Think French fashion and chances are, you think Christian Lacroix. After 20 years in the fashion industry, Paris' Musée de la Mode et du Textile welcomes the world-famous master couturier to preside over Histoires de Mode, a fashion retrospective that takes the visitor on a journey through la mode Française, exploring changing fashions through the ages.

The small town of Chichibu, near Tokyo, is the annual venue for one of Japan's most spectacular yomatsuri (night festivals). Fireworks, traditional performing arts and a gorgeous action-packed parade of huge, illuminated floats entertain the crowds.

Versailles hosts a modern-art one-off as Paris-based Xavier Veilhan weaves his strikingly modernist artworks among the historic château's cobbled courtyards. The highlight is Le Carrosse, Veilhan's purple 15-metre-long take on a Louis XIV carriage, complete with horses in mid-leap.

First held in 1960, the Adelaide Festival of the Arts takes place biennially and brings the very best of opera, dance, theatre and music to the capital of South Australia.

Queen's Day celebrates the birthday of the former Queen Juliana and is one of the largest, most vibrant celebrations in the Dutch calendar. Flags fly, music pumps and millions take to the streets for a national holiday.

The Kentucky Derby at Louisville's Churchill Downs, offering a US$2-million purse and a blanket of 500 roses to the winner, is the climax of a two-week festival. The iconic horse-race itself is hailed as "the greatest two minutes in sport".

Paris's Pompidou Centre presents a major retrospective of the works of Lucian Freud, widely acknowledged as one of most important British artists of his generation. This is the first exhibition in France dedicated to the 88-year-old's paintings since 1987.

Nagoya's July Basho is held at the Aichi Prefectural Gymnasium. From the beating of the yagura-daiko drum announcing the event to the thunderous clash of wrestlers, immerse yourself in the ancient rituals of Sumo at the year's biggest Grand Tournament.

The annual Gion Matsuri in Kyoto, considered one of Japan's three most important festivals, is a truly awesome sight to behold. The highlight is the Yamaboko Junko float procession, attracting hundreds of thousands of visitors each year.

Formerly known as The Bob Hope Classic, the Humana Challenge retains its legendary pro-celebrity status as part of the US PGA Tour. There's a new slant on health and well-being but the use of different desert courses in California's Coachella Valley hasn't changed.

The New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival attracts a plethora of international headline acts every year with performances spread over two weekends. Concerts take place at the Fair Grounds Race Course and other venues around the city.

One of Tokyo's traditional "Three Grand Festivals", the Sanja Matsuri sees beautiful gold- and black-lacquered mikoshi shrines paraded through the streets of Asakusa. Hundreds of thousands of spectators turn up to join in the drinking, dancing and lively festivities. Please note: due to the earthquake and tsunami in Japan on 11 March, it is not known which local events will take place in 2011.

The Chelsea Flower Show is the gardening Mecca of Europe. Some of the greatest exponents of the art exhibit imaginative garden designs over an 11-acre site at the Royal Hospital in Chelsea, creating a floral wonderland for the public to explore.

London's Wembley Stadium hosts the 2011 UEFA Champions League final. Europe's football elite have been battling it out since July, and the two remaining sides play in front of 80,000 fans for the right to succeed Internazionale as champions of Europe.

An astounding 400,000 spectators pack the famous Brickyard Oval at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway for the legendary Indianapolis 500 Mile Race, or Indy 500. Grab a grandstand seat to experience an unforgettable slice of motor-racing tradition.

The French Open, one of the four tennis Grand Slams, is one of France's biggest sporting events. For two weeks the world's best battle it out on Roland Garros' clay courts - watching matches live is the ultimate fashion statement!

Mighty Mud Mania is a highlight of Scottsdale's summer. Every year 160 tonnes of "clean" dirt and water are sifted into freshly dug pits in Chaparral Park and thousands of kids show up ready for some muddy fun...

New York is home to some of the world's best museums. During the Museum Mile Festival, many of the biggest and most exciting along Fifth Avenue, from 82nd Street to 104th Street, open their doors to the public free of charge.

The Congressional Country Club hosts the 2011 US Open Golf Championship. A highlight of the world's sporting calendar, the tournament is one of golf's four major championships and moves around the US each year.

