New Orleans
Often heralded as the ‘birthplace of Jazz’, music and New Orleans go hand in hand. The New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival takes place during late April – early May and is one of the world’s largest jazz festivals, featuring unmissable live music, food, arts and culture from Louisiana and worldwide. In 2023, this festival had 580 separate music acts and around 2,500 individual musicians performing on 12 stages for seven days!
It’s worth extending any stay just to soak up the sights and sounds of the Big Easy. For music lovers a trip to The New Orleans Jazz Museum is a must, as is a few songs in any of the best jazz bars: Preservation Hall, The Spotted Cat, Snug Harbor, the Jazz Playhouse at the Royal Sonesta and Fritzel’s European Jazz Club (the oldest operating jazz club in New Orleans!)
Belgium
Tomorrowland, held outside Antwerp each July, is one of the world’s most notable global music festivals, with 400,000 ‘People of Tomorrow’ from over 200 countries gathering to celebrate the music community. This festival sells out in minutes, with past headliners including David Guetta, Alesso and Armin van Buuren. As it stretches across two weekends, there’s plenty of time for sightseeing!
So why not make a stop at Leuven afterwards? Quieter than Ghent or Bruges, this city itself could be classed as a hidden gem. Discover The Oude Market, nicknamed the ‘longest bar in the world’, for local fare and great Belgian beer. See the city’s two unique sets of Béguinages (alms-houses) the ‘Grand’ Béguinage and the smaller Klein Begijnhof, both of which are worth a visit; as are the ‘Snow Whites’ of Leuven, the last remaining books that survived a WWI fire now on display at the Leuven University Library.
Sometimes you just want a great atmosphere:
Coachella, California, April - a multi-genre festival renowned as one of the largest in the world.
Lollapalooza, Chicago, August – a multi-day extravaganza of alternative, punk, and rock music.
Bonnaroo, Tennessee, June – for a laid-back atmosphere and unforgettable performances.
The Osheaga Festival, Montreal, August - Canada's largest arts and music festival.
Austin City Limits, Texas, October - the best in rock, country, folk, and everything in between.
Asuncionico, Paraguay, March – three days of world-class rock, pop and EDM music from national and international acts.