January
Lille's big year has arrived! So what's the draw to 2004's European Capital of Culture? A stunning art nouveau swimming pool-turned-textile gallery, the reopened opera house (The Frankfurt Ballet arrives in April), a papier-mché giant parade along the Rriver Deule and a major Rubens exhibition at the Palais des Beaux Arts. Plus the best moules frîtes in France.
When and where: All year, Lille, France.
Further information: lille2004.com.
Coinciding with the first year of Paradiski - the new 25,000ha ski area fusing Les Arcs and the La Plagne - Snowbombing will see the boarding tricksters battle it out by day and join their fans to bar-hop by night.
When and where: January 24-31, Les Arcs 1800, France.
Further information: snowbombing.com.
February
In a place the Chinese know as the Old City of Nine Windings, blocks of ice are carved into birds, movie stars and mythological beasts. Similar efforts in Japan attract two million people to Sapporo's Odori Park (February 1-7).
When and where: January 15-February 29, Longqing Gorge, near Beijing, China.
Further information: travelchinaguide.com, global.city.sapporo.jp.
In the town of Viareggio, Tuscany, carnival is a chance to poke some fun at unpopular public figures. Satirical puppets can accommodate up to 10 men, and after months of preparation, the puppets are marched through the streets accompanied by 200 raucous, costumed locals. Other fantastic carnivals take place from February 21-24 in Rio de Janeiro, Salvador, Venice, Sitges, Barranquilla, Trinidad and New Orleans.
When and where: February 8, 15, 22, 24, 29, Viareggio, Italy.
Further information: viareggio.ilcarnevale.com.
Thailand's Rose of the North celebrates orchids, damask roses and chrysanthemums. Locals use them to construct storyboards of mythological and religious scenes, and parade them through the streets.
When and where: February 13-15, Chiang Mai, Thailand. Further information: tourismthailand.org.
March
Japanese cherry trees, azaleas and rhododendrons form the backdrop for the seven million bulbs that flower in spring at the Keukenhof gardens near Amsterdam.
When and where: March 25-May 20, Lisse, The Netherlands.
Further information: keukenhof.nl.
Time your city break to coincide with the spectacular festival of Las Fallas, when the town of Valencia is whipped into a fire-cracking frenzy. Hundreds of hours of communal effort go into producing 20ft-high papier-mché figures (ninots) stuffed with fireworks and set alight on the last night of the festival.
When and where: March 16-19, Valencia, Spain.
Further information: fallas.com.
Table mountain welcomes South Africa's hottest performing arts talent to the annual Cape Town Festival. Original music, performance, public art, comedy, spoken word and visual arts.
When and where: March 14-22, Cape Town, South Africa.
Further information: capetownfestival.co.za
April
The Catholic monarchs started the tradition of Easter processions in Andalucía to celebrate the end of 600 years of Muslim Moorish rule; 400 years on, thousands of pilgrims in nazareno garb (think pointy hoods) still carry heavy statues of the Virgin Mary through the streets of Moorish Gharnata and Ishbiliya (Granada and Seville) in processions punctuated by flamenco songs, and enactments of The Passion.
When and where: April 4-11, Seville and Granada, Spain.
Further information: andalusia.com.
The 35th annual New Orleans Jazz Fest pays tribute to 10 years of a democratic South Africa with 100 guest musicians from the republic. Music ranges from jazz, blues, R&B, gospel, cajun, zydeco, country, bluegrass and rock.
When and where: April 23-May 2, New Orleans, US.
Further information: nojazzfest.com.
May
Time a weekend break to visit the sherry town of Jerez de la Frontera during the Feria de Caballo (horse fair). The town is ablaze with flamenco-dressed ladies and bejewelled Arab stallions prancing through the streets. The amontillado and manzanilla are flowing, and the impromptu flamenco performances a sight to behold.
When and where: May 9-16, Jerez de la Frontera, Spain.
Further information: webjerez.com.
