Nobody comes up with unique winter event ideas the way Europe does.
The event industry in India is constantly evolving. But, there are still a lot of event formats that we are yet to try.
In a world full of events that have begun to look alike, we have unique event concepts from around the world. These will inspire you to create new experiences in our homeland!
These events have seen immense success over the years. There’s no harm in getting inspired and piggybacking on their success.
However, don’t just get inspired but adapt these winter event ideas to our country as well.
So, to help you bring exciting innovations to the Indian events, we have curated a list.
This list contains winter event ideas inspired by some of the most exciting European fests.
A. Multi-Venue Festival
This idea is inspired by Inverfest in Madrid. It is a very recent festival that became really famous.
This winter event idea goes beyond a specific artist, art form, and location. They keep it open and available for everyone.
You may wonder how they do this. The answer is rather simple. They have different entertainment formats in this festival—poetry, music, and films.
And even within these three, they have over 80 concerts and shows in different genres. Of course, it is not possible to do it at one location. So, they have multiple small and big venues across Madrid.
It is a very clever concept as it caters to varied interests of people. On top of this, having multiple venues across the city makes it more accessible for such winter event ideas.
B. All About Alcohol
Have you heard of Oktoberfest? It is a festival that’s all about beer. The same goes for the Great British Beer Festival.
There’s music, entertainment, and good stalls like most other winter festivals. However, the major attraction is the 2 million gallons worth of beer.
Lately, there’s even a trend for non-alcoholic beer going on. Die Null, Munich’s first alcohol-free biergarten or beer garden opened up this year [source: Economic Times].
We, as event planners, could try something similar with beer. But EventTube isn’t about the mere copying of ideas.
We simply wish to inspire you.
So, how about going for something like a festival dedicated to our local alcoholic beverages? What about Goa’s Feni or the ubiquitous Santra?
C. Digital Art and Music Festival
In India, we are familiar with Electronic Dance Music (EDM) festivals. However, a festival in Barcelona, Spain takes it up a notch. It’s called the MIRA Digital Arts Festival.
They not only provide attendees with an ultimate electronic music experience but also unforgettable sights.
This is done via digitally advanced decor and digital art showcases.
They have created a perfect blend of art and music that goes well with what today’s generation demands.
D. Mass Diving Festival
Did you know there is a Dutch tradition where people take a cold dive into the sea on New Year’s Day?
Around 10,000 people dive into the sea at a single beach in the Netherlands. Over the years, this has become a spectacle and spread across many other locations.
Imagine coming up with winter event ideas on this massive scale!
We see opportunity in this excellent tradition. It is a sight people would love to see and the daring ones would love to dive in. With the right sponsors, marketplaces, location, and marketing, it can be turned into an event in India.
Our country has a long coastal line of 7,516.6 kilometers. So, why not use it for such fun events?
E. Ski Festival
You just read about a beachy festival above. But don’t worry, we have an option for a mountain-loving audience as well.
This winter event idea is inspired by Snowbombing in Austria.
This idea is actionable because it requires a resort in a snowy area to be the venue. Some of the areas you could target for such winter event ideas are:
- Auli, Uttarakhand
- Manali, Himachal Pradesh
- Gulmarg, Jammu and Kashmir
- Sonmarg, Jammu and Kashmir
- Munsiyari, Uttarakhand
- Leh, Ladakh
- Tawang, Arunachal Pradesh
The activities for your winter event ideas need not be limited to skiing. You can include other forms of entertainment like Snowbombing does. Some activities from Snowbombing are as follows:
- Rave parties in igloos
- Secret mountain rave parties
- Speed dating
- Fancy dress
- Luxury spas and jacuzzi
- A snow sports competition called Snowlympics
F. Festival of Fruits
Everyone has heard of La Tomatina Festival from Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara. But considering how expensive tomatoes get in India, they do become unaffordable at times.
Don’t worry though, La Tomatina is not a one-of-a-kind event. In fact, France has an event dedicated to citrus fruits. It is called the Lemon Festival or Fête du Citron.
It uses tons of lemons and oranges to create huge displays and sculptures. It has exhibitions and wagons filled with these bright fruits.
