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Events Worth Planning A Trip Around In 2013

by Libby Zay (RSS feed) on Jan 21st 2013 at 9:00AM

Have you ever landed in a place to find out you arrived just after the town's can't-miss event of the year? Well, hopefully that won't happen again this year. Gadling bloggers racked their brains to make sure our readers don't overlook the best parties to be had throughout the world in 2013. Below are more than 60 music festivals, cultural events, pilgrimages and celebrations you should consider adding to your travel calendar this year – trust us, we've been there.

Above image: Throughout Asia, Lunar New Year is celebrated with lantern festivals, the most spectacular of which is possibly Pingxi. [Photo credit: Creative Commons]

Kumbh Mela, a 55-day festival in India, is expected to draw more than 100 million people in 2013. [Photo credit: Creative Commons]

January
January 7–27: Sundance Film Festival (Park City, Utah)
January 10–February 26: Kumbh Mela (Allahabad, India)
January 21: Presidential Inauguration (Washington, DC)
January 26–February 12: Carnival of Venice (Venice, Italy)
January 26–February 13: Battle of the Oranges (Ivrea, Italy)

During Busójárás in Hungary, visitors can expect folk music, masquerading, parades and dancing. [Photo credit: Creative Commons]

February
February 3: Super Bowl XLVII (New Orleans, Louisiana)
February 5–11: Sapporo Snow Festival (Sapporo, Japan)
February 7–12: Busójárás (Mohács, Hungary)
February 10: Chinese New Year/Tet (Worldwide)
February 9–12: Rio Carnival (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil)
February 12: Mardi Gras (Worldwide)
February 14: Pingxi Lantern Festival (Taipei, Taiwan)
February 24: Lunar New Year (Worldwide)

Several cities in India and Nepal increase tourist volume during Holi, when people enjoy spring's vibrant colors. [Photo credit: Creative Commons]

March
March 1-14: Omizutori (Nara, Japan)

March 8–17: South by Southwest (Austin, Texas)
March 20–April 14: Cherry Blossom Festival (Washington, DC)
March 27: Holi (Worldwide, especially India & Nepal)

Many Dutch people wear orange – the national color – and sell their secondhand items in a "free market" during Koninginnendag, a national holiday in the Netherlands. [Photo credit: Creative Commons]

April

April 12–14 & April 19–21: Coachella (Indio, California)
April 11-14: Masters Golf Tournament (Augusta, Georgia)
April 13–15: Songkran Water Festival (Thailand)
April 17–28: TriBeCa Film Festival (New York, New York)
April 25–28: 5Point Film Festival (Carbondale, Colorado)
April 30: Koninginnendag or Queen's Day (Netherlands)

Up to 50 men work together to carry their church's patron saint around the main square in Cusco, Peru during Corpus Christi. [Photo credit: Blogger Libby Zay]

May

May 4: Kentucky Derby (Louisville, Kentucky)
May 15–16: Festival de Cannes (Cannes, France)
May 20: Corpus Christi (Worldwide)
May 23–26: Art Basel (Hong Kong)
May 24–27: Mountainfilm Film Festival (Telluride, Colorado)
May 25-28: Sasquatch Festival (Quincy, Washington)
May 26: Indianapolis 500 (Speedway, Indiana)

2013 marks the 100th anniversary for the Tour de France. [Photo credit: Creative Commons]

June

June 13–16: Bonnaroo (Manchester, Tennessee)
June 13–16: Art Basel (Basel, Switzerland)
June 14–16: Food & Wine Classic (Aspen, Colorado)
June 21: St. John's Night (Poznan, Poland)
June 24: Inti Raymi (Cusco, Peru)
June 28–30: Comfest (Columbus, Ohio)
June 29–July 21: Tour de France (France)

The annual observance of Ramadan is regarded as one of the Five Pillars of Islam. Visit Istanbul, Turkey, at this time and see a festival-like atmosphere when pious Muslims break their fasts with lively iftar feasts at night. [Photo credit: Creative Commons]

