10 fun European autumn harvest festivals worth putting on your bucket list

I know, I know. Summer has just kicked off (at least when considering the temperatures in the northwestern part of Europe which had kept ridiculously low until just recently). And yet, this also means countdown to harvest season is on.

On the bright side, late September through to early November is a great time to travel. Temperatures are still mild to warm (depending on where you go), the crowds are gone, prices are lower, and many locations will celebrate their local harvest with colourful festivals.

From small to large, there are literally thousands of harvest festivals across Europe. They will feature the main local produce in any given region adding artisan local food, beverages, handicraft, and often live music to the mix.

European harvest off course includes grapes, with the year’s long wine festival season peaking in September/October. That said, it’s well worth looking out for all the food harvest festivals kicking off in late August showcasing the many variations of European local cuisine around a region’s prominent produce.

If like me, you love to integrate food into your travels and never miss a visit to local farmer markets, then you can’t miss some of the fantastic harvest festivals taking place all over Europe.

With the many events, it can be daunting to decide where to start. Below I have listed some of the leading or most unique harvest festivals around Europe you should definitely put on your bucket list. Both for the local produce celebrated at the events and the places where they take place.

The 10 best European harvest festivals

If you love travelling for food, check out these events taking place across Europe around the autumn harvest time.

Baltic Herring Market, Helsinki, Finland

Helsinki, the capital of Finland is still underrated when it comes to culinary travel. Which is hopefully to change considering the excellent local cuisine from seafood to reindeer and everything in between.

When here, the daily farmers market at Helsinki’s market square located directly at the quay adjacent to the port is something not to be missed any time of the year. The same site is also home to the famous annual Baltic Herring Market, which kicks off on the first Sunday of October and runs until the next Saturday.

Though herring is available year-round, depending on where it’s fished, there are specific peak seasons and throughout the Baltics September to October is prime herring season.

Helsinki’s Baltic Herring Market was established in 1743 and is the oldest such happening in Finland. The seven-day event sees herring offered in all sorts of fashion and there is a Herring Jury that each year will pick the best recipe of the year.

There will be more than 20 fishing boats and several sailing boats anchoring at the harbour during the festival and on shore stalls will sell all sorts of traditional woollen goods, handicrafts and artisan foods from across Finland, in addition to herring.

The centre of Helsinki with several great hotels and restaurants is only a few minutes walking distance away.

Garlic Festival, Isle of Wight, UK

There is no shortage of food festivals across the UK but one of the most unique must be the Isle of Wight Garlic Festival. Though it takes place in mid-August each year, and therefore officially still falls into the summer period, it’s the perfect farewell to summer event for any culinary travel geek.

The festival takes place just outside of Newchurch and alongside various garlic-laden dishes there will be life music and other fun events.

Located off the coast south of England, mid to late August is also the perfect time to enjoy the stunning local beaches and coastline in still warmer weather but already thinning crowds.

Apple and Cider Festivals in Normandy, France

Apples are grown across all of Europe and festivals around this popular fruit are abundant. The best ones (if you ask me, at least) are those combining to celebrate one of apples stellar products: apple cider.

If you think of Normandy, apples are perhaps not the first thing that will spring to mind. But they are indeed one of the main symbols of this northern French region. And with apples come two of the region’s most cherished products – the famous Calvados (apple brandy) and cider.

During autumn, the region is host to several apple and cider festivals. Among the better-known is Beuvron-en-Auge Fete du Cidre, taking place annually in mid-October. The beautiful little village square will be stuffed with apples in all forms, including off course cider and apple brandy.

The village is located along the 40-kilometre-long Normandy cider route, which brings together around twenty cider producers. Use the opportunity to combine the two events to see more of the picturesque countryside and taste different styles of local cider while road tripping though the spectacular Normandy landscape.

Languedoc Chestnut Festival, France

Chestnuts are grown across large parts of central and southern Europe and depending on the location are in season from October through to December. Which is the time chestnut festivals will take place in many places.

The Languedoc in southern France with its many beautiful historic villages and the excellent local food and wines is absolutely perfect for a culinary trip combining art and scenic landscape. Come harvest time, local festivals are an additional reason to visit.

Each year on the last weekend in October, the historic village of Saint-Pons-de-Thomières, located between Montpellier and Toulouse in the Haut-Languedoc National Park area is home to one of the largest chestnut festivals in the region. More than 150 local producers will offer roasted chestnuts, chestnut pudding, and more.

