The end of the summer is finally coming, but there is still plenty to celebrate. Here are ten of the best festivals in September from around the world. This list is a true mixture of hedonism and escapism mixed with some culture and a dash of music festivals.
Burning Man, Nevada
Burning Man is one of the biggest and most famous festivals in North America. Set in the flat and empty Black Rock desert of Nevada, this counter culture festival is a place where people come to have fun and escape the restrictions of everyday life. Art, music and community are central to the success of Burning Man. However, it would be naive to think that drugs don’t play a huge part in the success of the communities bonding experience.
Bestival, Isle of Wight
Bestival is second only to Glastonbury in terms of the number of acts who play here and the number of people that attend. The festival is a great chance to let your hair down in beautiful surroundins. With over 60,000 people are expected to attend this years event, so it is guaranteed to be quite a celebration.
Berlin Festival, Bangkok
This year Bangkok will be proudly hosting the Berlin Festival. The idea behind the festival is to strengthen inter-cultural ties between the two countries. Later in the year Berlin will be hosting the Bangkok Festival… Actually, Berlin is quite happy to host its own festival in the city, which will be held at the Tempelhof Airport.
Bangkok International Festival of Dance and Music
Every year, thousands of artists come to the stage to celebrate the Bangkok International Festival of Dance and Music. With five main shows planned for this year and hundreds of smaller events being hosted throughout the city, there will be lots on offer. This festival is also spread over five weeks, so if you are traveling through the city, you will have plenty of opportunity to check things out.
Whale Festival, South Africa
Hermanus is the best place to do on land whale watching in South Africa, so every year, when the whales migrate, Hermanus hosts a whale watching festival. The festival is a chance to combine a weekend of music and sports with the chance to watch the annual migration of whales. In 2012 over 100,000 people attended the event.
Beantown Jazz Festival, Boston
The Beantown Jazz Festival is held in conjunction with the Berklee College of Music and is a sweet celebration of jazz blues and grooze. The 30 acts that will be playing in Boston this year will be playing at outdoor stages along Columbus Avenue, as well as various small and large music halls and clubs. This is a great event for the whole family.
Lisdoonvarna Matchmaking Festival, Ireland
It’s an odd choice to make the list, but I thought I should include it for any single people out there. Lisdoonvarna is the largest matchmaking festival in Europe and the people who are attending are obviously doing so in the hopes of finding a partner, so… Well, you know the story of the birds and the bees.
Grape Throwing Festival, Mallorca
The Grape throwing festival, which is held in the village of Binissalem, is a more refined, less messy and tastier version of La Tomatina. It is held in the last week of September to celebrate the grape harvest. Once you’ve finished throwing grapes at each other you can sit down for a glass of wine and appreciate last years harvest.
International Oyster Festival, Ireland
With so much aphrodisiacs on offer, I’m surprised that the International Oyster Festival is not more like a giant orgy. However, despite the amount of oysters eaten over the long weekend, people manage to keep their clothes on and refrain from rutting on the street. This is probably a good thing, as 500,000 people participating in an orgy could get pretty messy.
Oktoberfest, Munich
Drinking glasses of beer that are so big they make people look like midgets, you can understand why people have such a hard time remembering the date (yes, Oktoberfest actually starts in September). Still, if you manage to attend the festival all the way from September through to October, you have earned the right to call Oktoberfest whatever you want.
