Instructions
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Edinburgh is famous as a festival city. It hosts a wide range of festivals throughout the year, with many of the biggest events taking place in July and August. Hundreds of thousands of people visit the Scottish capital during the summer. Here are some of the events they can enjoy.
The Edinburgh International Festival
The Edinburgh International Festival began in 1947 and was created to bring together international artists after the Second World War. Actors, musicians, dancers and opera singers from all over the world perform to huge audiences. You need tickets for most events that take place in theatres around the city.
The Edinburgh Art Festival
This festival began in 2004 and is a fantastic opportunity to see some of the city’s best visual art in art galleries and museums. Most exhibitions are free and include contemporary art, talks and special events.
The Edinburgh Festival Fringe
This is the largest arts festival in the world, with thousands of shows that take place across the city. Thousands of performers from around the world take part, so there’s always a huge variety of shows to choose from. Visit the Royal Mile, one of Edinburgh’s main streets, to see street performers such as magicians, acrobats and comedians for free, or buy tickets for one of the thousands of shows around the city. However, the city can get very busy as thousands of tourists and local people fill the streets to enjoy the shows.
The Edinburgh International Book Festival
The festival began in 1983 and brings together hundreds of authors and speakers every year. You can meet many authors, talk to them, ask them to sign a book or listen to them talk about their stories. Children can listen to stories and watch illustrators draw pictures.
The Edinburgh Jazz and Blues Festival
Music lovers come to this festival to enjoy concerts, outdoor performances and events around the city. Artists perform street theatre, dance and circus shows in amazing costumes, and everyone can enjoy the music and join in the dancing.
The Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo
This famous show began in 1950 and takes place every evening during August outside Edinburgh Castle. You can listen to pipers and drummers in military bands, watch traditional Scottish dancing and enjoy a firework display in the Edinburgh night sky. More than 200,000 people buy tickets to watch the show live, and around one hundred million people watch it on TV all over the world.
Would you like to visit Edinburgh? Which of the festivals would you most like to see?
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