Everyone loves a good tribute to the delectable delight known as chocolate. Fortunately, there are many best chocolate festivals around the world. Everyone, from those just beginning their love affair with chocolate to world-renowned confectionery experts, can find something to indulge their fantasies.
Therefore, here are five of the best around the world:
Choco-Late Festival, Bruges, Belgium
To start, Belgian’s chocolate traditions go back centuries when area merchants began looking for new products to trade. Furthermore, when Spanish exploration resulted in cocoa being introduced to Europe, they learned to mix the bitter substance with sugar, began to create sublime confections, and a legend was born. Ultimately, the Choco-Late Festival in Bruges is the culmination of the humble cocoa bean’s culinary journey.
The unique offerings found at this festival include:
- Chocolate beauty treatments
- A chocolate museum
- Chocolate workshops for both adults and children
EuroChocolate, Perugia, Italy
Secondly, with over half a million attendees annually, and nine days of events, EuroChocolate is the largest chocolate festival on the planet. Moreover, six hundred youth vie to win small roles in the exhibition, making it hose in attendance can expect to enjoy:
- Exhibits carved by chocolate sculptors
- Live musical and theater performances with chocolate as the main theme
- The artistic, historical ambiance of the Umbrian capital of Perugia
- Record-setting chocolate bars and constructions
Some events of Eurochocolate can also be found around Umbria and in the Italian cities of Rome and Turin.
Chocolate Fest, St. Stephen, New Brunswick, Canada
Furthermore, St. Stephen is known at Canada’s “Chocolate Town” and hosts the annual week-long Chocolate Fest every August. Special features of the celebration include:
- Chocolate treasure hunts
- Blindfolded taste tests
- Lots of special appearances by the festival’s mascot, the Great Chocolate Mousse, and his lovely lady, Tiffany.
St. Stephen, a picturesque city on the banks, of the St. Croix River, has a chocolate tradition that dates back to 1873.
Chocolate Winterfest, Latrobe, Tasmania
Another August destination for chocolate festivals, Chocolate Winterfest, won’t leave you worrying about chocolate puddling in your hands. First of all, August in the Southern Hemisphere is the wintry season. For that reason, guests will find more inventive events, all centered around chocolate:
- Chocolate dessert competition and chocolate costume contest
- Chocolate scrapbooking
- Lantern parade
- Chocolate chess
Since 2004, the Chocolate Winterfest has been built around Latrobe’s House of Anvers, Tasmania’s gourmet chocolatier. House of Anvers has also invited three internationally renowned chocolate master chefs to prepare a multi-course tasting for a select number of people. Therefore, the outrageous exclusivity of journeying to Tasmania and the sheer novelty of the planned activities turns this into a once-in-a-lifetime travel destination for chocolate-lovers worldwide.
The Carolina Chocolate Festival, Morehead City, North Carolina
Moreover, the proceeds from this nonprofit chocolate festival always go to support designated local charities and scholarships. With a 12 year history, this festival was born as a non-profit endeavor. Hence, it has expanded from a local event to a regional event, with vendors from North Carolina, Virginia, and Tennessee, and now hosts events over two full months. Additionally, you’ll find these fun events featured at this festival:
- Chocolate bake-off
- Cocoa 5K Fun Run for all ages (Each entrant gets a T-shirt)
- Chocolate Drop Bingo
- Cakewalks, auctions, and a chocolate spa
Overall, these are only five of the best chocolate festivals that the world has to offer — many more exist. From small town celebrations to international extravaganzas, they are each worth seeking out, if not for the extreme deliciousness, then to see everything around you drenched in chocolate!