Austria
April 3-12. Easter Festival, Salzburg. One of the largest annual events in the world of classical music and contemporary culture in general. Since 1994, the artistic director of the Salzburg Easter Festival, founded in 1967 by Herbert von Karajan, has been the famous Italian conductor Claudio Abbado. The festival awards annual prizes for composition, painting, and literature. By the way, in 2004, Catholic and Orthodox Easter coincide. //www.osterfestspiele-salzburg.at
Belgium
April 8-10. Children's Festival Brussels - Babylon, Brussels. For the 18th time, people from different social and cultural backgrounds, most of them aged 12 to 21, will gather in one of the city's theaters. Every year a festival for a young audience is held here. Most of the performers are themselves children. But the festival has nothing to do with amateur performances: dance, singing, and theatrical art are only of a high professional level. The most interesting thing at the festival is for children themselves: they see their peers who are already established artists. //www.bruxellesbabel.irisnet.be
April 28 - May 22. Contemporary Art Festival, Brussels. One of the largest contemporary art festivals will last almost a month. During this time, guests can expect high-profile theater premieres, hours of live music, fun on dance floors, and much more. You don't have to see everything at once: you can focus on a particular genre, or you can fully get acquainted with contemporary art in all its manifestations. Cinema, theater, music, dance, painting - it is difficult to present all at once, but the festival will last a long time, which will allow visitors to get the maximum exposure to the arts. //www.kunstenfestivaldesarts.be
United Kingdom
April 12. Easter Monday, Preston. In one of the most beautiful parks in the city, locals and tourists gather every year at Easter to take part in the festive ritual. Colorful dyed eggs roll down the hills, and in the evening a children's parade ends the celebration.
Spain
The main event in April in Spain is Holy Week (you certainly wouldn't call it touristy, but it can safely be called a striking event of modern Spanish culture). Traditionally, during these days, processions take place through the streets, exhibitions open, local residents, often united in religious brotherhoods, take to the square - and as a result, the streets fill with people of different professions, believers and non-believers, Catholics and Orthodox, taking part in these grandiose processions.
April 4-11. Holy Week in Seville. But Holy Week acquires its greatest scale in Seville. People from all over the world come here to see the spectacular performance. In total, there are 52 brotherhoods in Seville, each of which is 'tied' to a particular church. During the year, they raise funds for the preparation of Holy Week. All members of the brotherhoods join the processions, standing out in black medieval clothing. In different parts of the city, groups of people periodically appear singing saetas - traditional hymns imbued with a religious spirit. Until Easter itself, a special religious atmosphere will be maintained in the city.
Italy
April 9-11. Easter in Palermo. All cities will celebrate Easter in one way or another. But the most spectacular and beautiful processions will be in Palermo. Here, the ritual of the Last Supper is reenacted in all churches, and the main processions go through the city throughout the night.
April 24 - May 30. May of Monuments, Naples. The hugely successful May of Monuments campaign begins in late April. All museums and cultural monuments are open for free visits, and special excursions are held every weekend - for example, through ancient neighborhoods of the city or through underground passages. But in addition to excursions, concerts and performances are organized for tourists, and the city comes alive this month. //www.napolioggi.it
France
April 17-18. Shellfish Festival, Paimpol. Gourmands should gather in this city for two days. This is where the festival is held, where seafood products prepared in the most exquisite way are examined and tasted. Rare shellfish and orange corals, classic oysters, and other edible inhabitants of the ocean will appear before the amazed public, drenched in special sauces.
April 30 - May 2. Exhibition of rare plants, suburb of Paris. The town of Saint Jean de Beauregard, located 28 km from Paris, is known primarily for having the largest greenhouses and gardens. Several times a year, traditional plant exhibitions are held in the suburb. The theme of this spring is rare flowers and their bulbs. Professionals, scientists, and simply lovers of beautiful flowers and garden art gather here. //www.domsaintjeanbeauregard.com/pages/rubrique/infos_e.html
Czech Republic
April 7-12. Theater and Dance Festival, Prague. The most important dance festival in Europe is Prague's. Founded in 1997, it grows every year, becoming more prestigious and popular. In various categories (classical dance, contemporary dance, theatrical dance), only stars, only professionals from all over the world perform. //www.dancegrandprix.com
April 15-22. One World Film Festival, Prague. One of the largest film festivals is gaining momentum every year. This year, 130 films from around the world will be presented. Interviews with festival guests, discussions, a large photography exhibition - all this accompanies the event itself. //www.oneworld.cz
April 30. Walpurgis Night, Prague. Many countries mark this day, but in the Czech Republic it is treated specially. Whether residents of Czech cities superstitiously fear the night from April 30 to May 1, or are too drawn to mysticism, in Prague on this night it is traditional to burn an effigy of a witch on the highest hill. According to some versions, it merely personifies the season - winter, while others see it as a kind of tribute to the times when witch hunts took place in the Czech Republic. Cautious Czechs say: you never know who you might meet jumping over bonfires and dancing at an impromptu festival... In short, if you happen to be in Prague these days, be careful!
Sweden
April 8-11. Horse show, Gothenburg. Every year since 1977, tourists from different countries come to this show. It is of greater interest to professionals, but amateurs always find something interesting as well. In scope, it is one of the largest events of its kind: only professionals perform.
April 30. Walpurgis Night, Stockholm. The main part of the festival will take place in the beautiful building - the Skansen Museum (the oldest open-air museum in Europe) - but other cities in Sweden will also mark this day in their own way. Bonfires are lit all over Stockholm to scare away witches who, according to legend, gather for their sabbath. Children and adults stroll around the city until early morning, sing songs, and hold concerts. At dawn it is no longer scary, but at night everyone is filled with mystical sensations. //www.goteborghorseshow.com