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Forget listening to techno music and standing in long queues for expensive food at typical festivals – these summer celebrations offer something much more original.
Here, MailOnline Travel has rounded up seven of the world’s quirkiest summer festivals.
And they will open your eyes to a whole new and strange world.
Do you fancy yourself a champion at carrying your wife, diving in swamps, or perhaps you’d like to dance with a painted belly button? Whatever you prefer, there’s probably a celebration for it.
Scroll down to find out which weird festival you’d like to attend.
Boryeong Mud Festival – South Korea
In the middle of the action: MudFest, pictured, takes place every July in the small town of Boryeong, South Korea. Attendees enjoy mud baths, slides and even mud wrestling.
For two weeks every July, around 1.5 million people flock to Boryeong, South Korea, a small city on the west coast, to attend MudFest.
Mud baths, mud slides and obstacle courses have made this festival world-famous, attracting locals and tourists alike. You’ll find a variety of mud-centric activities, from wrestling to body painting.
Among the mud there are also street performances, food stalls and live music.
Near Death Experience Festival – Spain
The Near Death Experience Festival (pictured) is held in Las Nieves, Spain, and pays tribute to those who have been close to death.
The Fiesta de Santa Marta de Ribarteme, or Near Death Experience Festival, is celebrated in the small town of Las Nieves in Spain every July.
The bizarre ritual involves celebrating those who have had near-death experiences by parading them through the city in open, padded coffins.
Although it focuses on a rather morbid theme, the festival usually includes a fireworks display and parties that continue into the next day.
Wales Marsh Snorkeling Championship
Once a year in August, people flock to Llanwrtyd Wells in Wales to snorkel in a 60-yard peat trench for the Peat Snorkeling Championships.
The Swamp Snorkelling Championships are held every August in the dense swamp of Waen Rhydd at Llanwrtyd Wells in mid Wales.
In the event, competitors attempt to complete two consecutive stretches of a 60-yard water-filled ditch cut through a peat bog in the shortest time possible.
If swimming isn’t your thing, you can take part in the festival’s costume competition, which awards prizes for the best costumes. A pantomime horse and a life-size Barbie and Ken (still in their box) are just some of the costumes from last year.
World Wife Carrying Championships – Finland
In Sonkajärvi, Finland, men tie their wives behind their backs, as seen above, and complete an obstacle course.
Every July, men from around the world come to Sonkajärvi, Finland, to test their strength by running a grueling obstacle course with their wives (or female partners) strapped to their backs.
The course is about 250 metres long and has two dry obstacles and one aquatic obstacle of approximately one metre depth. The winning team receives a prize of beer, in an amount equivalent to the exact body weight of their teammate.
There are prizes for second and third place, plus prizes for the funniest couple, the best costume and the strongest bearer. Entry costs 50 euros (£42/$53) and gives you access to a weekend full of events.
Twins Days Festival – Ohio
Seeing Double: The Twins Days Festival is an annual event that welcomes twins and other babies from around the world to Twinsburg, Ohio.
The Twins Days Festival, which began in 1975, is the world’s largest annual gathering of twins and other multiples. And what better place to host it than Twinsburg, Ohio?
The festival takes place over a long weekend in early August and includes events ranging from the “double take parade” to a talent show.
Twins can sign up to take part in the activities, while general admission costs $5 (£3.95) and there is a different theme each year. This year, the theme is “of both races”. Guests are encouraged to dress in racing attire from around the world.
Could you stand it? Japan’s belly button festival (pictured) is held every July in Furano, Hokkaido
The Hokkai Heso Matsuri, also known as the Navel Festival, is held every year in late July in Furano, Hokkaido Prefecture, Japan. The festival began in 1969 and celebrates the navel, as Furano is considered the center, or navel, of Hokkaido.
The main event of the festival is the ‘Heso Odori’ or ‘navel dance’, where participants paint unique and colourful faces, known as ‘Zubara’, on their bellies and sway to traditional folk tunes.
To emphasize his paintings, Visit Hokkaido Notes, the dancers wear large hats to hide their faces from the neck up.
Elvis Festival – Australia
The Elvis Festival extravaganza takes place every summer in the small Australian town of Parkes – fans travel from all over the country to attend.
The Elvis Festival, held in the small farming town of Parkes, New South Wales, attracts around 25,000 ardent fans each year.
The show features a packed programme of parades, live music and dance and costume competitions. Australians, dressed in their finest sequined outfits, travel from all over the country to attend.
The event takes place annually in the second week of January and coincides with Elvis’ birthday. The 2025 festival (January 8-12) will celebrate its 32nd anniversary.