The World Championship BBQ-Cooking Conquest in Memphis attracts 90,000 people and awards $60,000 in prize money. The conquest is part of a larger festival called Memphis in May, which brings world-class performing artists and musicians to the Southern Belle. When and where:
April 30-May 2 (music festival), May 7-8 (family fest), May 13-15 (BBQ Conquest), May 29-30 (food fest), Memphis, US.
Further information: memphisinmay.org.
June
At the height of the Inca civilisation, vassals made the long journey to Cusco once a year at the winter solstice to honour Inti Raymi, god of the sun. Today, there are no human sacrifices, but the feasting, drinking and dancing still goes on in the plain at the foot of the fortress city of Sachsayhuaman, Cusco.
When and where: June 24, Cusco, Peru.
Further information: peru.org.pe.
July
With Ryanair now flying to Palermo, and British Airways and Air Malta starting flights to Catania in May, Sicily should see a big increase in UK visitors, nowhere more so than the seaside resort of Taormina. Womad's circus comes to town this summer, welcoming Amjad Ali Khan, Maceo Parker and African blues master Tinariwen.
When and where: July 1-3, Taormina, Sicily.
Further information: womad.org.
The Montreux Jazz Festival welcomes top jazz and blues musicians on the eastern shore of Lake Geneva. A concurrent "off" festival attracts up-and-coming artists. The programme is announced in April, but going by last year's headliners (João Gilberto, Jamiroquai, Poncho Sanchez and Chico Cesar), it is sure to be first rate.
When and where: July 2-17, Lake Geneva, Switzerland.
Further information: montreuxjazz.com.
An alfresco opera festival takes place every summer on Lake Constance in Austria. This year, for the second year running, West Side Story will be performed on the floating stage while the traditional opera house of Bregenz hosts two little-known one-act Kurt Weill operas: the Protagonist and Royal Palace.
When and where: July 21-August 22, Bregenz, Austria.
Further information: bregenzerfestspiele.com.
August
Every summer during Les Medievales, a medieval world of troubadours, knights, acrobats and damsels is recreated inside the city walls of the fairy-tale town of Carcassonne.
When and where: Three weeks in August, Carcassonne, France.
Further information: carcassonne-tourisme.com.
Bilbao hosts Aste Nagusia (Big Week) with nightly firework displays, best viewed from the city's ornamental bridges. A former quarry-turned-amphitheatre and a massive stage in the Plaza Nueva hold free concerts.
When and where: August 14-20 or 21-29 (to be confirmed this month), Bilbao, Spain.
Further information: bilbao.net.
September
Where the Atlantic and Indian oceans meet at Hermanus on South Africa's Western Cape, the waters jump with southern right whales and their babies. To coincide with their arrival, a host of cultural events is organised. Be up with the dawn, when the whales come close to shore, then enjoy music, theatre, tours of artists' studios and nature walks.
When and where: September 24-October 3, Hermanus, South Africa.
Further information: whalefestival.co.za.
Munich hosts the biggest public festival in the world, and it's all about beer. Six million people gulp down litres of German lager. The breweries open the proceedings with a procession of beer barrels pulled by dray horses. Folk groups perform throughout the festival. Drinking starts at 10am.
When and where: September 18-October 3, Munich, Germany.
Further information: oktoberfest.de.
October
Love langoustine? Potty about prawns? Look no further than Galicia in northern Spain, where O Grove Seafood Festival involves 10 days of feasting. There are seafood competitions, tastings and mini-festivals devoted to the turbot (rodaballo) and the mussel.
When and where: October 1-7, O Grove, Spain.
Further information: galinor.es/ogrove.
The Slow Food movement, pioneered by Italian gastronome Carlo Petrini, is an effort to conserve and promote "real" food around the world. The Slow Food Hall of Taste in Turin is its flagship event. Wine cellars offer tastings, while theme halls are given over to cheese, cured meat and confectionery. If you care about food, it's the place to be.
When and where: October 21-25, Turin, Italy.
Further information: slowfood.com.
November
If planning a pre-Christmas shopping trip to New York, then make it coincide with the Thanksgiving Parade. Featuring clowns, floats, marching bands and celebrities by the dozen, the real stars of the show are "falloons"- float/balloon hybrids in the shape of, among others, the Pink Panther, Woody Woodpecker and Spiderman. The parade route covers 30 blocks, from 77th to 34th streets.
