Groundbreaking art-scapades, centuries-old sports matches and alternatives to the mainstream music festivals – editors Liz Weselby and Jane Michael have compiled the definitive calendar of 35 events and festivals happening in 30 LUXE destinations throughout 2019. Some you’ll have heard of, some you might not; all are worth getting on a plane for (just don’t forget to pack your LUXE guide when you do). Ready, set, go!
No time to scroll through all 35 events right now? Download the FREE PDF guide to save for later.
January
Bangkok
Launched October 2018, Bangkok’s first-ever Art Biennale (running until 3 Feb) has transformed the city into one huge art gallery with works by 75 artists, ranging from superstars like Yayoi Kusama, Marina Abramovic, Jean Michel Basquiat, and Choi Jeong Hwa to local hero Wisut Ponnimit. And very much representing the ancient-meets-avant-garde city itself, the hosting venues span old and new, from temples and historic landmarks to shopping malls and luxury hotels.
Madrid
Stretch pants at the ready for the 19-day gourmet extravaganza that is Gastrofestival (26 Jan-10 Feb). Embraced by Madrid’s restaurants, shops, bars, museums and markets, this diverse celebration of the city’s food scene features special menus by the city’s starriest chefs and home-cooking heroines along with workshops, culinary walking tours and food-related exhibitions held in the city’s major museums. We promise you won’t leave hungry.
Los Angeles
January is a month of literal and visual feasting in LA. First up is the annual two-week foodie fest, dineLA (11-25 Jan) where you can snag prix-fixe lunch and dinner menus at some of the city’s starriest eateries. Ahead of the first edition of Frieze LA in Feb is the LA Art Show (23-27 Jan); worth hopping on a plane for as it’s the largest, and arguably most diverse fair of modern and contemporary art in the US and a perfect opp to ogle art and the celeb bubble that surrounds it. Vernissage is 23 Jan. Kicking off 31 Jan, Photo LA brings together 10,000 collectors and shutterbugs for three days of visual stimulation.
Beijing
Forget the hordes of Harbin and instead make the 80 km outside of Beijing trek to Longqing Gorge, home to the magical Ice & Snow Festival (Jan-Feb). The dramatic mountainous setting is transformed into an icy kingdom by 400 massive ice sculptures depicting temples, palaces and castles, as well as animals, mythological creatures, natural forms, zodiac signs, lanterns and snowflakes… you name it, they carve it.
Singapore
Two hundred years after Sir Stamford Raffles landed on the swamp-festered island that would become Singapore, the Little Red Dot marks the anniversary with a year-long program of Bicentennial events and exhibitions. Kicking off the happenings are the illuminating i Light Singapore feat. installations dotted around the Civic District, Fort Canning Park, Marina Bay and the River, and the National Gallery’s urban art event Light to Night Festival (both 28 Jan-24 Feb). Later in the year, Fort Canning will host an interactive program of films and performances reflecting the city-state’s 700-year history (Jun-Sep)
No time to scroll through all 35 events right now? Download the FREE PDF guide to save for later.
February
Berlin
Contemporary aesthetics would not be what they are without Bauhaus, and 2019 marks 100 years since the hugely influential school of art, architecture and design was founded. Berlin is commemorating the anniversary with Bauhaus Centenary: 100 Years of Rethinking the World – a year-long program of events and exhibitions across several groundbreaking venues.
As one might expect from the edgiest of capitals, the Berlinale Independent Film Festival (7-17 Feb) has an avant-garde, low-fi vibe oft with a more esoteric line up to match. While it lacks the glamour of Venice or Cannes, the program of films and workshops provide stimulus for eyes and mind; this year’s focus is on women filmmakers between 1968 and 1999.
Sydney
The Emerald City turns a shade of pink on 15th Feb when Mardi Gras struts into town for two weeks of LGBTQI arts, performance, sports, talks, workshops and parties culminating in the epic Pride parade on Sat 2nd March – hands down the most fabulous party of the year.
No time to scroll through all 35 events right now? Download the FREE PDF guide to save for later.
