Enrich your stay by attending an event and becoming better acquainted with the country and people. Traditional festivals, all kinds of concerts or sports events often take place very nearby. Or spoil yourself with culinary treats. Experience for yourself all that your holiday region has to offer.

• Camellia festival, Locarno

  Every year at the end of March
  Camellias are spring’s flowery ambassadors. Locarno traditionally welcomes in the new season with the camellia festival. "Locarno Camellia" is considered one of the most important events in its genre, second only to a similar event in Japan, the country of origin of this magical flower.

  Information and photos

• Street artist festival

  Every year at Whitsun
  Over the course of four days street artists from various countries repeat their shows all around Ascona: Via Borgo, seafront promenade, Piazza Motta, in front of the community library and on Piazza Elvezia. The festival features 100 shows with mime, theatre, juggling, music, fire shows, clowns, etc. The artists pass their hat around the enthusiastic audience at the end of the show.

  Laugh, admire and enjoy yourself - experience all of this over four days in Ascona during the Festival Artisti di Strada!

  Information and photos

• Ascona Jazz Festival

  Every year at the end of June/beginning of July
  A festival lasting ten days and ten nights, thousands of visitors, around 200 concerts on six stages by the banks of the lake and at various locations in the historical centre of Ascona. JazzAscona is one of the world's most important events devoted to classical jazz and New Orleans Beat. It is a high-class festival, unique in its kind and a magnet for fans and experts from the whole of Europe.

  Link, information and photos

• Moon & Stars, Piazza Grande, Locarno

  Every year at the beginning of/mid-July
  The Moon and Stars Festival takes place in the midst of the unique setting of the Piazza Grande in Locarno. The Piazza Grande holds 12 000 visitors and is just 500 m from the train station.

  Information and photos

• International Film Festival, Piazza Grande, Locarno

  Every year at the beginning of August
  The International Film Festival of Locarno has taken place in August every year since 1946 in the city of Locarno on Lake Maggiore. Over the course of ten days hundreds of films are shown in various series and retrospective exhibitions in competition for the Golden Leopard. Some films are shown on a large screen (26 x 14 m) in the open air on the Piazza Grande in the old town of Locarno. The venue can hold roughly 8000 viewers.

  Information and photos

• Music festivals of Ascona and Locarno

  Every year from the end of August to mid-October
  The Ascona music festival has been the most prestigious classical music festival of Italian Switzerland for over 60 years. The programme consists of major symphony concerts, evenings of chamber music and recitals by individual instrumentalists. The Ascona event can boast world-famous artists that unite all genres in classical music: from symphony to chamber concerts, from choirs to instrumental recitals. The performances take place in the churches of Collegio Papio in Ascona and San Francesco in Locarno.

  Information and photos

• Lido di Locarno

  All year round
  Locarno: The new Lido Locarno is a unique oasis for leisure, sports and wellness on the theme of water. It is open all year round, and, with its thermal spas, swimming pools, water slides and play pools, it is the best equipped and most modern pool complex in Ticino. Absolutely unique in Switzerland: A 74 m slide with looping and maximum speeds of up to 60 km/h! Authorised for children from 12 years, minimum weight 45 kg.

  www.lidolocarno.ch

• Lake Maggiore

  Everything you need to know about Lake Maggiore.
  www.ascona-locarno.ch