When and where: November 25, New York City.
Further information: macysparade.com.
December
Bay Street, Nassau, in the Bahamas, vibrates to the beat of the goatskin drum during the annual Junkanoo parades - noisy, vibrant revelries lasting all night from 1am-10am and made up of rival Junkanoo groups who compete to win prizes for the best costumed parade.
When and where: December 26-27, January 1-2, Nassau, The Bahamas.
Further information: bahamas.com.
Europe's Christmas markets is still going strong. Hundreds of stalls sell traditional wooden toys and handmade Christmas tree decorations. Choral concerts and carillon displays enliven proceedings, along with steaming vats of glühwein.
When and where: Throughout December in Rouen, Amiens, Lyon, Strasbourg (France); Vienna (Austria); Frankfurt, Trier, Stuttgart, Munich, Nuremberg (Germany).
Further information:whatsonwhen.com/pages/christmas.jml.
Glastonbury may seem a long way off for those of us floundering in the depths of winter, but in Australia, it's high summer and high time for outdoor festivals. At the Falls Festival, held close to Erskine waterfall in the rainforest of Otway in Victoria, the likes of Spearhead, Turin Brakes and Groove Armada headlined last year. Festival-goers bring their tents and their hedonism for a three-day musical celebration in the sun.
When and where: December 30-January 1, Otway, Australia.
Further information: fallsfestival.com.
Nights at the opera
June 11-27
Aldeburgh festival
Highlights include the world premiere of Harrison Birtwistle's new stage work and concert performances of Bluebeard's Castle with John Tomlinson. Step out from concerts straight to the beach, eat oysters, swim off the chilly Suffolk coast.
June 26-July 31
Munich opera festival
The Bayerische Staatsoper's annual festival sees the staging of a staggering 22 productions over the course of the month. Among them is a new production of Die Meistersinger (which was written for this very theatre). In spare moments, wander through the English Garden and enjoy the paintings of the Blue Rider school in the Lenbach House.
July 1- August 24
Glimmerglass Opera
In the impressive setting of rural upstate New York, see Gilbert and Sullivan's Patience, Puccini's La Fanciulla del West and the US premiere of Richard Rodney Bennett's dramatic story of murder, ghosts and the plague, The Mines of Sulphur.
July 24-August 31
Salzburg festival
The grand-daddy of all smart music festivals, founded by Richard Strauss himself. New productions of Così Fan Tutte, and Der Rosenkavalier plus more orchestral and chamber music that any lederhosen-sporting music-lover could wish for.
July 25-August 28
Bayreuth
For total immersion in Wagner, there's only one place to do it. Be warned: you may have to kill for tickets...
July-August (exact dates not confirmed)
Aix en Provence festival
In this most charming of Provençal towns, a opera festival themed around love: La Traviata; Prokofiev's The Love for Three Oranges; Handel's Hercules, plus a new commission from Toshio Hosokawa. Catch the talented young Brit conductor Daniel Harding - he hardly ever performs in the UK.
Charlotte Higgins
Stand and admire
February 11- May 23
El Greco, National Gallery, London
It seems bizarre for one of the greatest artists of all time, but this is the first major British exhibition devoted to El Greco. Generations of artists, including Goya and Picasso, have revered him, but the British have always had their doubts: too gloomy, too peculiar, not an ounce of jolly flesh on any of the naked ladies.
The exhibition includes many treasures which have never before left Spain, from his earliest known icon, painted for and still owned by the cathedral on the Greek island of Siros, to the last contorted image of the Adoration of the Shepherds that he made to hang over his own tomb in Toledo.
From February 14
Moderna Museet, Sweden
The Swedish national museum of modern art reopens in Stockholm on Valentine's Day. When Lars Nittve, founding director of Tate Modern, left within a year of the opening, it looked like the first sign of trouble at one of the world's most successful new museums. He left to become director at Stockholm, but one of the world's greatest displays of rising damp meant that rebuilding work lasted a year longer than planned.
