FESTIVALS | barefeetadventures

Venice Festival

Woodford Folk Festival

Abbey Medieval Festival

Cherry Blossom Festival

Holi Color Festival

Up Helly Aa Fire Festival

La Tomatina

Festival of the Sun, Peru

Songkran Water Festival

Int'l Balloon Festival

Harbin Ice Festival

Bring your guitar or circus skills with you! The Woodford Folk Festival is an annual music festival held near the semi-rural town of Woodford^, 72 km north of Brisbane, Australia. It is one of the biggest annual cultural events of its type in Australia. The festival takes place over six days and nights from 27 December to 1 January each year. It features a wide range of performance styles, including cultural and indigenous arts and activities, circus arts, independent and well known musical acts. Join this hippie experience and start the new year in a spectacular and unique location, and with an ending in Byron Bay, Australia's hippie capital.

Come to Venice and experience it as it was centuries ago! The masquerade lasts 2 weeks, and our tour will allow you to take part in many once-in-a-lifetime activities such as: attending balls, going on a photography expedition in Venice, a magic show in its full Venetian essence, a Gondola ride in costume, an invite to a masquerade ball at the home of a local count and countess, feasting and dicovering this city, amidst the costumes and masks of the past.

Be prepared to be covered in color by shopkeepers and children. The Holi Cow festival, is a festival of color, music and madness, held a short distance outside the city of New Delhi. The environment is safe, and non-toxic colors are provided, along with bhang lassis, street food, and sprinklers to get everyone in the mood. Both DJs and bands perform. Plenty of expats, as well as locals, attend. Depending on your choice of activity, you will have the opportunity to work on a photography or film project, vegan cooking workshop or a Bollywood dance workshop.

Thousands upon thousands of people make their way to the 'World's Biggest Food Fight' where more than one hundred metric tons of over-ripe tomatoes are thrown. The festival features music, parades, dancing, and fireworks. There used to be 50,000 participants flocking here every year, now it has been limited to 20,000 lucky participants. An hour after the fighting ends, water cannons are fired to signal the end and the mass water cleaning process begins with the fire trucks. Work on a film, or photo project, or take a flamenco workshop.

Cherry blossom is Japan’s national flower and symbolizes the arrival of spring and the beginning of the new school and financial year. The cherry blossom of Tokyo’s trees is a truly spectacular sight and one of the best places to experience the full impact of over one thousand trees in some locations. The hanami (flower viewing) can be done in many different parts of the city. Join us on the tour of this city, while taking part in a film or photo project (optional). Discover the cherry blossoms by day and the neon signs by night, experience traditional and contemporary japanese culture at its best.

Originating in the 1880s Up-Helly-Aa has been an annual event for centuries. This northern Mardi Gras is a celebration of Shetland history, for which the superb spectacle has gained worldwide recognition as Europe’s biggest fire festival. Up-Helly-Aa is a lot more than a sub-arctic bonfire party. The day (and night) long celebration is planned a year in advance by several thousand people and preparations are shrouded in secrecy. Kitted out in a raven-winged helmet, axe and shield the Jarl leads over 800 men in Viking disguise through the streets of Lerwick with blazing torches before setting fire to a long boat in the city centre. Work on a film or photography project if it tickles your fancy.

Think: Lord of the Rings vs Game of Thrones.

Transport yourself to a place where history and fantasy merge into a breath taking world at this medieval festival down under. From re-enactments, to jousting and falconry, this event is truly a step back in time! You will be dressed for the occasion, and forget which millennia you are living in. Actors bring you the sights and sounds of many medieval periods both familiar and exotic: Viking raiders and traders, Middle-Eastern warriors and nomads, and nobles and peasants from the great European households. Feast at the Banquet with the King, dance and cheer on through the various medieval events. Work on a film or photography project.

Want to celebrate New Year’s in the April heat? The Songkran Water Festival is the traditional Thai New Year, celebrated on April 13th. In fact, Songkran literally means “astrological passage.” Songkran falls during the hottest time of the year in Thailand, at the end of the dry season. Gradually over the years, Songkran has developed into the world's largest water fight, with revellers throwing buckets of H2O at one another, and spraying water guns. Families and friends gather to celebrate by visiting temples and sprinkling water on each other, and the streets are lined with pickup trucks loaded with ice-cold water. Waterproof video and photo equipment will be made available for those working on a film/photo project.

