Festivals & Traditions

Each spring, the cherry orchards of Turkey burst into flower, and the hillsides of the west and the valleys of the interior turn white and pink in a brief, brilliant display.

In spring, the orchards of Turkey turn white and pink as the cherry trees burst into blossom, and the season is one of the loveliest natural spectacles the country has to offer.

The International Izmir Festival has brought world-class music to the Aegean coast of Turkey for more than three decades, and it has become one of the defining cultural events of the region.

For several weeks every summer, the Aegean city of Izmir hosts one of Turkey’s most elegant cultural events, the International Izmir Festival.

The Efes Pilsen Blues Festival is one of the great survivors of the European music calendar, a festival that has brought the blues to Istanbul every spring for more than three decades.

Every spring, Istanbul turns up the volume for the Efes Pilsen Blues Festival, one of the longest-running music events in Turkey.

The Istanbul Biennial is one of the most significant contemporary art events in the world, a vast exhibition that transforms the city every two years.

Every two years, Istanbul becomes the stage for one of the world’s great contemporary art events, the Istanbul Biennial.