The ultimate calendar of European culture worth travelling for in 2023

bathfestivals.org.uk

Athens Jazz Festival, Greece

When: 22 - 28 May 2023

Athens Jazz returns for its 22nd year to the city’s Technopolis for a week of various styles of the genre on its main stage. Greek jazz plays exclusively to open the festival on Monday 22 May, followed by a smooth, velvety concoction of variations from across the world. With free entry, and 21 concerts featuring a mix of established and emerging artists, from Greece’s beloved Spiral Trio to Hungarian singer and songwriter, Veronika Harcsa, it’s the best time to jet to the ancient city – particularly before the weather heats up and the Athenians scarper for their favourite islands.

athensjazz.gr

Nuit Blanche, Paris

When: 3 June 2023

From 7pm till 7am on the first Saturday of June, this all-night art festival sees Parisians carrying tables and chairs to various pre-planned landmarks, dressed in white for a night of al fresco revelry and cultural hobnobbing. The city’s landmarks play host to pop up theatre performances and museums and galleries open their doors to the public for free. Many parties and dinners are invite only (in classic Parisian style), though visitor tickets are available through Paris Tourist Office.

parisinfo.com

Sankt Hans Aften festival, Skagen, Jutland

When: 23 June 2023

This Nordic, (originally Pagan), folk tradition is rooted in the notion that midsummer’s eve is steeped in magic and mystery. This used to be marked by foraging for healing herbs or dipping into sacred springs, though over the years, it morphed into bonfires that farmers burned to ward off evil spirits and witches. While Copenhagen puts on a real fiery show at several spots (Tivoli Gardens, Frederiksberg Gardens etc), thousands of Danes travel to Skagen, the country’s northern tip, for a good old fashioned sing song, food and beer as a gigantic bonfire rages. There are smaller, scenic bonfires along Skagen’s rugged coast, which locals and visitors huddle around as the sun still sits high in the sky in the early hours.

Best Kept Secret, The Netherlands

When: 9 - 11 June 2023

Really what it says on the tin – a lesser-known Indie festival which mixes multi-genre big names with emerging artists. This year’s line up includes Chemical Brothers, Unknown Mortal Orchestra and The 1975, all playing around the festival’s focal-point – a lake along the fringes of Beekse Bergen safari park (an impressive and rather bonkers boat, car or walking safari park in the middle of Holland’s Brabant).

bestkeptsecret.nl

Palio Siena, Italy

When: 2 July and 16 August 2023

The Palio di Siena is a Medieval horse race that rips through the heart-throb city of Siena on both the 2nd July and 16th August. Ten horses and bareback jockeys, representing each city ward, funnel through the streets at breakneck speed as animated crowds cheer them on from fenced off areas or, if they’re lucky, from the gothic palazzo balconies overlooking the piazza. It’s nail-biting stuff – horses can lose their jockeys along the way, flinging them off round sharp corners. And it’s not simply the race that lures in swarms of tourists alongside the rowdy Sienese, but the Corteo Storico – a historical costume parade that precedes the race and moves to the March of the Palio.

Opera Festival in Savonlinna, Finland

When: 1 - 30 July 2023

The first thing to note about this annual music festival is its extraordinary location – the Hans Anderson Finnish city of Savonlinna – with world-class opera warbling across a mist-strewn lake from a Medieval Castle. Opera aside, it’s worth going simply to marvel at the turreted Olavinlinna Castle, that seemingly surges from the water, its old walls mottled with age and inclement weather. This year’s highlights include Romeo and Juliet and the Flying Dutchman Operas, with the week’s festivities rounded off with Theatre Hagen’s (Germany) Fiddler on the Roof performance.

operafestival.fi

Sanfermine, Pamplona, Spain

When: 6 - 14 July 2023

This is one of Spain’s largest and most famous annual festivals in honour of the country’s first bishop Saint Fermin. It’s all about the encierro (running of the bulls), a daily affair that is essentially a scramble of red and white-clad men and women running for their lives as a bull tears through the town. It’s also a visual feast of fireworks, stalls selling traditional trinkets and Spanish tapas, flamenco dancing and various noisy processions making British pomp and ceremony look positively understated.

sanfermin.com

Park Fair, Great Tew Estate, Oxfordshire

When: 30 June - 2 July

Returning to the bucolic Great Tew Estate for its second year this June, Park Fair is a polished take on the classic country fair (much like Chipping Norton’s spruce spin on country life). The main event, aside from workshops, beauty masterclasses and wellness sessions, is shopping, with the likes of Bobbi Brown, Jigsaw, Pink City Prints and Sephina London heading into the sticks with enticing collections. Like any Oxfordshire festival, the food is set to be top-drawer, with Farang London and the Cotswold Guy cooking up a storm, and with Amie wines free flowing. Sprogs are welcome, with Tarka London putting on a spread of activities, as are dogs, with their own dedicated entertainment.

parkfair.uk

Oslo Jazz Festival

When: 13 - 19 August 2023

For over 30-years, the Norwegian capital has dialled up August with its annual Jazz Festival, one scattered across the city and running the gamut, from Count Basie Orchestra at Oslo Concert Hall to electronica in more understated spots. Jazz bands parade through the centre of town and over 60 concerts roll out across 15 markedly different venues in a thawed and thoroughly pretty Oslo. The festival has previously welcomed jazz titans such as Dee Dee Bridgewater, Django Bates and Phil Woods. This year’s programme will be released on 25th May, so stay tuned and book in those foodie pilgrim Oslo restaurants you’ve had pinned for decades to break up the hours of jazz.