Step back in time, and be a part of an ancient ceremony set for a god, in this case the god Inti. The Inti Raymi ("Festival of the Sun") is a religious ceremony of the Inca Empire in honor of Inti, one of the most venerated gods in Inca religion. Celebrations involve music, colorful costumes and the sharing of food. You will feel as though you have been taken back in a time capsule, as you watch this breathtaking grand ceremony. After the ceremony, travel from Cusco to the site of Machu Pichu. Work on a video or photography project (optional).

Celebrate St. Patrick's Festival in Ireland with the official St. Patrick's Festival organisers - Come to Dublin for the parade, music and craic (laugh).Be a part of the parade and its oceans of green, have a few pints and mingle with the locals. You can work on a photography or film project while here, or simply enjoy yourself, without a care in the world. As well as joining in the festival there will be tours of Dublin, and activities off the usual beaten track.

The Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta, is the world's largest hot air ballooning event. For nine days straight, hundreds of colorful balloons float above the city each morning as dawn breaks over the Sandia Mountains. It's no wonder this visual feast is said to be the world's most photographed event. Pilots offer limited balloon rides, providing an unparalleled chance to enjoy a bird's eye view of magnificent New Mexico terrain and this unparalleled visual event. Work on a film or photography project while attending the fiesta.

In the searing heat of the noon-day sun, trucks hauling 90 tonnes of grapes dump the fruit into throngs of waiting people who proceed to fling the fruit willy nilly. The festival marks the climactic end to a season of harvest and of hard labour. The tradition can be traced back to the 1930s, when farmers would merrily celebrate the end of the harvest by throwing the remainder of their crops at each other. Children and adults alike participate in the festival, and by the end of the day everyone present resembles a purple raisin.

The Harbin Ice and Snow Festival is the largest in the world. Visually stunning and mind blowing are the gigantic sculptures and “ice cities” on display, many of which are even interactive. Ranging from modern technology sculptures using lasers, to traditional ice lanterns, ice hotels, and even ice slides for kids and adults alike. There is something for everyone at this incredible expo, as well as ice skating, skiing, snow moiling and sled rides. Photography and film projects are optional.

Surf n Skate. Learn how to surf n skate in exotic locations, meet locals, shoot footage.

The V Word. Join one of our Happiness Retreats or Vegan Cooking Classes.

Learn to dance authentic dances from various cultures, with a final performance.

Hone your acting skills in a unique location, and perform in a film or on the stage.

Work on a photography project with a final gallery showing.

Filmmaking. Make a film in a faraway land. Watch it premiere and screen at festivals.

Which adventure are you after?

Adventures 2014 - 2015

The Boryeong Mud Festival is an annual festival, which takes place 200 km south of Seoul. Mud is taken from the Boryeong mud flats, and trucked to the beach area, where it is used and abused! The mud is considered rich in minerals and nourishing to the skin, but mostly it is considered to be some messy and slippery fun in the sun. The festival was originally conceived as a marketing vehicle for the cosmetics company, Boryeong Mud Cosmetics. There are many events here, such as mud wrestling, the mud king contest, mud fireworks, fantasy mud, mud sliding, and the famous Mud Prison where people if they are not covered in mud. Loads of fun!

Boryeong Mud Festival

Raggamuffin Music Festival is an annual reggae music festival that tours both Australia and New Zealand, featuring major international reggae (hip hop, soul, funk and dub) acts from around the globe, as well as New Zealand acts. New Zealand is a country with its own reggae roots, which you will discover on this whirlwind adventure. Rotorua is steeped in local Maori culture, which you will discover first-hand, as well as the world famous hot springs, geothermal mud pools, local Maori carving and weaving artists, Maori food, and local marais (Maori meeting houses) famous to the region. You will also get to "Zorb" down a steep hill! Loads of fun and adrenaline!