When to
go where

Six months when the Mediterranean is the only place worth being. Ibiza opens in late April. St Tropez peaks in July. The yachts move east as the season progresses toward Greece.

Twenty-two races. Twenty-one countries. The season opens in Melbourne in March and closes in Abu Dhabi in December. Each weekend has its own economy, its own crowd, its own version of the hospitality circuit.

Four months when the same crowd moves between four mountains. Courchevel 1850 opens December. Verbier for harder terrain. St Moritz for the frozen lake events. Zermatt has the Matterhorn and no cars.

Two weeks when Japan becomes the most beautiful country on earth and also the most impossible to book. Peak bloom lasts seven to ten days. The ryokans that matter are booked six months ahead.

Coachella in April, Glastonbury in June, Burning Man in August, Wonderfruit in December. Each has its own economy. The music is the reason. The infrastructure around it has become the event.

Two cycles, twice a year. February for Autumn/Winter, September for Spring/Summer. Four cities in four weeks. Paris closes the calendar each time, and Paris is always the best week.

Six months when the film industry runs its own social calendar. Venice opens in September. BAFTA in February, London. The Oscars close it in March, Los Angeles. The campaign circuit in between is its own season.

Los Angeles hosts the Summer Games for the third time. Venues span from the Rose Bowl in Pasadena to the Coliseum in Exposition Park. No new permanent infrastructure is being built. Official hospitality packages are on sale now through On Location.