Wilderness Festival, Cornbury Park, the Cotswolds

When: 3 - 6 August 2023

Described as ‘a four day party like no other,’ Wilderness is the stuff of middle class rural-chichi reverie, the ultimate bouji British festival. Expect reems of gourmet food trucks, craft beers, Champagne tents and yoga supper clubs. Along with a cirque du soleil style ‘Wilderness Spectacle,’ talks by Elizabeth Day, and fun family events such as ‘The Enchanted Cinema,’ the music line-up is impressive. Expect the Chemical Brothers, Fatboy Slim, Christine and the Queens, Sugar Babes and Jo Whiley’s 90’s anthems. The usual late night form is a skinny dip in the lake followed by excessive gorging on food trucks to mop up the Veuve Clicquot.

wildernessfestival.com

The Sziget Festival in Budapest

When: 10 - 15 August 2023

Dubbed Europe’s biggest music festival, Sziget serves up a full week of rock and serious multi-genre line-ups on the city’s Obudai-sziget island (Island of Old Buda). Symbolically the island is a haven for artists, wth many displaying their works via public exhibitions and installations. This year’s line up includes Billie Eilish, Florence and the Machine, David Guetta, and Lorde. Glamping options are surprisingly affordable and you can round off the festival with days spent stewing in Budapest’s Széchenyi Bath, marvelling at its imposing landmarks and sampling its ruin bar scene.

szigetfestival.com

Amsterdam Pride

When: 1- 6 August 2023

It’s the celebration of all pride celebrations this year on Amsterdam Pride’s 25th anniversary, with flamboyant canal parades and a spicy roster of events taking place throughout the city over the first week of August. The city springs to life with colour, glitter, loud music, open-air cinema and an intoxicating dose of LBGTIQ+ inclusive love. For a coastal take on the festivities, head to Zandvoort where Pride at the Beach will be in full swing from 1-3 August, with parades, music, cultural workshops, art, drag, queens, yoga film and dance.

amsterdamgaypride.nl

Copenhagen Cooking Festival

When: 18 - 27 August 2023

This is where the Danes flaunt their fresh produce, superlative pastries and coastal hauls across both traditional Nordic and more modern, creative recipes. As one of the largest European food festivals, Copenhagen Cooking Festival puts on a staggering 130 intriguing (and delicious) events, pulling in the gastronomes from all corners of the world. Restaurants, small eateries, talented chefs and serious foodies transform the Danish capital into one phenomenal, beautifully-curated feast to round off the summer. Expect long trellis tables along the water’s edge, filled with New Nordic small plates, spanking fresh seafood and happy diners.

Stuttgarter Weindorf, Germany

When: 17 August - 4 September 2023

A tradition going back thousands of years, Stuttgarter Weindorf shows off this balmy region of Germany’s best wines from its smaller growers and guest houses pairing their own wine with traditional, homemade food. It offers a deep dive into German cuisine, both traditional and more innovative, amid the pastels and pretty architecture of Stuttgart’s city centre. Around 30 open-air restaurants and market stalls serve up scrumptious small plates, pancakes, pastries, and, of course, wine.

stuttgarter-weindorf.de

Armata, Greece

When: 8-10 September 2023

If the Saronic island of Spetses has long been on your travel radar, head there for the second week of September for Armata. This spectacular celebration reaches its climax on the Saturday, when locals and visitors gather along the harbour where a ship, especially built for the day, is burned to commemorate the Spetses naval battle (8th September 1822) and the defeat of the Ottomans fleet. Firework displays add more drama to the occasion and closes a week of various artistic workshops and performances, including traditional dances, exhibitions and theatre.

greeka.com

Feria de Ganado y Fiestas de San Mateo, Villamartin, Cadiz

When: 20 - 24 September 2023

As the last hurrah of VIllamartin in Cadiz’ generously long summer, the feast of St Matthew is a delicious glimpse at the very essence of Andalusian culture (cattle shopping by day and a flamboyant merriment by night). The festival promises impressive displays of horsemanship, eye-catching flamenco dancing and, of course, endless tapas with Spanish red.

juntadeandalucia.es

Oktoberfest

When: 16 September - 3 October 2023

Unbeknownst to many, Oktoberfest actually stretches across more of September than October (only 3 days). So it’s worth booking those tickets to Munich a little earlier than previously anticipated for the city’s 188th Oktoberfest. Sample hundreds of German beers and embrace Bavarian culture with all its parades, brass bands, stirring concerts, and, of course, spontaneous beer hall singsongs.

oktoberfest.de