March
Shanghai
Interior design and lifestyle steal the spotlight at China’s leading annual paean to form and function: Design Shanghai (6-9 Mar). More than 300 local and global leading design talents congregate to showcase works that are contemporary, classic and collectable, while this year’s speaker panel includes Tord Boontje, Kelly Hoppen and Naoto Fukasawa. An offshoot of the main event, Design Shanghai in the City sees a clutch of buzzy events around town, including design tours exploring showrooms, museums and architecture.
Hong Kong
It began with juggernaut Art Basel and Hong Kong is now host to a show-stopping array of arty events throughout March. Headliners include Basel (27-31 Mar; snap up a private invitation for 27-28 to avoid the hordes) and Art Central (also 27-31 Mar; VIP preview is 26 Mar) repping Asia’s next-gen of cutting-edge talents, with supporting acts the Asia Contemporary Art Show (29 Mar-1 Apr), Art Gallery Night at the historic Pedder Building and South Island Art Day in gritty, industrial-creative hood Wong Chuk Hang. Keep peepers peeled for a neighbourhood takeover by grassroots street-art collective HK Walls.
Melbourne
The Melbourne International Comedy Festival (27 Mar-27 Apr) brings 100+ of the world’s funniest people to town for four weeks of side-splitting stand-up, sketches and live theatre performed in venues across the city. Most shows are at night, leaving the days free to graze, caffeinate and shop your way around Australia’s cultural capital.
Paris
Previously held in September Goût de France (21-24 Mar, formerly known as Fête de la gastronomie), is a three-day smorgasbord of events, including cooking demos by celeb chefs, recipe competitions and special tasting menus at top restaurants, plus numerous one-off, belt-busting pop-ups at cultural centres across Paris. Thighs be damned!
Bali
The onetime cultural, artistic and spiritual heart of Bali, Ubud has been described as one of the world’s most magical destinations. Nowadays you’re as likely to be jostling with unwashed backpackers and overtanned villa stayers as you seek out wholesome rejuvenation, but this verdant enclave maintains many of its charms, not least during the Bali Spirit Festival (24-31 Mar) when yoga, wellness, music and dance come together for a soulful week of mind and body expansion. Ohm…
No time to scroll through all 35 events right now? Download the FREE PDF guide to save for later.
April
Milan
Any style queen worth their Armani knows that fashion week aside, Salon del Mobile (9-14 April) is Milan’s supremo social affair when more than 2,000 international exhibitors, design buffs and buyers descend for the world’s largest design fair. The city-wide spectacle of art, fashion and architecture is matched with a showcase of some 1,000 events.
Seoul
Nothing says spring quite like Sakura and while Japan has long topped the travel bucket list with its blooming beautiful blossoms in Kyoto, Seoul is also worthy of an airline ticket: not a day goes by in April without some form of outdoor celebration of the budding flowers. Beeline for Yeouido Park, Samcheong Park – the city’s oldest patch of green perched above Bukchon Hanok Village – and the area around Walkerhill. If you don’t mind the crowds, hotfoot it to Songpa district’s Seokchon Lake where on the ‘best’ weekend in April (tba) there’s a festival featuring classical music, pop concerts, dance performances, contemporary art exhibits and games, plus fireworks at night. Accommodation in Seoul during April can be scarcer than hen’s teeth so book ahead.
No time to scroll through all 35 events right now? Download the FREE PDF guide to save for later.
May
Beijing
Experience one of the world’s great wonders via two of the world’s most memorable events. Considered one of the world’s most challenging races, the Huangyaguan Great Wall Marathon (18 May) is host to 2,500 runners from more than 50 countries. While the undulating, stony trail is punishing, the awe-inspiring vistas promise to distract from the pain. Combine your run with a rave at the Great Wall Music Festival, (also 18-19 May) where superstar DJs spin tunes from atop the wall itself. As with most other festivals, accommodation options are pretty rustic, so be sure to book the VIP ticket option for a guaranteed bed for the night and fast-track entry.
