LONELY Planet has revealed its top recommendations for places to visit during every season of the year in its new Where To Go When guide.
Answering the perennial traveller question the book highlights 25 destinations for each month, detailing not just where to go, but why and how, creating the ultimate trip planner for the year.
From adventures outdoors to lazy beach holidays to street food odysseys, the carefully curated menu of 300 destinations, split into 12 monthly chapters outlines what makes each country, region, island or city so wonderful to visit at that moment.
Find out when is the best time to visit Japan now that travel has reopened, island hop in Croatia or Cape Verde, what you need to know before visiting Slovenia or identify the best family destinations during school holidays. The guide includes a handy infographic flowchart, to help filter the recommendations according to interests, from beaches to adventures or food and drink, and diagrams that depict the climate and value for money. It also includes a calendar of iconic and less well-known events, some of Lonely Planet’s top monthly suggestions include:
January
· Lerwick Up Helly Aa, Shetland, Scotland – A torchlight procession of Vikings carrying a ship through the streets before setting it aflame
· Art Deco Weekend, Miami, USA – Florida’s stylish city gets nostalgic with jazz, fashion, food and general flapper-era entertainment – party like it’s the 20s
February
· Lemon Festival, France – 140 tonnes of versatile citrus adorn sculptures, floats and gardens during this two-week fruit-fest on the Cote d’Azur
· Flower Festival, Chiang Mai, Thailand – Be dazzled by the displays of damask roses, chrysanthemums and other colourful blooms in this three-day celebration of the floral world
March
· Waffle Day, Gothenburg, Sweden – Tuck into a heart-shaped våffa (waffle) with cloudberry sylt (jam) and ispgrädde (whipped cream) on the sweetest day of the year
· Las Fallas Valencia, Spain – Parties, parades and fireworks accompany the construction then conflagration of a legion of huge figures called Ninots
April
· Walpurgisnacht, Thale, Germany – On the night when witches gather in the Harz Mountains, join the throngs on the Hexentanzplatz (Witches’ Dance Square) for music and merriment
· Toonik Tyme, Iqaluit, Nunavut, Canada – Celebrate the return of the Spring and admire the displays of traditional Inuit skills, games, throat-singing and dancing in the Arctic
May
· Rose Festival, El-Kelaa M’Gouna, Morocco – The harvest of roses in the High Atlas
Mountains is celebrated with feasting, dancing, markets and a chariot procession
· Bay to Breakers, San Francisco, California, USA – For over a century, runners have dashed the 12km (7.5 miles) from the Embarcadero neighbourhood to the Pacific at Ocean Beach
June
· The Okavango Floods, Botswana – Rains in the Angolan highlands surge south into Botswana – making this the best time for mokoro (dugout canoe) safaris amid profuse wildlife
· Festa de São João do Porto Portugal – Thousands flock to the centre of Portugal’s second city for a midsummer festival with music, dancing, sardine-snacking and fireworks
July
· Reggae Sumfest, Montego Bay, Jamaica – The biggest music festival in Jamaica brings a week of shows by great reggae and dancehall acts from across the Caribbean
· Sonkajärvi, Finland – Wife-carrying World Championships – Men lug spouses over an obstacle course in a hilarious and surprisingly nail-biting competition
August
· La Tomatina, Bunol, Spain – Grab as many tomatoes as you can, cram yourself among tens of thousands of fruit-wielding combatants, hurl and repeat
· St Dominic’s Fair, Gdánsk, Poland – For over seven centuries, traders, artisans, food stalls, entertainers and fun-seekers have packed Gdańsk’s streets and squares each summer
September
· Galway’s International Oyster & Seafood festival, Ireland – Slurp and savour at this gourmet event featuring cooking demos, music, a gala dinner and more
· Independence Day, Belize – Weeks of parties, parades, concerts and feasts, starting with commemorations of the Battle of St George’s Caye on September 10
October
· Exmoor Dark Skies Festival, Exmoor National Park, England – Discover the cosmos with astrophotography workshops, virtual reality exhibitions and guided night hikes during this two-day astronomy extravaganza
· Albuquerque International Balloon Festival, New Mexico, USA – Watch dozens of colourful balloons lift off amid rugged landscapes in mass ascent at sunrise.
November
· Räbechilbi Turnip Festival, Richterswil, Switzerland – Expect a spectacular parade of carved root vegetables and candlelit floats
· Iceland Airwaves, Reykjavík, Iceland – Catch a diverse range of cutting-edge Icelandic and international music at this now-famous four-day festival
December
· International Festival of the Sahara, Douz, Tunisia – Desert people gather at the ‘gateway to the Sahara’ to celebrate their heritage through traditional music, dance and sports
· Monarch Butterflies, Michoacán, Mexico – The oyamel fir trees of central Mexico are cloaked in orange as millions of monarch butterflies roost over winter – an extraordinary spectacle
Lonely Planet’s Chris Zeiher said: “This is the second edition of this hugely popular book, with new locations and updated information. It’s as much about the best time to travel as it is about the why and the how. A great way to help start planning your next trip and learn more about the destination.”
Lonely Planet’s Where to Go When is priced £24.99
