10 Most Fascinating Flower Festivals in the World

Flower festivals are celebrated almost every year around the globe, showcasing the beauty of nature and incorporating several aspects of entertainment. Celebrating natural beauty and local cultures, these events provide an unforgettable experience to the visitors. Here we present the most fascinating, the 10 best Flower Festivals in the World.

10. Skagit Valley Tulip Festival

This festival is organized annually in Skagit Valley in Washington through the entire month of April. Inaugurated in 1984, the event essentially involves guided tours to the beautiful tulip gardensscattered across the valley and helps to get a closer look at the agriculture in the region. It is a celebration of spring and the beauty of nature.

9. Battaglia di Fiori, Ventimiglia

Held once every two years in the Italian town of Ventimiglia, La Battaglia dei Fiori or the Battle of Flowers is an extravagant festival that pleases all senses of the spectators. The two day event features two parades; the introduction parade in the first night which is immersed in music, dance and fireworks and the main float parade next day, which eventually turns into a flower-pelting battle between one and everyone.

8. Batalla de Flores

This amazing festival is celebrated to mark the end of July Festival in the Spanish city of Valencia. It takes place on the final Sunday of the month. The prominent feature of the event is the parade along the Paseo de la Alameda, featuring beautiful floats and traditionally dressed young women. The crowds pelt flowers on the parading people and the women defend themselves with tennis rackets, making the event merrier.

7. Festival of the Flowers, Medellin

The Feria de Las Flores or Flower Festival, hosted by the city of Medellin, is one of the top flower festivals in the world. It was first conducted in 1957 to celebrate Virgin Mary Day, and has continued regularly. The iconic event of the festival is the Silleteros Parade, during which people carry elaborate flower arrangements on their backs. It marks the end of slavery and a period when slaves used to carry their masters on their backs. Various other events are part of the festival, including the International Pageant of the Flowers, automobiles parade and Orchids exposition.

6. Canadian Tulip Festival

Regarded as the largest tulip festival in the world, the Canadian Tulip Festival is held in May every year in the capital city of Ottawa. It was started in 1953, co-organized by photographer Malak Karsh. Its foundation was laid with the presentation of 100,000 tulip bulbs from Princess Juliana of the Netherlands to Ottawa, in thanks for protecting the exiled Dutch royal family during World War II. Large displays of Tulips are set up in Commissioners Park and along the Rideau Canal during the festival, which also features speeches, music concerts and cuisine exhibitions. The festival attracts more than half a million visitors each year.

5. Rose Parade

The Rose Parade, held every year in Pasadena, California, is one of the most famous flower festivals in the world and takes up the fifth position in this list. It was begun on the New Year Day of 1890. Thousands of people throng the streets to watch the flamboyant parade, filled with floats of roses. Music shows and various contests are part of the festival, so is the Rose Bowl, one of the most famous football games in America.

4. Chiang Mai Flower Festivals

Hosted by the Chiang Mai town in Thailand in the first weekend in February, the Chiang Mai Festival is one of the colorful celebrations across the globe. The festival is known for the emphasis on of the Damask Rose, a variety of rose native to the city, but also features numerous species of orchids, chrysanthemums and other flowers. The Flower Parade consisting of floats, traditional dance and music is the highlight of the festival.

3. Genzano Infiorata Flower Festival

Conducted in June in the Italian town of Genzano di Roma, this flower festivals has a long history, having first took place in 1778. It is celebrated in association with the Corpus Christi feast, and during the three day event, the principal street of the town, Via Belardi, will be covered with intricate flower carpets designed upon a specific theme chosen by the residents. Hundreds of thousands of flowers adorn the street, in various designs including religious images and artworks. The procession to the Church of Santa Maria della Cima and children’s trampling of the carpet in the end of the festival are delightful features of the event.

2. Flower Carpet, Brussels, Belgium

As indicated by its name, the Flower Carpet mainly involves the formation of just that; only with a few hundred thousand specimens of Begonias. The Grand Place in Brussels is covered with a carpet of Begonias, with the design centered on a specific theme. The process is carried out painstakingly by hundreds of volunteers, in the supervision of Tapis de Fleurs, an NPO. The first carpet was made in 1971, and it has been a regular event since 1986. It takes place in August in every two years and lasts four days.

1. Festa da Flor, Madeira, Portugal

Conducted in spring every year in the city of Funchal, the Madeira Flower Festivals is a celebration unlike any other. Even though the centre of attraction is the abundance of flowers, the festival is also an extravaganza of music, cuisine, arts et al. The parades that pass through the city in the festival days are a scene to behold. It is also an occasion to understand the Portuguese culture in more detail. Another notable feature is the Wall of Hope; a wall adorned by children with beautiful flowers to symbolize the hope for a peaceful world.