Travel calendar

Dates and details of global events and spectacles to build an adventure, a holiday or a short break around:

MAY

Prague Beer Festival
May 17-June 6
Details: An annual celebration of Czech beer
www.ceskypivnifestival.cz/en

Ibiza opening parties, Spain
May 15-June 23
www.ibiza.travel/en

Glyndebourne Opera Festival, Sussex, England
May 20-August 26
Details: Glyndebourne offers a rare opportunity to watch open air opera – and picnic in the garden
Tel: +44 (0)1273 812 321, www.glyndebourne.com

Hay Literary Festival, Hay-on-Wye
May 31-June 10
Details: Britain’s biggest literary festival, on the Anglo-Welsh border.
Tel: +44 (0) 1497 821 217, www.hayfestival.com

JUNE

Crosstalk video art festival, Budapest, Hungary
June 7-10
Details: A series of screening, lectures and conversations
www.crosstalk.hu

Edinburgh International Film Festival, Scotland
June 20-July 1
Details: Started as a side project to the main cultural celebration, Edinburgh film festival has now developed into arguably the UK’s most important outside London.
Tel: +44 (0)1312 284 051, www.edfilmfest.org.uk

Opera Festival of Verona
June 22-September 2
Details: A summer of performance at the city’s Arena
www.arena-verona.com

Wimbledon International Tennis Championships, London
June 25-July 8
Tel: +44 (0)20 8944 1066, www.wimbledon.com

Montreux Jazz Festival, Switzerland
June 29-July 14
Tel: +412 1966 4444, www.montreuxjazz.com

99th Tour de France
June 30-July 22
Details: Cycling’s most famous race cuts its way across France in 21 gruelling stages.
www.letour.fr

JULY

Palio di Siena, Italy
July 2-August 16
Details: A traditional medieval horse race with bare-back riders galloping around the Piazza del Campo
http://www.ilpalio.org/palioenglish.htm

San Fermin festival, Pamplona, Spain
July 6-14
Details: Basque festival famous for the encierro (running of the bulls)
Tel: +34 9-4842 0100, www.sanfermin.com

Bastille Day, France
July 14
Details: National celebrations across France, which take place both on the night and in the week leading up
www.paris.fr/portail/english

Bregenz Festival, Austria
July 18-August 18
Details: Opera festival on the shores of Austria’s Lake Constance
Tel: +43-5574 4076, www.bregenzerfestspiele.com/en/

Salzburg Festival, Austria
July 20-September 2
Details: Including opera, theatre and classical music.
Tel: +43(0)662-8045-0, www.salzburgerfestspiele.at

The 2012 Olympics, Great Britain
July 27-August 12
www.london2012.com
London 2012 Olympics: which event, when, where
Olympic venues: which event, when

AUGUST

Hong Kong Food Expo, Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre Hong Kong
August 16-20
Details: Held in the centre of Kowloon, this major culinary fair is a mixture of demonstrations, tastings and kitchen knowledge
Tel: +85 2183 0668, www.hktdc.com/fair/hkfoodexpo-en

Edinburgh International Festival
August 9-September 2
Tel: +44 (0)131-473 2099, www.eif.co.uk

Helsinki Festival, Finland
August 17-September 2
Details: Summer arrives late in Finland but when it does Helsinki residents celebrate with a festival of music, theatre, design, opera, film and circus acts
Tel: +35 89-6126 5100, www.helsinginjuhlaviikot.fi/en

Burning Man Festival, Nevada, US
August 27-September 3
Details: The US’s most extreme festival, in the Nevada desert, where a temporary “city” is built to accommodate revellers.
www.burningman.com

The 2012 Paralympics, Great Britain
August 29-September 9
Details: The Paralympics offers 20 sports over two weeks
www.london2012.com
London 2012 Paralympics: which event, when, where
Paralympic venues: which event, when

69th International Venice Film Festival
August 29-September 8
Details: One of the longest running and most prestigious of European film festivals
Tel: +39 04-1521 8711, www.labiennale.org/en/cinemal

SEPTEMBER

National Day of Catalonia, Barcelona, Spain
September 11
Details: Catalans celebrate their “national” day with processions, concerts and readings throughout Barcelona.
www.bcn.es

Munich Oktoberfest, Germany
September 22-October 7
Details: Beer drinking and Bavarian culture
www.oktoberfest.de

Dublin Theatre Festival, Republic of Ireland
September 27-October 14
Details: A fortnight-long theatrical festival in the Irish capital.
Tel: +353 1677 8439, www.dublintheatrefestival.com

OCTOBER

Crave International Sydney Food Fair, Australia
October 1-31
Details: A month-long festival celebrating the rich diversity of Sydney’s food culture, from Indonesian to Italian.www.cravesydney.com

NOVEMBER

Day of the Dead, Mexico
November 1-2
Details: an annual celebration in honour of the dead that mixes Mexican folklore and Catholic tradition.
www.dayofthedead.com

Festival of Diwali, India
November 13-17
Details: The festival of light is the most important festival in the Hindu calendar
www.diwalifestival.org

DECEMBER

Hogmanay, Edinburgh. Scotland
December 30-January 2 2012
Details: four days of events including the torchlight procession, street party and “loony dook” – a dip in the River Forth on New Year’s day.
www.edinburghshogmanay.org

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