March is an often underrated time to travel to Europe. You can experience a lot of the same things you would experience in April or May, but you can save some money as the first half of the month tends to still be considered the off-season for travel.
Read on to discover 10 of the best European places and events that you can experience in March:
St. Patrick’s Day, Dublin, Ireland
St. Patrick is Ireland’s famous patron saint, and his feast day is celebrated throughout the world with green tinted beer and other festivities. While you will get some of those elements if you’re celebrating St. Patrick’s Day in Ireland, there are some other local traditions and activities that mark this holiday that you’ll be able to experience when you’re there. For example, Dublin has a tremendous Saint Patrick’s Day Parade every year. Nearly half a million people attend this event and you can actually book a seat along the parade route to make sure you get a good view. You can also visit the former home of St Patrick. And, of course, you can enjoy a pint in a proper Irish Pub.
Related: Find the best flights, best hotels to stay in Dublin, and more things to do while in Dublin in March.
The Taste of Florence Food Festival, Florence, Italy
If you’re a foodie, you’ll want to experience the Taste of Florence festival. Located in the city of Florence, this quintessential culinary event features over 300 stands serving the best food that the city has to offer. This festival celebrates not only the incredible local cuisine, but also incorporates global favorites as well. No matter what your favorite foods are, you’ll likely find something you love at the Taste of Florence Food Festival.
Related: Find the best flights, best hotels to stay in Florence, Italy, and find top tours/activities you can do while in town in addition to the festival!
Manheim Middle Ages Market, Mannheim, Germany
The southwestern city of Mannheim, Germany plays host to a medieval market every year. You can go back in time with music, food, and drink that’s accurate to the time, and browse artisan wares set up in canvas tents. Though it’s definitely not required to attend in costume, if you’re feeling inspired by the ambiance, you’ll be in good company if you decide to dress up! On the Saturday night of the market, everything stays open well into the evening. Browse the stalls lit by candles and torches and immerse yourself in the experience! If spending the daytime there isn’t enough, you can also book a campsite nearby.
Related: Find the best flights to Mannheim, Germany, best hotels to stay in, and find top tours/activities you can do while in town in addition to the market!
Rock the Pistes, Portes du Soleil, France (and parts of Switzerland!)
This uniquely situated music festival consists of more than 30 concerts across a dozen ski resorts on the picturesque ski slopes of France and Switzerland. The shows that take place on the slopes are completely free if you have a valid ski pass. You can also take the opportunity to participate in the one-of-a-kind ski slope scavenger hunt. If you’re a skier and a music lover, this is a festival that is perfect for you.
Related: Find the best flights to Portes du Soleil, France, best hotels to stay in and enjoy the concerts, the winter sports activities, and the breathtaking view!
Falles of Valencia, Valencia, Spain
This five-day-long Festival of fire is held yearly in Valencia, Spain, and includes an incredible display of fireworks and more. The roots of this festival can be traced back to Pagan Equinox celebrations, but as time has gone on many of the traditions have adopted a Catholic significance as well. One of the most memorable aspects of the festival is the large statues that are built at the beginning of the festival and are placed sporadically throughout the streets of Valencia. On the last day of the festival, these artistic monuments are set on fire and burned to the ground.
Related: Find the best flights to Valencia, Spain, best hotels to stay in, and find top tours/activities you can do while in town in addition to the festival!
Hamburger DOM, Hamburg, Germany
The Hamburger DOM is a major fair held every year in Hamburg, Germany. Set on the Heiligengeistfeld Fair Ground, it is the biggest festival in the country and welcomes nearly ten million people every single year. The first recorded event that took place here that is believed to be the precursor to the current traditions was a market that occurred in 1392 at another nearby location in Hamburg. The festival has been held at the current location since 1892.
Related: Find the best flights to Hamburg, Germany, best hotels to stay in, and find top tours/activities you can do while in town in addition to the festival.
Sonar Reykjavik, Reykjavik, Iceland
The Sonar festival also takes place in Barcelona, but the event that occurs during March takes place annually in Reykjavik, Iceland’s capital city. It is a uniquely intimate music festival experience as all four of the indoor music stages have the capacity of maximum 3500 guests. The music that is featured at this festival is a blend of electronica, hip-hop, and more. But one of the most incredible and unique aspects of this festival is the fact that it takes place during the Northern Lights season so in addition to having an incredible musical experience you might experience some of nature’s most impressive features as well.
Related: Find the best flights to Reykjavik, Iceland, best hotels to stay in, and find top tours/activities you can do while in town in addition to the festival.
