San Francisco International Film Festival
April 21st - May 5th
Spring season in San Francisco provides an opportunity to celebrate the sublime and the innovative of contemporary cinema at this much lauded film festival and San Francisco Film Society’s ultimate showcase.
Over 170 films are screened each year, including several US and international premieres, with several iconic city venues taking part in the showcase, including the Roxie Theater and Castro Theater, and regularly attracts audiences of 70,000 or more across the two weeks.
Carnaval
May
Carnaval sees one of the biggest celebrations of multi-culturalism across the state of California. Vibrant fusions of Caribbean, Latin-American, Brazil and Tobagan cultural influence sees a rainbow of colour descend on the city in the form of glitter strewn dancers, before a culminating Grand Parade housing an assortment of delicious street food as exotic and mesmerising as the festivities themselves.
Outside Lands
August
Music aficionados in California have Outside Lands marked down as a must in their summer calendars. Around 200,000 revellers descend on the park site, around 25-minutes drive out from San Francisco International Airport, to enjoy a stellar line-up which has seen the likes of Arctic Monkeys, Metallica and Radiohead grace the stages at this eco-friendly festival feast.
Litquake
October
Literature fanatics may well see Litquake as a reason to visit San Fran alone. A gloriously debauched combination of books and beer sees a weeklong smorgasbord of literary activities and author readings, before moving onto a 'Lit Crawl of Mission bars'.