July
July 6–14: San Fermin Festival (Pamplona, Spain)
July 9–August 2: Ramadan (Worldwide)

July 12–14: Pitchfork (Chicago, Illinois)
July 17: Gion Festival Parade (Kyoto, Japan)
July 18–21: International Comic Con (San Diego, California)
July 19–22: Artscape (Baltimore, Maryland)

July 24–28: Fete de Bayonne (Bayonne, France)

Festival-goers get their picture taken at a photo booth during Foo Fest, an arts and culture festival held annually in Providence, Rhode Island. [Photo credit: Flickr user AS220]

August

August 2–4: Lollapalooza (Chicago, Illinois)
August 10: Foo Fest (Providence, Rhode Island)
August 26–September 2: Burning Man (Black Rock Desert, Nevada)
August 31–September 2: Bumbershoot (Seattle, Washington)

More than six million people head to Munich, Germany, for beer-related festivities during the 16-day Oktoberfest. [Photo credit: Creative Commons]

September
September 5–15: Toronto International Film Festival (Toronto, Canada)
September 13–15: Telluride Blues & Brews Festival (Telluride, Colorado)
September 21–October 6: Oktoberfest (Munich, Germany)

Around 750 hot air balloons are launched during the nine-day Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta. [Photo credit: Flickr user Randy Pertiet]

October

October 4–6 & 11–13: Austin City Limits (Austin, Texas)
October 5–13: Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta (Albuquerque, New Mexico)
October 10–14: United States Sailboat Show (Annapolis, Maryland)

During Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead), family and friends get together to remember loved ones they have lost. Although practiced throughout Mexico, many festivals take place in the United States, such as this festival at La Villita in San Antonio, Texas. [Photo credit: Blogger Libby Zay]

November

November 1–2: Dia de los Muertos (Worldwide, especially Mexico)

November 3: Diwali (Worldwide)

November 8–10: Fun Fun Fun Fest (Austin, Texas)
November 11: Cologne Carnival (Cologne, Germany)
November 28: Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade (New York, New York)
TBA: Punkin Chunkin (Long Neck, Delaware)

The colorful holiday of Junkanoo is the most elaborate festivals of the Bahamian islands. [Photo credit: Flickr user MissChatter]

December
December 2–3: Chichibu Yomatsuri (Chichibu City, Japan)

December 5–8: Art Basel (Miami, Florida)
December 26–January 1: Junkanoo (Bahamas)

So, what did we miss? Let us know what travel-worthy events you're thinking about journeying to in the coming year in the comments below.

Filed under: Asia, Europe, North America, South America, India, Nepal, Turkey, France, Germany, Hungary, Netherlands, Bahamas, United States, Peru, Middle East, Caribbean

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

Rebecca Jan 21st 2013 9:22AM

Largest Oktoberfest in the US, Oktoberfest Zinzinnati (Cincinnati, Ohio) September 20-22.

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Stephen Jan 22nd 2013 10:52AM

Great writeup - thanks Libby!

lawlesscruiser Jan 24th 2013 6:23PM

Starting April 18 this year

Fiesta San Antonio................largest night parade in country

hundreds of events for all interests

www.fiesta-sa.org/

Ana-Carolina Monterroso Zappa Jan 26th 2013 12:03PM

Guatemala has special events through out the year, many enjoy coming during Easter Week or for other religious events (http://www.visitguatemala.com/en/what-to-do/religious-tourism). Some churches have paintings and sculptures that make you feel you were in a museum! There is also water rafting, sport fishing, turtle conservation programs, canopy, community tourism, bird-watching expeditions, volcano climbing, and surfing.

Many people visit just to do medical tourism because there are excellent physicians and dentists trained in the U.S., Europe, and other Latin American countries that provide superior services. Special and traditional testing (C-scans, etc.) are also lower priced than in developed countries.

Our Spanish schools are considered among the best in the world!

yepi Feb 28th 2013 9:26AM

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