When thinking of applying this concept to India, we can consider any fruit in surplus. For example, Kashmir has a surplus of apples often. But, most of the yield goes to waste when trucks carrying them get stuck in roadblocks for days.
We can leverage this opportunity and bring customers directly to the source of this yield.
There’s no better way to do this than using it as some winter event ideas to drive all the traffic.
G. Fire Festival
Every year, in the last week of January, Vikings suddenly reappear on the streets of Scotland. No, don’t worry, it’s not Halloween.
It’s actually a beautiful depiction of their ancestors. The Viking clothes aren’t the major attraction. The festival blows everyone’s minds when thousands of men parade holding traditional torches in their hands. They even fire rockets.
The showstoppers are the gang of Vikings known as the “Jarl Squad” [Source: BBC]. The leader of the gang is addressed as “Guizer Jarl”, who is elected 15 years in advance.
Lyall Gair, who served as Guizer Jarl in 2017 says—”Burning the galley each year and building a new one is a symbol of starting afresh. But it also gets you through the winter – it’s something to do!” [Source: BBC].
This winter event idea is inspired by the usage of fire in their event. It clicked that we should also embrace our culture.
For example, a fire dance done by the Banjara community in Rajasthan can be used as an event theme.
This winter event idea is perfect as it will also give people a break from the cold winters.
H. Winter Event Ideas Dedicated to a Local Dish
We know Italians love their pizza. But did you know that there’s a festival in Naples dedicated wholly to pizzas?
This fills the streets with the aroma of mozzarella and basil. And guess what? This goes on for 11 days. Around 100,000 people attend this event each year.
But let’s be honest, our fast-food pizza isn’t coming anywhere close to authentic Italian pizza. However, this is not a problem. Our country has many delectable dishes like:
- Vada Pao
- Momos
- Gol Gappe/Pani Puri (let’s not argue over what to call it)
- Kathi Roll
- Chaat
Such dishes have many variations and can be used to create wonderful winter event ideas. So plan your food-themed event today!
I. Comedy Show on The Mountains
India is witnessing a comic wave. Comedians are suddenly getting fandoms stronger than many new-age celebrities do.
So, there is no better time than now to stir the comedy show market a bit.
This winter event idea is inspired by the Altitude Comedy Festival from Austria. It is a week-long event that takes place in the snowy Austrian Alps.
This winter event was conceptualized by two comedians. They aimed to combine a ski holiday with a comedy event.
Our country is also endowed with beautiful snow-capped mountains and the funniest comedians. So, why not recreate it with our own twist?
Some of the in-demand comedies include:
- Anubhav Singh Bassi
- Abhishek Upmanyu
- Biswa Kalyan Rath
- Kunal Kamra
- Kenny Sebastian
- And many more!
J. Sculpture Festival
The next wonderful festival is inspired by a Belgian festival. Known as the Ice Sculpture Festival, this event is a delight for families.
With interesting themes like Paris Disneyland, they take their event to the next level each year. They ship hundreds of tonnes of ice and snow to create the grand sculptures.
To adapt this exciting festival to India, we believe a clay sculpture festival would be apt!
This is one of those winter event ideas that will also help us revive our culture.
Pottery lies in our very roots from the Indus Valley Civilization. It is too underrated now but can definitely make a comeback if turned into an event.
K. A Festival of Masks
This idea comes from the Carnival of Venice. This event is marked by elaborate and colorful masks that people wear during processions.
This has a cultural history to it too. It denotes winning over one’s enemies. However, another important thing to notice here is how it cuts through all the differences.
Behind the masks and costumes, nobody can differentiate one another’s class or status.
This festival brings everyone together as one and lasts for weeks.
This gives us lots of winter event ideas that can be applied to different regions of India. All we need is a mask and costume theme and the rest will be history.
L. Just One Instrument
Did you know there’s a famous event called Let It Roll that is all about drums and bass? Yes, this event in the Czech Republic has concerts with just one instrument.
Today, in India we are seeing a wave of techno and EDM. To break away from that, we can always pick one instrument and have a winter event idea that’s all about it.
So here is our compilation of winter event ideas for your next event. Don’t forget to get inspired by the events around you. You never know what turns out to be the next groundbreaking idea.
While conceptualizing such big winter event ideas, you might also want to learn how to plan large-scale events.
We hope this helped!
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