Still perhaps the most prestigious of all art events is the Venice Biennale, which opens this year on June 7.

There’s no hurry to visit, as its labyrinth of pavilions and satellite exhibitions run until November, when the inflated prices for hotels and restaurants may have calmed down a little. But nothing matches the buzz of the opening week and this year the party atmosphere will be intensified by the opening of a huge new space belonging to French billionaire François Pinault, owner of Christie’s auction house. At the Dogana, the old customs house, it will form half of a two-part experience with Pinault’s existing Venice gallery, the Palazzo Grassi, allowing the public to see even more of his impressive collections.

The Venice Biennale can be daunting. The secret is not to try to do everything. Plan visits to the official site, the Giardini Pubblici, or public gardens, of the Castello in the east of the city, where 30 national pavilions are to be found, many of them notable pieces of architecture in their own right. Check out the British Pavilion created by artist Steve McQueen (who is featured in this week’s Lunch with the FT ). All exhibited artists here have been chosen by their own country to represent it and there are other pavilions dotted around the city. For the first time this year, the United Arab Emirates will have a pavilion.

Strolling round the Giardini, and the city’s Arsenale, which the event has colonised as exhibition space as it has grown, it is best to keep an open mind – not much will obviously resonate with the year’s theme, “Making Worlds” but there will be much to love and loathe.

Make sure to intersperse the visits to the main sites with plenty of aimless wandering. Venice is the ultimate city of serendipity – in side streets there will be a rich haul of “off-Biennale” exhibitions and other shows. Meandering through the narrow walkways between canals will yield plenty of surprises.

There’s hardly a self-respecting world city that doesn’t boast a biennale these days, so when planning a holiday you can take your pick. This summer sees the second Athens event, opening June 15, this time entitled “Heaven”. It’s described as “a multifaceted contemporary art event”, with exhibitions, theatre and music performances, film screenings and discussions. Athens which is awash with early summer festivals, is particularly nice before it gets too hot. The annual Athens Epidaurus festival, starting on May 23, includes theatre, dance and music as well as exhibitions. The Athens Fringe Festival, meanwhile, runs from June 15-21. Also in Greece, from May 24, is Thessaloniki’s second biennale, entitled “Praxis: Art in Times of Uncertainty”, so real culture hounds could take in both destinations before retiring to a beach to recuperate.

Istanbul, too, has its biennale this year. Entitled “What Keeps Mankind Alive?”, it is curated by Croatian curatorial collective What, How & for Whom (WHW), and kicks off on September 12. Those interested in the crafts of Asia, should head to Korea for the Cheongju International Craft Biennale 2009, opening on September 23.

Finally, remember that art fairs, too, can make excellent reasons to visit a city. Art Basel, which opens in the Swiss city on June 10, displays a dazzling array of modern and contemporary art. In contrast to the studied calm of most gallery environments, the marketplace adds an extra buzz.

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Details
Venice Biennale, www.labiennale.org
Athens Biennale, www.athensbiennial.org
Athens & Epidaurus festival, www.greekfestival.gr
Athens Fringe Festival, www.fringefestival.gr
Thessaloniki Biennale, www.thessalonikibiennale.gr
Istanbul Biennale, www.iksv.org/bienal
Cheongju International Craft Biennale, www.cheongjubiennale.or.kr
Art Basel, www.artbasel.com