Do You Go to Festivals?
 

This is the time of year when festivals seem to show up everywhere - music festivals, food festivals, art festivals, appealing to just about every taste imaginable in some of the most interesting places around. I am always tempted by a least a few, given the descriptions, but then I remember the few I did go to. They always seems to feature several things in common - large, annoying crowds, lots of traffic, exhorbitant prices, and lack of basic creature comforts, especially for those of us beyond the days of sleeping on the ground.

I'm wondering if people have found any of these festivals really enjoyable - ones that minimize the negatives and maximize the positives. I haven't and would love to know of some.

Do You Go to Festivals?
 

There are all sorts of festivals ranging from Squid Fest to Garlic Fest and Fog Fest to Pumpkin fest that are all considered just a day trip (all of these happen to be in the bay area). I have found these to be fun in the past but obviously usually crowded.

I am not one to go to a three day music festival and sleep on the ground (even though my folks were apparently at Woodstock!)

That is the problem with all the festivals around here. All too crowded.

they do vary - classical music/opera festivals in europe for example

aspen food & wine (~5000 tickets?) is expensive single ticket, interesting thats not more common
naples wine festival (580 tickets) is super expensive single ticket, includes a dinner in private home

many festivals offer various levels of VIP packages to reduce level of discomfort

theyre usually held in oppressive heat of summer and full of obnoxious younger people.

the best festival ive been to is sasquatch festival in the gorge washington state... in beautiful locale, good weather of may, out in a beautiful secluded natural setting, and the year i was there the lineup was killer (pavement, national, lcd soundsystem, mgmt, mountain goats, etc)....

im over most festivals now. when i want, ill see a specific act

I arranged a trip in Germany so I could attend a festival in Trier with fireworks. It was really interesting, not only because I love fireworks, but also because it gave us a chance to see Germans all taking part in a group activity.

While we were in Venice on the same trip we also stumbled into the biggest festival/fireworks display of the year. I'm not sure what it was for, but we enjoyed it.

Rebelyell, sounds like >
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Festa_del_Redentore
http://www.veneziaunica.it/en/conten...ore-feast-2014

Do You Go to Festivals?
 

Oh, and I completely forgot the one festival I refuse to miss every year: the fete de Geneve (festival in Geneva Switzerland) which happens to have one of the best fireworks displays in the world. It is one hour long on the Lac Leman synchronized with music. Really breathtaking.

Do You Go to Festivals?
 

Be sure and book your private table three years in advance or stand around on the Pont du Mont Blanc with the rest of the crowds.

I went to the first and only New York Tokyo Music Festival (in 2002). It was somewhere in Midtown on the Hudson, and had a rather empty couple of tents showcasing singers from the US and Japan.

If this was held again, I reckon it would attract significantly more attendees.

We try to attend the Dubai International Film Festival in December. We didn't make it there last year but started going when it was first introduced - we were living in Dubai at the time.

I go to village-based festivals and book my accommodation and travel up to a year before hand.

Then I relax and enjoy being at the centre of things.

Otherwise, forget it.

Do You Go to Festivals?
 

I look for craft beer festivals. Although those are getting crowded now too as craft beer is "in" now.

At some point, I would like to go back to Edinburgh for the festival in August. (instead of October when it was cold and rained every day.) Probably not going to happen anytime soon but nice to think about.

That is really the only major festival that I find of interest.

I inadvertantly went to a sea shanty festival a couple of years ago (turned up in town not knowing it was on). It was brilliant and i'd really like to go again. But in general i'm not a festival person - I don't like crowds or price gouging.

+1. Hipsters have discovered craft beer, which has kind of killed the festivals for me.

Still occasionally go to a homebrew gathering, but those don't quite rise to the level of a "festival" and the quality of beer tends to be all over the board.

Probably the closest we get is a medium-sized art fair.

I've never done the big music festivals where everybody takes psychedelic drugs and sleeps in mud for 3 days. I suppose I'd do a classical music festival if I was in the right place at the right time for it. But I'd want, you know, a hotel room... ;)

I remember them being a lot more fun in my 20's.

