Taste Your Way Around the World: 4 Must-Visit Food Festivals
Plan your next trip around the best flavors, traditions and local specialties.
Hello fellow travelers! 👋🏼
For food lovers, a great meal is reason enough to book a flight. And what better way to experience a destination than through its signature dishes, time-honored cooking traditions, and regional specialties? Food festivals aren’t just about eating—they’re about understanding a culture through its flavors, meeting local producers, and sharing meals with people who take pride in what they grow and create.
From the deserts of Morocco to the coasts of Canada, these four food festivals celebrate what makes each region’s cuisine so special—and they’re well worth the journey.
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🥘 Festival del Mole | Puebla, Mexico (October)
🌶️ A celebration of Mexico’s most legendary sauce
Mole is one of Mexico’s most complex and cherished dishes, a slow-cooked sauce blending chiles, chocolate, nuts, seeds, and spices into something truly magical. But did you know there are more than 50 varieties? Puebla, widely considered the birthplace of mole poblano, hosts this festival every October, where chefs, home cooks, and food lovers gather to honor this iconic dish.
At the festival, you can:
✔️ Sample dozens of mole styles—from the rich, dark mole negro to the lighter, herbaceous mole verde
✔️ Watch traditional cooking demonstrations and learn the intricate techniques that have been passed down for generations
✔️ Pair mole with handmade tortillas and mezcal for the ultimate taste of Puebla
✔️ Experience live music and folkloric performances, making this festival a true cultural event
📍 Travel Tip: While in Puebla, take time to explore its UNESCO-listed historic center, famous for its colorful Talavera tiles, baroque churches, and bustling markets.
🌴 Erfoud Dates Festival | Morocco (October)
🌴 A sweet celebration in the heart of the Sahara
Every autumn, Morocco’s desert town of Erfoud transforms into a three-day festival honoring the prized date harvest. Dates are a lifeline for desert communities, and this event showcases the hundreds of date varieties grown in the region, from the sweet, caramel-like Medjool to the delicate Deglet Noor.
What makes this festival special?
✔️ The Parade of the Tribes—local communities dress in traditional attire and march in a grand celebration of Moroccan heritage
✔️ The Dates Market, overflowing with fresh dates, date-based sweets, syrups, and even date wine
✔️ Saharan music and dance performances, including the hypnotic rhythms of Gnawa musicians
✔️ Camel races and desert excursions, where you can experience the vast golden dunes surrounding Erfoud
📍 Travel Tip: Combine this festival with a trip to the nearby Merzouga Desert, where you can stay in a luxury camp under the stars or take a sunrise camel trek over the dunes.
🔥 Hatch Chile Festival | New Mexico, USA (September)
🌶️ A must-visit for spice lovers
For those who love bold flavors, Hatch, New Mexico, is the undisputed Chile Capital of the World. Every Labor Day weekend, the town hosts its legendary Hatch Chile Festival, where you can smell the smoky aroma of fire-roasted chiles from miles away.
Why food lovers should go:
✔️ Endless chile-infused dishes—from green chile cheeseburgers to spicy stews and even chile-infused desserts
✔️ Chile roasting sessions, where you can watch fresh chiles blister and blacken over an open flame
✔️ Live cooking demos by top chefs, teaching visitors how to use Hatch chiles in everyday cooking
✔️ Spicy food competitions—if you think you can handle the heat, test your limits in a chile-eating contest!
📍 Travel Tip: Extend your trip with a stop in Santa Fe, known for its vibrant art scene, adobe architecture, and incredible Southwestern cuisine.
🦪 PEI International Shellfish Festival | Prince Edward Island, Canada (September)
🦪 A seafood lover’s dream on Canada’s Atlantic Coast
On Canada’s picturesque Prince Edward Island, the annual International Shellfish Festival is a four-day celebration of the island’s world-famous oysters, mussels, and lobster. PEI is known for its pristine waters and thriving fishing industry, and this festival brings together top chefs, local fishers, and thousands of seafood enthusiasts.
Here’s what you can expect:
✔️ Oyster-shucking competitions, where some of the fastest hands in the world race to open oysters in record time
✔️ Chef-led tastings and live cooking demos, showcasing fresh PEI lobster, mussels, and scallops
✔️ Maritime music and lively kitchen parties, where you can dance the night away with locals
✔️ Beachside feasts and seafood chowder cook-offs, offering the best flavors of the Atlantic coast
📍 Travel Tip: While on PEI, visit Cavendish Beach for its red sandstone cliffs, and don’t miss a scenic drive along the North Cape Coastal Route.
Ready to taste your way around the world?
These festivals offer a deep dive into regional food traditions, with flavors, stories, and experiences you won’t find anywhere else. If one of these events is calling your name, let’s start planning! Get in touch today to turn your next trip into a culinary adventure.
Not the festivals for me! Very well written.