Starkbierzeit, Munich, Germany
Set in Munich, this beer festival is specifically focused on strong beers as the name suggests (starkbier means strong beer in German). Starkbier is made with a higher concentration of sugar, which can lead to a higher than usual alcohol content and a higher-than-usual caloric density which can make this beer more filling and satisfying. One example of this type of beer is a dopplebock. It’s an incredible beer festival but it’s more low-key than Oktoberfest- which might make it a more appealing option for you.
Related: Find the best flights to Munich Germany, the best hotels to stay in, and find top tours/activities you can do while in town in addition to the festival.
Tampere Film Festival, Tampere, Finland
This short film festival is held every year in March in The Finnish City of Tampere. It is an accredited film festival and is considered a significant event despite the fact that it is shorter and perhaps smaller than other film festivals. The films that are shown here are from all over the world, so if you attend and are able to see any of the films presented here, you will get a unique experience and be exposed to art from directors you may not have heard of before. If you are a fan of cinema at all, this film festival is a can’t miss experience.
Related: Find the best flights to Tampere, Finland, the best hotels to stay in, then sit back and enjoy amazing films from all over the world.
The Keukenhof Flower Garden, Lisse, the Netherlands
In the city of Lisse lies one of the largest flower gardens in the world. This garden hosts a springtime flower festival which starts in late March and continues through April. Lisse is known as the flower village, and it’s easy to see why when you witness the immaculate beauty of the tulips and other flowers that are blooming here
Related: Find the best flights to Amsterdam, the best hotels to stay in, and find top tours/activities you can do while in town in addition to the beautiful gardens.
Travel Resources for Your Trip to Europe in March
To make planning your trip to Europe in March easier, we included some of our recommended travel resources below. You can search and find the best flights, transportation options, hotels to stay in, tours/activities, and things you can do in each destination during your trip.
Flights:
CheapOAir: You can find airline tickets, hotel rooms, rental cars, and vacation packages all on one site!
Kiwi.com: What we like about Kiwi is the fact that they are able to create combinations of flight, train, and bus tickets and offer them in a single itinerary. Also, Kiwi has what they called “Nomad” which helps you find the best way of visiting multiple destinations, saving you time and money.
JetRadar: You can search and compare airfares from 726 airlines and dozens of travel agencies and systems.
Hotels:
Agoda: Agoda is one of the world’s largest online travel accommodation platforms with a network of over 2,000,000 vacation rentals and hotels worldwide.
Hotellook: They have more than 250,000 hotels in 205 countries, working with data from more than 10 online booking systems, such as Booking.com, Agoda.com, Hotels.com, Expedia, and others.
Transportations:
Airport Transfers: KiwiTaxi, Viator
Train: Trainline or RailEurope
Bus: Flixbus: Very affordable (as low as $6) and convenient way to transfer between cities in Europe.
Car Rentals: AutoEurope, EconomyBookings, or GetTransfer (transfers & car rentals with a personal driver)
Bike Rental: BikesBooking (Bikes & scooter rentals)
Transportation Comparison: Omio (search, compare, and book tickets for buses, trains, and flights all in one site)
Tours & Activities:
TakeWalks (WalkofItaly): This is our favorite site for walking tours & day trips.
Tiqets: Great site for entrance tickets. It offers directly bookable, instantly available, and completely mobile tickets for museums, shows, and attractions all over the world.
Musement: They have good activities and tours in Italy and Spain, also many great day trips you can choose from.
GetYourGuide: A large number of tours, excursions, and other travel activities
Viator: The largest one. It has everything from tours, attractions, shore excursions, and private guides in over 2,700 destinations worldwide. It also has many transportations and transfers options and some unique experiences we didn’t find anywhere else.
Need help planning a trip to Europe in March?
Want to plan a trip and visiting multiple destinations in Europe but don’t know where to begin? If you find this type of trip planning to be too complicated to plan on your own, we’re here to help!
At MultiCityTrips, multi-destination travel and complicated itineraries such as a trip visiting multiple destinations in Europe are our specialties. Contact us today to learn more about how one of our experienced travel experts/destination specialists can personalize your multi-city vacations at the best price.
Don’t want to start from scratch and need some trip inspiration? Check out our marketplace for customizable pre-designed packages available right now for many amazing destinations.
To learn more about how our process of trip planning works in detail, please see our “How It Works” page or check out our video on “How to Plan a Multi-City Trip to Europe in 5 Easy Steps” here.
Have questions for us? Schedule a FREE Call with us here or contact one of the travel experts/destination specialists at [email protected], call/text us at (888)223-2316 today.