Edinburgh prices go up 3x and more for the festival period. Awkward because I have some business and social things to do there during that period but it's too much to stay overnight and the traffic is awful.

However, I do enjoy the festival buzz.

I find that the festivals in Europe are much more organized and the people are less idiotic. I think people here in the States leave their brains at home when they have to go into public events or situations (festivals, airports, theme parks, cruises, buffets)

also often smaller populations

and lot less 'commercialization'

I like the food festival at Disney World, because it's a lot easier to get a table in the restaurants. The Sundance Film festival isn't worth the effort.

All the good festivals start small then grow in popularity. At some point it becomes too much. The trick is to catch them on the way up. Just starting to get a buzz but not yet oversubscribed. Usually by the time you've heard about it, it's too late, unless you have some local knowledge.

Or some start to decline and they can be OK on the way back down too.

Oh, and I like stumbling upon various food festivals in China. Last year's visit to Nanjing was particularly serendipitous because there was a Xinjiang-focused event going on, replete with dancing and qiegao.

Japan has some good random ones too, such as those held by the West Shinjuku station exit or in the upper floors of various department stores.

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I go every year to MerleFest in late April - a four day "Americana" music festival in western North Carolina. There are crowds, but $230 for a reserved seat at 4 days of music avoids the worst of the crowding.

The National Storytelling Festival every October in Tennessee is modestly crowded but still very enjoyable.

I've given up on New Orleans Heritage and Jazz Festival - always a great line up but very crowded and intolerably hot.

Mud and camping out? No, I do not go anywhere that does not have a real bed and flush toilets!

good info onlyairfare !

I quite fancy a cruise festival like Cayamo.

I guess it would cost 10x or 20x Merlefest though.

I like the way the promotional video shows lots of crusty old folk in the music audience but when they get to beach volleyball, it's all fit young bodies. That's probably the crew!

I go up to Orkney Folk Festival pretty much every year but a group of us have a house in Stromness booked up to a year in advance. It's almost impossible to find accommodation otherwise.

Been to Goodwood (festival of speed) two times. Don't fancy Glastonbury, way too crowded, but I've done Rock am Ring (Germany) and Roskilde (Denmark). Also been to a couple of smaller festivals, and for the last few years we've stuck to 'Langeland', a small festival on a Danish island selling around 25K tickets. We're not there for the music any more; it's a chance for old friends to hang out for a week and get drunk, smelly and a bit silly. We took the boat there last year, and might do the same again this year - it's quite handy having a floating gin palace available.

Well, festivals are really about bringing bunch of people with similar interests together, so an uncrowded fair would kind of be a failure, wouldn't it?

I regularly got to MakerFaire. I am in California right now as a matter of fact - they have big ones in May in San Mateo and Sept in New York. Kind of imagine a more family friendly version of Burning Man crossed with a robotics and 3d printing.

Cloudship, crowds of hundreds of thousands are NOT required :D

I carefully avoid anything that spells "fair" with an E or a Y.

Unfortunately, this year I think they had them.

Great fair! Terrible Logistics!

ZoukOut in Singapore every year but only because of free entry and drinks.

Wagner Opera Festival in Bayreuth, Germany
 

For about one month each year (August) this festival is held. I've gone three times, 1972 was the last. Now it is extremely difficult to get tickets--7 year waiting list. For the one month the whole city revolves around the festival. The prices for food and hotels was NOT that high.
If you are "big" on Wagner Operas this is the place to go.:)

and very different from festivals in US :)

Absolutely!

Milwaukee has a whole season of festivals.

The civilized ones ;). I always go to Pesaro Rossini Opera Festival, each second year or so to Salzburg and Glyndebourne Opera Festivals.

The most important is to be well organized for food & beverage to avoid discomfort. Over the years I got the experience to organize everything from Champagne, the performance and the opulent dinner itself :D. No need for a VIP package there - just be organized.