Venice
Alas, anything but serene during the summer tourist invasion, La Serenissima is nonetheless the host to the world’s glitteriest art biennale (11 May-24 Nov), which this year sees Ralph Rugoff, director of London’s Hayward Gallery curate the event under the theme ‘May You Live in Interesting Times’. Time your visit to Venice Biennale right (tip: pop over the for the opening but return for a proper view Oct-Nov when Tonya tourist and pals have flocked to warmer climes), and you’ve got a better chance of getting personal with envelope-pushing entries by 50+ countries.
London
It’s no great secret that London’s museums are among the best in the world (and they’re free!), and culture hounds and night owls can see them from a different perspective at the spring instalment of Museums at Night (15-18 May, TBC). Get exclusive behind-the-scenes access, join expert-led talks, events and see one-off exhibitions bringing the city’s rich, diverse history to life.
Florence
Should you ever need a reason to visit Flo, May welcomes the world’s oldest music festival Firenze Maggio Musicale Fiorentino (4 May-26 Jun), and a prestigious lineup of international musicians and opera singers, with performances held in the city’s strikingly modern Edition Teatro del Maggio. Time your visit for June and you’ll also catch the championship of Florentine football Calcio Storico, (June) a brutal combination of rugby, soccer and boxing dating back to the C.16th. Finals take place on 24 June, Florence’s patron saint day (Saint John the Baptist).
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June
New York
June is Gay Pride month in NYC, and 2019 is all the more significant as Pride celebrates its 50th anniversary – and commemorates 50 years since the Stonewall uprising. The eclectic offering of LGBTQIA+ screenings, parties, fundraisers, performances and events, culminates in the fabulous Gay Pride March on 1st July. Shimmy along for a definitive New York experience.
Singapore
Oft considered the Oscars for restaurateurs, the glitzy World’s 50 Best Restaurants rolls into Singapore for its Asian debut. Gallivanting gourmands can snap up tickets to the lavish gala dinner, and take advantage of the event’s program of special menus and talks, plus of course, the numerous eating opps afforded by the city’s amazing food scene.
No time to scroll through all 35 events right now? Download the FREE PDF guide to save for later.
July
London
Bright whites and sporting prowess aside, Wimbledon (1-14 July) is a highlight of the British summer social season; one infused with old-school etiquette and a spectator list that attracts a high celeb-media-royalty count you’d only ever find in the UK. Just as British is the democratic ballot of tickets; chances are if you’ve missed the deadline, but fret not as there are numerous VIP options available.
Tokyo
Backdropped by the Naeba Mountains, Fuji Rock (26-28 July TBC) is Asia’s biggest, best and quite possibly the cleanest festival you’ll ever attend. Part Glastonbury, part Coachella but with a distinctly Japanese vibe (side attractions include mountain walks and hot springs) the epic weekender has attracted headliners such as Radiohead, Bjork, Bob Dylan and Skrillex in recent years. Tickets go on sale in April.
No time to scroll through all 35 events right now? Download the FREE PDF guide to save for later.
August
London
If you find Glasto too mainstream and Burning Man too pretentious, Wilderness (1st-4th Aug) might just be the ticket. Okay, so it’s not exactly London, but the bucolic fields of Cornbury, Oxfordshire are but a Welly toss from the Old Smoke. Roll up to the prettiest of countryside for a four-day immersion in music, spoken word and artful celebration that’s equal parts hedonistic and wholesome, inclusive and quintessentially, wonderfully English.
Amsterdam
Canals and classical music come together for the inimitable Grachtenfestival, (10-18 Aug) during which you’ll enjoy one of dozens of performances from barges on, and venues around the city’s labyrinthian waterways. A highlight of the festival is the free Prinsengracht Concert performed on the pontoon outside LUXE fave the Pulitzer Hotel – though to truly enjoy the concert, you’re best off pulling up in a boat.
Chicago
The Windy City truly comes into its own during the summer and the season is jam-packed with music and arts events and performances. Although known as the home of the Blues and deep house, Chicago has a world-class jazz scene, and there’s no better time to sample it than the annual Jazz Festival (23 Aug-1 Sep) which spotlights legends both local and national. The city’s excellent Museum of Contemporary Art (MCA) also hosts free jam sessions on its garden terrace every Tuesday during Aug-Sep.
