15 Messy Festivals That Are Worth Visiting at Least Once in Your Lifetime

Festivals seem to be the coolest way to take a break and step out of your normal life. Do you know any other places where you can smash a stranger with a pillow or hurl a squashed tomato into someone’s face without being fined? These opportunities attract millions of people, and in some cases, these battles are not only full of fun, but also full of messiness.

Bright Side discovered 15 of the craziest festivals, and we hope this list will help you plan your next vacation.

15. Holi, India

Holi marks the arrival of spring. It is also known as the festival of colors since people throw colorful powder at each other. Each color has its own meaning. Red represents purity, green — vitality, blue — calm, and yellow — pious feelings.

14. Boryeong Mud Festival, South Korea

The first Fest was held in 1998. Originally it was a marketing campaign for cosmetics using mud from Boryeong. According to some studies, this mud has even more healing properties than the mud from the Dead Sea in Israel. The 17th Boryeong Mud Festival attracted around 329 million tourists.

13. La Tomatina, Spain

Around 120 tons of tomatoes are squashed during the “World’s Biggest Food Fight.” As tomatoes have the acidic “disinfectant” effect, the streets of Bunol (the place where La Tomatina takes place) are considered to be the cleanest in Spain.

12. Chinchilla Melon Festival, Australia

There are a lot of different activities you can take part in during this fest (for example, a melon rodeo or melon skiing). There is also a melon weigh-in competition, where you can bring the biggest melon you were able to grow. The current record is about 220 pounds.

11. Cascamorras, Spain

During this festival, 2 towns fight for possession of a sacred image. While citizens of one town cover themselves with black oil and try to reach the Virgin, the others prepare olive oil, eggs, and flour to fight back. The legend says that if a person is able to stay clean, he or she can take the sacred image from the town where it stays.

10. Cooper’s Hill Cheese Rolling and Wake, England

The idea of this event is to chase a wheel of cheese that’s rolling down a hill. It’s called the most dangerous race since a number of people usually get hurt trying to become the winner. And it’s no surprise, since the cheese is able to reach a speed of about 70 miles per hour.

9. Battle of the Oranges, Italy

This festival is similar to La Tomatina in Spain. But tomatoes here are replaced with oranges. People destroy about 250 tons of this fruit during the fight. If you can’t imagine the scale, here is a quick fact — it’s about 2 times as heavy as a blue whale.

8. World Bog Snorkeling Championship, Wales

People will think of anything, and even swimming in bogs is a reason to come together and challenge each other. In fact, there is a World Bog Snorkeling Championship that is held annually. If you are sure that you can spend less than 1 minute 18.81 seconds swimming 120 yards, you could set a new world record.

7. Battle of Wine, Spain

If you were wondering if there are any big drink fights in the world, we found the Battle of Wine just for you. The goal of this fight is to cover everyone in so much wine, that there’s no one left wearing white clothing. During the battle a huge amount (around 500 liters) of red wine is used.

6. Water Gun Festival, South Korea

If you want to make your wedding special, you can try to get married during the Water Gun Festival in South Korea. If you already have a spouse or if you are not ready for this step yet, you are welcome to just have fun and feel like a kid again.

5. Els Enfarinats, Spain

There are 2 groups of people that take part in this battle. The first one consists of married men (Els Enfarinats) who gain control over the area and enact absurd laws. They look for people who disobey their orders and fine them. Another group (La Oposicio) tries to fight back. At the end all of the money they gather goes to charity.

4. Rouketopolemos Rocket War, Greece

Each year 2 rival churches take part in a “war.” They fire a huge number of rockets trying to hit each other’s bell tower. The winner is supposed to be declared by the direct hits, but every time, the churches decide to settle the score the next year.

3. International Pillow Fight Day, Europe/USA

An unusual thing about this event is that it happens around the world on one day. The information about the date spreads via digital sources like social media, email, and chat rooms and it leads to a seemingly spontaneous gathering of people ready to get bashed with pillows.

2. Monkey Buffet Festival, Thailand

Since the local people here believe that monkeys bring luck to people and the area they live in, there is a party awaiting these non-human guests every year in Thailand. Tables with about 4,500 pounds of different fruits and desserts are prepared for their delight.

1. Golden Retriever Festival, Scotland

If you are a fan of Golden Retrievers, you might want to sell your soul to have an opportunity to visit this fest. Last year, 361 dogs came to this pawsome party. And this was the biggest gathering since 2006.

Which festival would you like to take part in? If you have already participated in one of them, tell us about your experience!