festival dress at the Onbashira Festival at Moriya Shrine
Apr 1 – May 5, 2028est.

Onbashira

Once every six years, men ride giant tree trunks down a mountain slope in Nagano

Suwa, Japan$$$$

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