Israel hosts a range of festivals year-round, from north to south. Spend a weekend listening to local and international jazz talents on the Red Sea, discovering emerging Israeli artists at Fresh Paint, or staying up all night during Tel Aviv's 24-hour mix of culture and craziness on White Night. The fun opportunities are endless. You can even join the Israeli version of Burning Man. Dive into the top ten annual Israel festivals below:
Fresh Paint Contemporary Art Fair - April
The Fresh Paint Contemporary Art Fair has become a mainstay in Tel Aviv and all of Israel’s calendar of events, not only attracting locals, but also internationally-esteemed artists and curators looking to see what’s ahead for Israel’s art scene. The fair is constantly changing and adding new elements to its annual offering, keeping participants and visitors on their toes. Emerging artists selected by a panel of international curators, gallery owners, art critics and collectors, are given the opportunity to display and sell their work.
Contact: http://www.freshpaint.co.il/en
Address: Venue changes every year but is always in Tel Aviv, Israel’s cultural epicenter
Price: NIS 45-55
DocAviv International Documentary Film Festival - Spring (usually May)
Tel Aviv’s largest film festival screens over 100 new documentary films from Israel and all over the world in this ten-day extravaganza. Screenings take place at the Tel Aviv Cinematheque, but some are shown for free in a range of funky venues all over the city. The festival also includes four competitions with awards ceremonies, as well as workshops and meetings with some of the biggest names in the world of documentary filmmaking. In recent years, the festival has opened regional branches including DocAviv Galilee and DocAviv Negev.
Contact: http://www.docaviv.co.il/org-en
Address: Tel Aviv Cinematheque and other locations across Israel
Price: Many of the screenings are FREE
Musrara Mix Festival - Spring (usually May)
Combine 40+ foreign and local artists with students of the Naggar School of Art in Jerusalem’s Musrara neighborhood and what do you get? Every year, the ever-changing theme of the Musrara Mix Festival is even wackier than its previous. The multidisciplinary art embodies the cultural and political reality of Israel at large, and Jerusalem in particular.
Contact: 02-6286519, www.musraramixfest.org.il
Address: 9 HaAyin Het St, Jerusalem
Price: Some exhibitions are FREE
Open House - Spring (usually May)
Fancy learning about the various interpretations of Florentine’s famous graffiti? Wondering what happens to Tel Avivian trash? Open House invites you to explore the city in a series of unconventional tours, including showings of stand-out apartments, skyscrapers and studios. For just one weekend annually, Open House is the event responsible for opening up Tel Aviv’s private spaces for the public to view, discover and debate: distinctive synagogues, gardens and even construction sites are included. What makes the event such a success is the variety of contributors, including architects, developers and property owners. These are the people who are so passionate about the White City, donating their time to its construction.
Contact: www.batim-il.org
Address: All over Tel Aviv
Price: Some items in the schedule require reservations, but for the more spontaneous, many are open to all as drop-ins.
The Israel Festival - Spring (usually May)
Founded in 1961, this multidisciplinary festival continues its international tradition with a cornucopia of stage art, theatre performances, contemporary dance and classical music. For several weeks each year, the city of Jerusalem morphs into a magnet for lovers of culture, featuring foremost international and Israeli artists.
Midburn - Spring (over the festival of Shavuot, usually in May)
This is Israel’s answer to the cult favorite Burning Man festival in Nevada’s desert. For five days, Israelis and visitors alike pack up and head out to Israel’s Negev desert where thousands of people take part in a survivalist-themed week of communal creativity, art and radical self-expression. Expect out-of-this-world installations, festival goers in crazy costumes and mindsets, plus a window into a world of no holds barred free-thinking and artistic displays.
Tel Aviv Pride Week - Summer (June)
Fly your rainbow flag and don your craziest outfit – or just those teensy shorts you bought specially for this wild occasion. Tel Aviv’s much-anticipated annual Pride Week celebrates the many colors and cultures of Tel Aviv’s vibrant LGBTQ community. A week of fun events and parties culminate in a show-stopping pride parade attended by 180,000 people eager to celebrate love, diversity and freedom.
Contact: http://www.visit-tel-aviv.com/
Address: All over Tel Aviv
Price: Prices vary from location to location, Parade is FREE
Tel Aviv White Night (Laila Lavan) - Summer (June or July)
Laila Lavan ('White Night' in Hebrew), is a one-of-a-kind event in Israel’s culture capital. Tel Aviv's cultural establishments stay open all night and other activities and attractions take place until the wee hours. White Night promises to be a night you’ll never forget – or, depending on how you spend it, one you’ll never remember. The city’s iconic museums, including the Tel Aviv Museum of Art, are open and free to the public all night long and bars and restaurants stay open late and offer special menus. The streets are packed with revelers and traffic is at a standstill, so strap on those sneakers and get ready to do plenty of walking.
Contact: https://www.facebook.com/WhiteNightTelAviv/
Address: All over Tel Aviv
Price: Many places open for FREE
Hutzot HaYotzer (The International Arts and Crafts Festival) - August
For two weeks every August, the city’s artists’ colony takes over three outdoor locations for an immersive festival that features painters, sculptors and designers from around the world. Hutzot HaYotzer, which translates to 'The Creator Steps Out', has become a highlight on the capital’s calendar. Starry Jerusalem nights can be spent strolling past artists’ booths, watching artists at work or listening to live musical performances. Visitors can also pick up original and reasonably-priced art or make their own in one of the hands-on workshops.
Contact: https://artfair.jerusalem.muni.il/
Address: Hutzot Hayotzer Artists’ Colony, Mitchell Gardens, and Merrill Hassenfeld Amphitheater
Opening times: Every evening except Fridays for two weeks in August usually from 18:00-23:00; Daytime events Sun-Thu 10:00-17:00, Fri 10:00-14:00
Price: NIS 35-60
Red Sea Jazz Festival - Summer (End of August) and Winter (February)
What can be better than listening to the hottest, most authentic jazz music under the desert’s starry sky? Well, listening to it live for starters. The Red Sea Jazz Festival, hosting the best talent in Israeli and international jazz music, proves that jazz is very much still alive and kicking. The bi-annual, decades-old festival takes place in a range of open-air arenas in the southern city of Eilat.
Contact: 03-5111777 or *9066, www.en.redseajazz.co.il
Address: At various hotels and venues, Eilat
Price: around NIS 500