welcome to mojo travels and today we'll be counting down our picks for the top 10 most
incredible winter festivals around the world are you a fan of our videos be sure to subscribe to
mojo travels and ring the bell to be notified about our latest videos for this list we're
looking at all the most interesting celebrations that happen during the wide expanse of wintertime
number 10 reykjavik winter lights festival iceland each year in early february people
flock to reykjavik iceland's capital city to experience the winter lights festival
deep in the icelandic winter at this time of year the days are still quite short though the
shortest days occur in december so it makes sense that people want to bring a little more light
into their lives across multiple days at the beginning of the month reykjavik is illuminated
by many bright installations with stunning lights visible across the city the celebration is joined
by many organizations and groups bringing together all aspects of icelandic life in a wonderful
togetherness it celebrates the lengthening of the days as the country heads towards long summer
sunshine number nine sapporo snow festival japan blue japan is a generally warm country its second
largest main island hokkaido sees plenty of snow and has long been a popular winter destination
each february hokkaido's capital city sapporo holds this snow festival which traditionally plays
host to vast elaborate snow and ice sculptures as well as lots of light displays entire buildings
and shrines can be erected out of the snow here making the festival extremely popular
with tourists from both within japan and elsewhere there aren't many places in the world where so
much snow can be relied upon to provide intricate structures like this or that have such good
transport links to make them easy to visit which is why the sapporo snow festival is so unique it
lasts for an entire week and primarily happens in odori park though you can see the sculptures in
some other parts of the city as well number eight guy fawkes night uk also commonly known as bonfire
night the 5th of november each year in the uk has some interestingly macabre roots the highlight
of the festivities are the fireworks contentious as they may be they light up the sky usually for
many days around the fifth as different people hold their celebrations on different evenings
it commemorates the unsuccessful attack on king james the first in the notorious gunpowder plot
in which barrels of gunpowder were set to be used to blow up the houses of parliament
with the king inside in 1605. bonfires were lit up and down the country at the time to celebrate the
news that the attempt had failed the most famous conspirator was of course guy fawkes effigies of
whom are still burned at some celebrations it's a grisly night of fun number seven las fias spain
coming in mid-march las fires de valencia is one of the most temperate winter festivals out there
but there are plenty of places in the world where winter time doesn't automatically mean snow and
cold weather las fias is unique to valencia and is one of the most culturally significant events in
the spanish calendar with many groups of dedicated volunteers working year round to fundraise for the
next festival all to ensure that each is more spectacular than the last it comes originally
from a tradition celebrating the beginning of spring but has morphed over the years to involve
burning ninjas these ninjas are satirical dolls of celebrities and politicians which are burned
in a massive display after appearing in a parade the party goes on for days and you'll definitely
want to stick around until the end so you can see the bonfires number six christmas possibly
the most widely celebrated holiday in the world there are still many traditional celebrations of
christmas time that bring magic to the festive season though celebrating the birth of jesus
christ late december festivities also come from other celebrations surrounding the winter solstice
christmas is santa's time to bring joy and a season of merriment and food that is celebrated
in various ways generally throughout north america and europe some traditional christmas
dinner foods include not only turkey but also goose once eaten in britain and still in germany
christmas tamales in mexico oysters in france and even carp in austria there are also traditional
christmas markets throughout europe and many still attend midnight mass on christmas eve
number five mardi gras usa fat tuesday lands in february or march each year and is traditionally
a celebration before the period of lent begins in the christian calendar since lent is the period
where you cut back on something or fast completely if you're particularly devout it's a time for some
to go all out particularly so in louisiana and nowhere celebrates this now mostly non-religious
holiday better than mardi gras in new orleans which annually hosts one of the biggest parties
in north america he will make the pilgrimage to new orleans for the festivities every single year
enjoying the riotous parties and hedonism not to mention trying to collect as many beads as
possible despite its sometimes r-rated reputation however there are activities for people of all
ages from kid-friendly parties and the famous parade with its bright colorful floats number
four diwali india a festival of lights diwali is held each year during the hindu mont kartika which
means it usually lands in october or november it originates from south asia specifically india but
is celebrated throughout the sub-continent and also in countries with large populations of south
asians because diwali is celebrated by hindus jains and sikhs it celebrates slightly different
things and different deities some places where ship lakshmi for instance and others carly but
it's also associated with rama returning home with his new wife there are feasts and festivities and
lots of lights candles and illumination as well as plenty of firework displays some traditional
dishes popular for the occasion include sweet meats like meathai as well as many lentil dishes
and countless curries number three the carnival of venice italy people flock to northern italy to see
the vivid and iconic venetian masks and costumes during the carnival de venezia like mardi gras
it's also generally used to mark the beginning of lens but has a very unique place in venetian
culture celebrating a military victory all the way back in 1162 at its heart it's a celebration of
all things venice in this most beautiful city and really if you visit venice at any time of
year you're still going to see lots of masks and costume performers there are events during the
carnival to teach tourists how to make their own mask to really get hands-on with the festivities
perhaps the highlight of the carnival is the many boat parades where people gather
along the bridges and shores to watch decorated boats and gondolas sail by at all times of day
number two rio de janeiro carnival brazil it's not only the biggest carnival in brazil or the biggest
carnival in the americas no rio's carnival is the biggest anywhere in the entire world
that's why it's an absolutely unmissable part of the winter calendar yet again we have a big
holiday generally marking the days before lens begins but the carnival has taken on a life of its
own it's world renowned for its flamboyance and spectacle lasting for five days until it finally
wraps up on ash wednesday each year this means that it also falls in late february or early march
it wasn't always tangentially christian either having its roots in roman celebrations
of hedonistic greek gods it famously features parade floats elaborate costumes and some of the
best music and dancing anywhere on earth number one harbin international ice and snow festival
even more spectacular than the sapporo snow festival the harbin international ice and
snow sculpture festival happens each january in the chinese province of helium zhang which is
china's northernmost region it's regarded as the biggest snow and ice sculpture festival anywhere
in the world with some absolutely incredible ice sculptures all illuminated with elaborate lights
that draw almost 20 million guests each year it's been held since 1963 offering icy renditions of
the world's most famous landmarks which can include the taj mahal the roman coliseum
and the great sphinx and the best part is it's different every time which is a perfect excuse
for its fans to go as often as they can it's like walking through a theme park made entirely of ice
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