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The Best Festivals and Celebrations
Festival of the Kukeri (Bulgaria). During a 30-day period over New Year, known as "Mrasni Dni" (Dirty Days), it is said that the gates to heaven and hell are left open, and demons walks the earth. To counter this, villagers don terrifying masks and girdles sagging with huge bells and, armed with wooden weapons, stalk the streets to sound them off. You can see the best examples of the frightening kukeri costumes, as well as plenty of photographs, in Sofia's Ethnographic Museum, or plan to visit during an even-numbered year on the last weekend in January when the largest "Festival of the Kukeri" is held in Pernik, and some 3,500 revelers participate in this ancient ritual.
Maramures (Romania). Countless festivals occur throughout the year, but a favorite is over the Christmas period; the small town of Sighet, near the Ukraine border, comes to life on December 27 when the Winter Customs Festival stirs good old-fashioned fun filled with folkloric symbolism. Participants dress up in traditional costumes and young men run around with grotesque masks, cowbells dangling from their waists.
New Year's Day (Russia). This is the major holiday of the Russian year. It's a family event centered around a fir tree, a huge feast, and gift-giving traditions transferred by Soviet leaders from Christmas to the more secular New Year's Day.
White Nights in St. Petersburg (Russia). Two weeks of festivities in late June celebrate the longest day of the year, when the northern sun never dips below the horizon. The White Nights are more than just a party; they're a buoyant, carefree attitude of summer-ness. Take a boat ride through the canals as the sunset melts into a languorous sunrise, and you'll never want to go south again.
Jewish Cultural Festival (Kraków, Poland). Every year in July, Kazimierz opens its doors to Jews and Gentiles from around the world to come and celebrate Jewish culture. The festival has a purpose -- it's to promote understanding of Poland's Jewish heritage and to remember what the ghetto once was. Nine days of food, music, and film.
Pohoda Music Festival (Trencín, Slovakia). Every year in mid-July the normally industrious town of Trencín lets its hair down for 3 days of independent folk, rock, and pop. The festival has grown in recent years and now lures some of the best bands around. But don't just think traffic jams, mud, and long lines for beer. The atmosphere here is the real draw. The word "pohoda" means "relax," and that's the whole idea.
The Kurentovanje Festival (Slovenia). Each winter in Ptuj, revelers don crazy masks and take to the streets in a positively pagan celebration that once had some bearing on trying to control the climate. Now it's a spirited reminder that Slovenes love to party.
Lent Festival (Maribor, Slovenia). Maribor's quaint waterfront promenade draws an excellent live music lineup each June, attracting fans and party animals from all over Europe. Right near the main venues is the Stara Trta, apparently the oldest wine-producing vine in the world.
Ljubljana Summer Festival (Slovenia) goes on for several months, during which music, theater, and other types of performances are staged in venues around the city, and also on the streets. Many of the shows are world-class, and some of the most memorable happen in the Krizanke Summer Theater (Slovenia), a former monastery converted to an outdoor venue in the 1950s by Slovenia's top-rated architect, Joze Plecnik.
Note: This information was accurate when it was published, but can change without
notice. Please be sure to confirm all rates and details directly with the companies in question before
planning your trip.
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