Most people plan their trip based on the destination they want to visit. However, sometimes it’s better if we reverse the equation. Think about planning your dream trip with a specific season or event in mind. Like visiting Chiang Mai during its lantern festival, enjoying a tulip bloom in the Netherlands, catching a carnival parade in Rio…
Sounds interesting? Read on to find out more about seasonal & event based travel and learn tips for planning a trip like this!
Here’s Why It Matters And How You Can Plan Your Trip This Way!
Why Timing Changes Everything
It’s easy to imagine that the city will be totally different at different times I’m always surprised how differently Kyoto looks in grey January versus pink lit March (that’s with cherry blossoms blooming!) and Munich doesn’t even begin to compare its usual look to what it becomes during Oktoberfest. But if you’re planning your trips, when are those times where these cities really “come alive” for tourists?
If you travel somewhere because it’s seasonal or has some kind of big event, then you’re more likely to get a better understanding of that location’s culture and experience things many people don’t have time to see. Plus, as we’ll discuss today, traveling around the season/event actually gives a great structure to your trip!
Types of Seasonal and Event Travel Worth Planning Around
Natural seasonal phenomena things like cherry blossoms in Japan, autumn foliage in New England, the Northern Lights across much of Scandinavia and Iceland, wildflower super blooms in California, and whale migration season off the coast of South Africa come to mind immediately. For these kinds of “windows,” you’ll often find yourself only having two or three weeks worth of time, which makes doing your research all the more important.
Cultural and religious festivals such as India’s Diwali, Spain’s Semana Santa, and East Asian countries’ Lunar New Year and Mexico’s Day of the Dead give you an opportunity to really get a glimpse into what the people who live there do and believe, something many travel itineraries never touch on. It also means locals will typically go out of their way to make you feel welcome if you visit during one of those days.
Finally, there are major public celebrations, from Brazil’s carnival to Germany’s Oktoberfest to Thailand and India’s songkrans (“water”) and holi festivals respectively. These tend to be big, festive happenings that draw lots of attendees and should therefore be planned for well in advance since hotels may be booked up early.
There’s nothing like sporting & entertainment events World Cups, Grand Slam tennis, F1 races, and even big time music festivals for bumping up the energy and prices in a city for a limited time. Everything about the city changes once an event kicks off. Hotel options change. Restaurant wait times change.
Then there are those times that aren’t technically ‘events’ but can be just as good on your travel budget. It may seem counterintuitive if you’re used to going during peak travel seasons, but some destinations offer great deals by traveling around the edges of “peak” time. For example, late September is considered shoulder season in Greece, while early June is shoulder season in Southeast Asia.
A Closer Look: Seasonal Events in Morocco
To highlight how much can change depending on timing of visits, here’s just some highlights, including some things we’ve personally done:
Gnaoua World Music Festival : Essaouira (June)
A coastal music fest that mixes Gnaoua spirit music with modern jazz/blues/global tunes. One of the most atmospheric music events in North Africa.
Mawazine : Rabat (late May/June)
One of the largest music festivals in Africa, but still holds a lot of magic with the big names at the headline concert as well as lots of great free stage performances outdoors throughout the city. This happens for over a week, turning the whole capital into a city wide party.
Fes Festival of World Sacred Music : June
Held in many historic sites around the old medina in the ancient city of Fez, this is definitely a smaller scale music event than what you get elsewhere in Morocco. But it brings together some very interesting musicians from all over the globe looking to explore different forms of sacred music. It’s a perfect counter balance to the more commercialized music fests happening elsewhere in the country.
Rose Festival : El Kelaâ M’Gouna (May)
In the Dades valley, this is a harvest festival that celebrates the start of the rose picking season. There are parades, music, and obviously the scent of rose fields in bloom will be everywhere!
Imilchil Marriage Festival : September
This is an event that takes place once every few years in the mountains of the Atlas. Couples from nearby villages gather to publicly declare engagements. It’s a unique opportunity to see Amazigh (Berber) traditions up close without needing a guide since the population there is almost entirely Amazigh, not Arab Berbers like those who dominate most urban areas of the country. While the other fests may draw tourists from around the world, this is more likely a gathering of locals… with tons of food involved!
Marrakech International Film Festival : late November to early December
As one of the most popular cities in Morocco, Marrakech naturally hosts plenty of international film festivals. This one has glamour galore and gets top name celebrities and filmmakers flocking from both Morocco and beyond.
Since Ramadan and the associated Eid holidays occur according to a lunar calendar, they move approximately 11 days forward each year. As such, seasonal travel plans aren’t always simply about getting away from cold/hot weather! You need to check the right calendar to know your chances of experiencing these major festivals while traveling in Morocco.
Of course, talking to your local guide is always the fast track way to learn when exactly everything falls in line to make the most of your visit and land you in the best possible accommodations before your favorite Moroccan city fills up with festival goers.
Why This Matters More When You Travel With Local Guides
You’ve probably heard that “local guides have the best experience”, and while some may argue you can always search online for things like ‘When is cherry blossom season in Japan?’ there’s no substitute for someone who actually lives there knowing when they bloom at their river side park and what time of year those flowers might be earlier than normal due to a warm winter or if your favorite street side festival (which nobody on a tourism site ever talks about) is happening at the same time as the one you originally wanted to see.
That’s just seasonal travel. When planning an event, we’ll often ask ourselves questions such as ‘is the festival going to be earlier/later than expected’ or ‘am I missing out on something else similar nearby instead?’ So our advice would be don’t follow someone else’s generic list telling you “these are the best months / dates to go somewhere”. If you want the real deal, book a local expert!
Final Thought
It’s about seasonal or event based travel where you get deeper insight if you dig a little bit more, leveraging local expertise vs generic content, which we’ve seen has been quite popular.
Our focus was always about how we can connect travelers with those that live in their destination of choice this makes sense as an angle to talk about things such as when to visit certain destinations depending on events.