No time to scroll through all 35 events right now? Download the FREE PDF guide to save for later.
September
Paris
The French set pace in style and attitude on so many matters, and no better example of this is ‘la rentrée’, the period in September when Parisians return from their summer escapades and the city perks up with a plethora of cultural events, including new seasons at the ballet and opera and smash art exhibitions at The Pompidou, Louvre et al. Ella Fitzgerald might have loved Paris in the springtime, but we always fall for autumn.
Berlin
More than just a trade fair, Berlin Art Week (11-15 Sep) is embraced by artists, gallerists and contemporary institutions for a week-long celebration of creating, discussing and exhibiting art. The main event spans two massive hangars at Tempelhof Airport, with an array of venues both commercial and cultural participating. Get ART n’ about.
No time to scroll through all 35 events right now? Download the FREE PDF guide to save for later.
October
New York
Peer behind the keyholes of some of New York’s if not the world’s most iconic buildings at the annual New York Open House (19-20 Oct). Part of the worldwide OH movement, for one weekend only, 250+ of the city’s most famous, and clandestine buildings open up to the public. Highlights of previous years include the Grand Lodge of Masons in Flatiron and Jefferson Market Library, with new doors opening every autumn.
London
Repping the avant-garde end of the art spectrum, Frieze London (2-6 Oct) is one of the world’s most exciting and influential art events, attracting a fashiony crowd with contemporary works form 160+ galleries and thoughtful programming. See also siblings Frieze Los Angeles (14-17 Feb) and Frieze New York (1-5 May).
Bali
Ditch ol’ grump at the beach bar and indulge your love of the written word amid Bali’s verdant tropicana at the excellent Ubud Writers and Readers Festival (23-27 Oct). A wide range of authors, artists, performers, politicos and thinkers gather for a lively cross-cultural exchange of ideas and inspirations.
No time to scroll through all 35 events right now? Download the FREE PDF guide to save for later.
November
Dubai
As temperatures begin to dip after the scorching summer, so Dubai’s creative scene heats up. Befitting such a futuristic city, Dubai Design Week (dates TBC) is the largest creative gathering in the Middle East, bringing together architects and talents working in product, furniture, interior and graphic design. For six days, the city is overtaken by exhibits, workshops and talks about form and function.
Hong Kong
Emerging from the shadows of Hong Kong’s wham-glam art shows, the Hong Kong Literary Festival gets bigger and better each year, attracting upcoming, award-winning and news-headlining scribes from Hong Kong, Mainland China and the rest of the world. Last year’s extravaganza was held at heritage-arts compound Tai Kwun, and while deets have yet to be released for 2019, you can expect a stimulating program of talks, panel discussions and workshops.
No time to scroll through all 35 events right now? Download the FREE PDF guide to save for later.
December
Miami
Winter is hands-down the best time to visit Miami as balmier temps return and a whirlwind of parties and people blows on through till April. Kicking off the season is big gun Art Basel (5-9 Dec) and the wider Miami Art Week repping satellite shows, exhibits and events dotted along Miami Beach and Miami-Wynwood. Hands down the glammest week in the sparkliest of towns, it’s time to frock up and pARTy.
Siem Reap
For a bit of a jog quite like no other apply well in advance for the Angkor Wat Half Marathon (dates TBC, usually the first weekend in Dec). Pulling in-the-know sportos from around the region, the mostly flat route winds through the magnificent Angkor Temple Complex, and is quite simply astonishing. Better still, Siem Reap abounds with luxurious post-race R&R opportunity, so extend past the weekend and tie in with groundbreaking Angkor Photo Festival (dates TBC)
Bangkok
The fledgeling Asian equivalent of Burning Man, Wonderfruit (dates TBC) beckons an eclectic, globetrotting guestlist with its curated (and hush-hush) offering of music, art, food and wellness all with a sustainability bent, deep in the fields of Pattaya’s Siam Country Club. Should you fear it all going fruit salad while camping in the tropics, book a VIP glamping stay with Camp Kerala.
Whereever you’re headed in 2019, don’t forget to pack your copy of LUXE…