Pumpkin Festival, Ludwigsburg, Germany

Come September, pumpkin festivals are popping up like mushrooms across all over Europe. The largest of them, actually the largest in the world, is happening in Ludwigsburg, Germany.

Starting in the final days of August and running until beginning of November, Ludwigsburg Pumpkin Festival which is taking place on the grounds of Ludwigsburg Palace features numerous events around pumpkins, all under a changing overarching theme each year.

More than 600 varieties in all sized and colours are on display, arranged in sculptures repeating the annual theme of the exhibition, and events will include pumpkin carving competitions, and cooking courses.

Off course, a wide range of pumpkin dishes are available too from the hugely popular pumpkin soup in different varieties to pumpkin pasta, jams, pumpkin waffles, and more.

Onion Market, Weimar, Germany

OK, that might sound odd. A festival dedicated to onions. But in Germany’s Thuringia the Weimar Onion Fair is the oldest and largest food happening, taking place annually on the second weekend of October. The event has a long history (the first took place in 1653) and rumour has it that famous composer Johann Wolfgang von Goethe used to be a regular visitor.

Onions will be offered in a wide range of dishes including pies and soups but also made into decorations.

There will be over 500 stalls located around the beautiful historic city centre and there will be an onion market queen elected during the event.

White Truffle Festival, Alba, Italy

Italy’s Piemonte is well known for its leading wines Barolo and Barbaresco. But wine is only one of several iconic local culinary products including the famous local hazelnuts and off course white truffles.

Starting in early October and running until early December, it’s the latter that is taking over the region around the small town of Alba, dubbed the world capital of white truffles. The small historic city centre will play once again host to the iconic Alba Truffle Fair.

Truffles will be sold at the various stalls located in the city centre of Alba, alongside other delicacies such as truffle salami, truffle oil, truffle risotto, truffle flavoured pasta. Meanwhile, other events taking place during the whole period include cooking classes, food and wine pairing classes and sensory analysis sessions along with truffle hunting excursions.

In addition to truffles, there will be a donkey race along with live music and performances.

Turin with its famous coffee houses is literally just a stone’s threw away, so make sure to plan at lease an additional day to explore the beautiful historic city centre.

Speckfest, South Tyrol, Italy

Italy’s South Tyrol or Alto Adige as it’s called in Italian is well known for spectacular mountain peaks, and hundreds of kilometres of hiking trails. More recently, the region has made waves for its local wines which have evolved to rival some of the best made in the country, from once merely being nice table wines produced in large quantities and mostly consumed by tourists when in the area. There has also been a huge revamp of the local hospitality scene, bringing back some of the regions historic luxury hotels with a bang, while adding many new ones.

The local hearty cuisine is famous too, and one of the most celebrated local produces is the cured and smoked speck. Officially called Speck Alto Adige PGI, it is made from secret recipes handed down over generations.

The annual Speck Festival, which takes place at the end of September at Kronplatz in Pustertal, features speck served in a wide variety of styles including speck platters, dumplings, and much more. In addition, there will be other local foods, handicrafts and live music.

Martos Olive Festival, Jaen, Spain

Olives are grown across much of southern Europe with harvest typically taking place in October to early December. Which means, olive festivals abound during this time from Greece to Italy, Spain and Portugal.

I’ve picked the Martos Olive Festival for this post because Andalucia in early December is a stupendous place to visit, with the weather usually still mild but the summer crowds all but gone. Plus, Spain is the largest olive oil producer in the world and the province of Jaen known as the cradle of olive harvest.

The festival takes place annually on 8th December, which is the start of the local olive harvest. Visitors will receive a small paper bag with bread, a small bottle of olive oil, dried fish, and olives usually for free. The event will also feature demonstrations of making olive oil, all sorts of olive products will be sold and there is also live music.

Rose of Saffron Festival, Consuegra, Spain

The city of Toledo, located about 70 kilometres south of Madrid and easily reached by the Spanish high-speed train in just over half-an-hour. From here, it’s only a short trip to the town of Consuegra, which is home to one of the most unique harvest festivals in Europe.

The region of Castile–La Mancha boasts around 90% of Spain’s total saffron harvest and the Fiesta della Rosa del Azafran, the local saffron festival which goes back to 1963, takes place each year during the last weekend of October.

The festival offers the opportunity to taste many different saffron dishes while including a wheat grinding event at the mill, a saffron pruning race and a gastronomy contest, along with street performers and folklore shows.

The village of Consuegra itself is a little treasure trove, with the towering castle surrounded by 12 windmills.