The answer might surprise you! As for the biggest festival in Europe, the title of the top spot is definitely taken by the Sziget festival in Hungary. The festival is held along the Danube riverbank and usually involves two weeks of music, dance, art, food and other activities. Over two million people attend this annual event.
Notting Hill Carnival
The Notting Hill Carnival is a huge annual event that has been celebrated for over 50 years! The Notting Hill Carnival is one of the most famous street festivals in England and is held in the West London neighborhood of Notting Hill. The Notting Hill Carnival is held over a weekend, two weeks before the end of August. The Notting Hill Carnival is a great way to get your groove on and celebrate your culture!
Southbank Carnival
The biggest festival in Europe is Carnival de São Sebastião held in Portugal. Every year thousands of people gather to dance and watch street parades in the streets of the city of São Sebastião. The highlight of the event is the raising of the giant gaily-colored parade float called the Caraçaras.
Bastille Day
France’s national holiday, Bastille Day, is celebrated on the 14th of July every year with great pomp and circumstance! People gather at the Eiffel Tower to watch the traditional fireworks and watch the parade of soldiers down the Champs-Élysées. Despite the crowds, the atmosphere is festive, and you’ll be able to enjoy the parade no matter where you are in Paris.
Rio Carnival
The Carnival of Rio holds the title of the biggest festival in the world, with over one million visitors each year. It happens in the first week of February and includes parades, music, dancing, and food. The Rio Carnival is celebrated in the city and in the surrounding countryside.
Carnival of Venice
Venice is the European capital of the Carnival! There are more than 30 groups parading through the city, and around 40 gondolas are involved in the actual parade. But the Carnival is not limited to Venice. Other cities in Italy host their own annual Carnival as well, as does France, Portugal and Spain.
Mardi Gras
Mardi Gras is celebrated all over the world. In France, Carnival is celebrated in cities like Paris, Toulouse, Bordeaux and Lyon. In Italy, Venice, Rome and Sicily have annual Carnival celebrations. In Spain, Carnival is celebrated in Madrid and Barcelona. America has its own traditions for Carnival like Carnival in Rio de Janeiro, Carnival in New Orleans and Carnival in Puerto Rico.
Festa di San Antonio
Of course, the answer to this question is easy: Assisi! Every October, this town in Tuscany celebrates the saint who is responsible for the town’s fame. In 1968, St. Francis of Assisi made a pilgrimage to the town after seeing a vision of the Madonna in a dream. The townspeople quickly adopted the new holiday, and the Festa di San Antonio has been celebrated every year since.
Conclusion
There are several contenders for the title of the biggest festival in Europe, but the answer is almost certainly going to be the Sziget Festival in Hungary. This four-day music festival has hosted around 100,000 attendees each year since 1991, which is enough to make it the biggest festival in Europe. The festival was started by Hungarian businessman Endre Bodnár, who wanted to bring a similar vibe to the Budapest music scene as the Sziget Isle festival in the city’s lake.
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