NIIGATA PREFECTURE, JAPAN
For the past 18 years, about 150,000 music lovers from around the world have flocked to Naeba Ski Resort in Niigata Prefecture, home to the Fuji Rock Festival, Japan's largest outdoor music event.
Set on a forested mountainside, the three-day festival attracts some of the biggest names in music. This year's line-up includes the Foo Fighters, Muse, Deadmau5, FKA twigs, as well as Belle and Sebastian.
When: July 24 to 26
Info: fujirock-eng.com
CHEYENNE, WYOMING, UNITED STATES
The state of Wyoming has always been proud of its Wild West heritage and, since 1897, the city of Cheyenne has paid tribute to those roots with Cheyenne Frontier Days, a week-long festival celebrating Western culture.
Event highlights are bull riding, rodeos, a wild-horse race, pancake breakfasts, parades, dances, an air show and concerts by some of the biggest names in country music. These include Blake Shelton, Miranda Lambert, Keith Urban and Toby Keith.
Rockers Aerosmith will also perform at the festival's Frontier Nights this year.
The Indian Village gives visitors a chance to learn about Native American culture from the natives themselves, who host dances, musical performances and storytelling sessions.
When: July 17 to 26
Info: www.cfdrodeo.com
BROOKLYN, NEW YORK, USA
This year is the 10th anniversary of the Brooklyn Hip-Hop Festival, which honours the history and legacy of the music genre.
The festival celebrates hip-hop music and culture in the city where it started, focusing on its positive aspects, such as being a mode of artistic expression, community building and social change.
Set on stages built under the Brooklyn Bridge, with views of the Hudson river and the Manhattan skyline, the six-day festival is attended by more than 20,000 people every year. This year, there will be performances by rapper Common, hip-hop duo Mobb Deep and up-and-coming Lion Babe.
When: July 6 to 11
Info: www.bkhiphopfestival.com
ALICE SPRINGS, AUSTRALIA
There are more than one million camels in Australia, which holds an annual camel race called the Camel Cup in the remote town of Alice Springs.
Held on the second Saturday in July, the race started as a challenge between two local men in 1970 and quickly became an annual source of entertainment.
Between the races, visitors can enjoy belly dances, rickshaw races, children's hobby camel races, rides and food from stalls.
When: July 11
Info: www.camelcup.com.au
SONKAJARVI, FINLAND
Wife-stealing, an extinct tradition in eastern Finnish villages, takes on an entertaining spin at the Wife Carrying World Championship.
The 253.5m race, which takes place over sand, grass and water and features a number of obstacles, attracts about 40 couples and almost 10,000 spectators each year.
The couples need not be married or related, but the women must weigh at least 49kg or have extra weight attached if they do not meet the minimum weight requirement. They are hoisted upside down over the runners' backs.
While the sight will have spectators in stitches, the race is a strenuous sporting event and teams from all over the world take the competition seriously.
The rivalry is especially strong between teams from Finland and their European neighbour Estonia.
When: Friday and Saturday
Info: www.eukonkanto.fi/en