His former boss, Sir Nicholas Serota, will certainly be on the guest list for the keenly awaited reopening. Nittve's mission statement is to make the museum 'one of the leading institutions in its field'.
March 12-June 7
Dieter Roth exhibition, MOMA, New York
The great MoMA is still in temporary exile across the Hudson at Queens (a space which some, blasphemously, like better than its swish downtown Manhattan home, where the builders are still at work). Roth Time will be the first major international exhibition on the work of the Swiss artist Dieter Roth, one of the most influential post-war artists, since his death six years ago. Graphic works, paintings, and sculptures - some made, Swiss-ly, of chocolate and cheese.
While the row rumbles on forever about the Parthenon sculptures in London, a major solo exhibition of Moore's work is being mounted at the National Gallery of Greece during the Olympic Games, at the request of the Greek government. It forms part of the British Council's international exhibitions programme.
October
São Paulo Biennale, Brazil
Mike Nelson has been selected to represent Britain. Curated by Alfons Hug, this is a growing international event regarded as more fun than the grander and more famous Venice version.
Maev Kennedy
Playing to the crowd
January 18-February 1
Big Day Out, various locations in Australia
Australia's annual 'travelling festival' the Big Day Out this year visits the Gold Coast (Jan 18), Sydney (Jan 23 and 24), Melbourne (Jan 26), Adelaide (Jan 30) and Perth (Feb 1), with a vast line-up encompassing everything from metal to house, including Metallica, The Strokes, Flaming Lips, Basement Jaxx and The Darkness. Tickets are A$98.
February 7-8
Melbourne Blues Festival
Anyone in search of something a little more sedate is directed to this Blues festival, held at Melbourne Exhibition Centre.
May 1-2
Coachella, California
America's closest equivalent to Glastonbury is Coachella, held at the Empire Playing Field, Indio, California on May 1 and 2. It is a little more strict in its rules and behaviour - there is no 'hard liquor' on sale, and for some reason you're not allowed to bring stuffed animals on site, but the spectacular array of bands usually makes up for it. The line up and ticket price are as yet unconfirmed - rumours suggest Radiohead might be headlining - so keep an eye on the website.
May 29-30, June 4-6
Rock in Rio, Lisbon.
Even though it has relocated to Portugal from its South American base to tie in with the Euro 2004 football event, it's hard to imagine much rain at the Rock In Rio Festival. It's being held in Lisbon's beautiful Bela Vista Park over five days), and features, among others, Sting, Metallica and Guns 'N' Roses.
August 30-September 6
Burning Man festival, Nevada
At the other extreme, there's the legendary Burning Man festival, a hippy free-for-all low on big name bands and high on outrageous behaviour, held out in Black Rock Desert, near Reno Nevada between August 30 and September 6. Ticket prices are tbc, but more details - in quite alarmingly purple prose - can be found online.
Alexis Petridis
Board meetings
January 10-17
Burton European Open, Livigno, Italy.
The first major happening of the European snowboard season attracts the cream of the continent's riders. Since being taken over and reinvented by Burton, the world's biggest snowboard manufacturer, the Open has also developed a reputation for some messy partying.
February 22-26
XBox Big Day Out, Val d'Isere, France.
Now in its eighth year, the Big Day Out was originally dreamed up as a mid-season jump and barbeque session by pro boarder, Anthony 'Gumby' Gumbley. Although it has grown into one of the biggest ski and board events in the European freestyle calendar, it has retained its party vibe with the help of top DJs such as Brandon Block.
March 21-26
ChamJam, Soldeu el Tarter, Andorra.
This year, the festival is moving to the Pyrenees after disputes with the local authority in its home town of Chamonix. By day, there will be freestyle skiing and boarding contests; by night, major acts like Zero 7, David Holmes and the Saian Super Crew.
March 20-27
Orange Brits, Les Deux Alpes, France (soulsports.co.uk).
This year's British championships are being billed as the biggest ever. Acts already lined up to supply the entertainment include the Dub Pistols and Tayo and Frank Tope from Basement Jaxx.
Stuart Millar
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