WHEN TO GO - July

Also known as the Awa Dance festival, the three-day Awaodori festival is celebrated on Shikoku island, in Tokushima prefecture. The lively city-wide party involves, as the name implies, choreographed dances and music, with performers sporting traditional Obon costumes as they parade through the streets.

The 150-year-old Ghost Festival in the small Taiwan town of Keelung runs throughout the 7th lunar month, commonly known as the ghost month. Thousands of tourists stream into town to see the ornately decorated streets and houses, whilst Buddhists pray for peace, pay homage to ancestors, offer small sacrifices, and release water lanterns.

This three-day festival held in Rabaul showcases Papua New Guinea’s instantly recognizable mask culture. Groups from across the region display their masks, provide musical performances and host fire dances. Organized by the Cultural Commission, there really is no better place to see such a wealth of masks on live display.

Yushu (or Gyêgu) was a town ideally situated as a center for trade and was historically the home of the richest Tibetans in the country. Every year this three-day festival celebrates the wealth of the area with a carnival of colorful tents. Visitors flock to see exciting horse races and beautiful folk dance performances.