World Party: The Rough Guide to the World's Best Festivals [Paperback]

Rough Guides (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 4, 2006

It''s Party Time! - The Rough Guide World Party is a detailed guide to the world''s best events and festivals. If you''ve ever thought of partying in Rio, throwing tomatoes in Spain or riding a camel in Pushkar, this guide is for you. Full-colour throughout with detailed accounts of each major festival and insider tips on how best to enjoy each one. The useful ''festival keys'' will help you to find the perfect world festival, from the best music, food and arts festivals to long-established religious celebrations to less ancient raves and fruit-throwing events. The guide comes complete with a festival map and calendar with background details and timings for each event. If you love a party The Rough Guide World Party is for you.

Join the party at worldparty.roughguides.com

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Various authors.

Product Details

• Paperback: 400 pages
• Publisher: Rough Guides; 1 edition (December 4, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1843535289
• ISBN-13: 978-1843535287
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 7.4 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #138,683 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars More "party" less "world", June 8, 2009

By 

Mr Atoz - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: World Party: The Rough Guide to the World's Best Festivals (Paperback)

I been closely involved with a number of the festivals discussed in this book (Trinidad Carnival, NY Village Halloween Parade, Mardi Gras, and various Hindu/Buddhist festivals in Nepal). It provides a useful gloss for someone wishing to plan festival travels, and most of the basic information is helpful. However, this book is filled with inaccuracies, omissions, and misleading statements. Clearly it is hard to do justice to the cultural complexity and history of some festivals in a few pages, but in certain cases the authors' emphasis partying, drinking, and "shagging" comes at the expense of offering a cultural and historical context for these festivals. I think this approach is just fine for rock festivals, but it does a real disservice to 1000-year old ritual events which have been diluted and endangered in recent years by tourists just looking for a good time. Festivals in this context reveal important and ancient local narratives, through layered symbolic imagery, ritual procession, costume and mask, and music and dance. World Party seems only secondarily interested in these narratives, and contributes unwittingly and irresponsibly to their decline.

In short, use this book to plan a trip, identify where you want to go and to help with logistics. But look elsewhere for any kind of genuine understanding of what you will experience. You owe that much to the cultures you are visiting. As a start I recommend books by Max Harris on Christian Festivals, and Barbara Mauldin's book on Carnaval.

8 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The best book ever written - period, July 12, 2007

By 

D. S. Hicks "Aussie Travel Junkie" (Fort Lauderdale, Fl USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: World Party: The Rough Guide to the World's Best Festivals (Paperback)

If you are like me, and born to travel as much of the world before you die; then this travel book/guide should be number 1 on your list. Page after page in this book is an excuse for you to not just travel, but immerse yourself into the myriad of different cultures throughout the world. From religious ceremonies to balls out parties, each new chapter will delight and fulfill anyone's needs for travel and fun.

Seriously now - what else do you need? Buy this book and book your travel agent. Your new life starts today!

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Unimpressive, November 7, 2010

By 

J. Murszewski - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: World Party: The Rough Guide to the World's Best Festivals (Paperback)

This book is divided up by geographical areas: Europe (and by Europe they mean only Western Europe. No Russian festivals), The Americas and Caribbean, Africa and the Middle East, Australia and New Zealand. There are festivals which are showcased which feature multiple pages devoted to them and then at the end of the little geographical chapter there is what is caled "Best of the rest." The Best of the rest is just basically small paragraphs, no pictures, and a glossing over of a festival.

The problem with this book is that they over cover some of the large festivals (Carnival in all the countries, Oktoberfest, St. Patrick's Day in Ireland -really? how unoriginal, Day of the Dead, etc.) I should also mention that the devoted time and space to showcasing America's Halloween. Chances are if you buy this book you do live in America and have heard of Halloween. I should also mention that when I think of large scale haunted happenings I think of Salem, not NYC as they list. This book does book does try to cover some obscure festivals but unsuccessfully. Don't expect equal decent coverage for all the geographical areas listed. The pages devoted to Europe, The Americas and the Caribbean are rich with pictures, details, and entries. Under Africa and the Middle East there are two festivals listed. TWO! The Festival in the Desert and Rustler's Valley Festivals. Poor Asia has only 9 entries versus the 19 for Europe. Australia and New Zealand have only two large festival entries as well. Interesting festivals they could have included? The Lantern Festival in Asia. The Orange Fight in Italy called Storico Carnevale di Ivrea. A Google search and the area you wish to travel or find out about will yield more information. The few pros about this book are that under each large dossier that they do on each festival they give you suggestions on places to stay with phone numbers, places to eat and drink, useful websites, and any health concerns.

Bottom line: If you want a nice glossy paged book which mainly covers mainly large festivals in Western Europe and a sprinkling in other places. Is it worth it? Honestly, no.