Europe’s cities boast some of the most amazing street parties in the world. Every year there are dozens of huge celebrations thrown in cities across the continent, awesome carnivals and street festivals that are truly spectacular. Check out our shortlist of the best street parties in Europe this year!

Notting Hill Carnival, London
This spectacular celebration of Caribbean culture takes place on August bank holiday weekend. This is the biggest street party in Britain and revolves around an amazingly big parade, which parties its way through the Notting Hill area of London. The parade is made up of dancers and performers dressed in resplendent costumes, and the parade is supported by music acts that feature heavy dancehall, reggae, and dance acts.

The Festival of St Joan, Menorca
An exciting Spanish festival is focussing on horses; the main event is horsemen dressed in traditional attire leading their horses, fine Spanish Stallions, into crowds while they buck and rear. The most popular drink is gin and tonic, flavored with lemon juice. The festival ends with a huge bonfire – bars and clubs keep the party alive into the wee hours.

Kings Day Amsterdam
Kings Day Amsterdam is allegedly a celebration of the Royal family – most Amsterdammers consider it an opportunity to have a good time. The main event is a huge canal borne parade, which features people enjoying a Kings Day Amsterdam Boat Party. Services like the Kings Day Amsterdam Boat Party are very popular. While expensive, a Kings Day Amsterdam Boat Party is definitely the best way to enjoy this festival and the only way to do it in Dutch style!

St. Patrick’s Day, Dublin
St. Patrick’s Day is celebrated all over the world, but no one does it like Dublin. There it is a four-day event that ends on the day itself, featuring treasure hunts, boat races, and of course, a world-famous parade! Dress in green and brace for a lot of Guinness.

Bastille Day, France
Bastille Day, besides having the coolest name of any street party we know of, is an incredible celebration of the power of the French people. Celebrating the fall of the monarchy and the beginning of the revolution, Bastille Day is held on the day that a mob stormed the Bastille, Paris’s most famous prison. Today the crowds mostly enjoy parades, parties, and fetes – you can still expect surprisingly rowdy crowds.

Oktoberfest, Munich
No list like this would be complete without a nod to perhaps the greatest tribute to the amber nectar ever made, Oktoberfest. This vast beer orientated extravaganza is best experienced in Munich, where huge beer halls and sumptuous buffet feasts are the norms. Particular elements of this epic celebration of all that is a beer that should not be missed are giant boot-shaped glasses and mouth-watering German street food like schnitzel and bratwurst. The citizens of Munich take Oktoberfest seriously, so if you stay for the full 3 day celebration, you’ll see plenty of traditional dress.