A highlight of the Dutch arts calendar, the Holland Festival presents opera, dance, music and theatre at the Muziektheater and other major venues in Amsterdam. Artists from around the world appear at the biggest performing-arts festival in the Netherlands.

Where better to celebrate Independence Day than in the US capital. After a parade featuring 100 marching units along Constitution Avenue, the popular music begins. There's a programme of renowned performers, before the day ends with a firework display.

France's national holiday commemorates the storming of the Bastille at the start of the French Revolution. Crowds line the Champs-Elysées for a military parade led by the President, and Parisians party until dawn as fireworks explode over the Trocadéro.

New York City is blessed with thousands of fantastic restaurants. During Summer Restaurant Week (which actually stretches over two weeks) some of the very best offer three-course prix-fixe lunches and dinners at a fraction of the normal cost.

Seattle's Seafair is one of America's biggest community festivals and fills the streets, skies and waters of the city with parades, planes and a whole fleet of objects. The event climaxes with a weekend air show but events run in the weeks running up to it.

Amsterdam Pride is one of the biggest gay and lesbian festivals in Europe. The weekend of fun includes the world-famous Canal Parade, a fantastic floating display of around 80 garishly decorated boats bursting with music and colour.

The Chicago Air & Water Show presents two fun-packed days of spectacular air and watercraft demonstrations on Lincoln Park's lakefront, with North Avenue Beach as its focal point. Highlights include jets performing in a renowned delta formation.

Around a million people hit Notting Hill's streets in West London for Europe's biggest carnival. Fabulous floats make a colourful circuit of the area and sound systems blast out music all day. Sample delicious Caribbean jerk chicken or Jamaican patties.

Burning Man is an annual gathering of some 25,000 people in Nevada's Black Rock Desert. Named after the effigy burnt on the final night, it's a once-in-a-lifetime experience for the brave, the avant-garde, the crazy and the curious.

The US Open takes place at the USTA National Tennis Center, more commonly known as Flushing Meadows, in New York City. One of the four Grand Slam tournaments in tennis, the US Open is the last such event of the season.

Sydney's Darling Harbour is one of the world's great waterfront destinations, popular with Sydneysiders and tourists alike. With its ever-growing selection of waterside cafés and restaurants, as well as festivals and events, the foreshores always buzz with activity and colour.

Amsterdam is famous for its canals, its red light district and its coffeeshops, where one can buy and smoke cannabis! During The Cannabis Cup, which takes place annually in the city, all things marijuana-related are celebrated.

The Sydney New Year's Eve celebrations are always among the most spectacular in the world. Activity focuses around a glittering Darling Harbour and the majestic Harbour Bridge, the backdrop for some of the most breathtaking fireworks you'll ever see.

Dress warmly for the Mummers' Parade, one of the most extravagant events in Philadelphia. Over 10,000 people come out to welcome the New Year in outrageous fashion and thousands more line the route for the city's premier street party.

The Gasparilla Pirate Fest draws crowds of more than 500,000 for each spectacular event. The Floridian festival includes the "invasion" of Tampa by a fully working pirate ship and continues with a parade and various festivities.

Australia's leading cultural gala, the Sydney Festival has been a force to be reckoned with since 1976. The three-week programme kick-starts the New Year with an avalanche of artistic events and also incorporates the lively Australia Day celebrations on 26 January.

During Kounomiya Hadaka Matsuri bare-bottomed men ensure good luck by crowding the streets of Inazawa City hoping to touch a naked man! Since 767 BC the Naked Man, aka Shin-otokoa, has walked this gauntlet to reach the Kounomiya Shrine.

The climax of the NFL season, the Super Bowl is the biggest sporting spectacular in the United States. Indianapolis' Lucas Oil Stadium hosts the game, and numerous supporting parties and events keep the city rocking day and night.

Huge glittering ice sculptures transform Sapporo into a magical winter wonderland during the annual Snow Festival. Teams of professional artists from around the globe create the frosty masterpieces at city venues including Odori Park and Suskino's main street.

The Venice Carnival is the highlight of the city's year. A two-week series of processions, masquerades, traditional ceremonies, music and all-round festivities fills the canals, squares and palaces of this ancient city. The Carnival adopts a new theme each year.

The Mardi Gras in New Orleans is one of the largest, most famous and most spectacular parties in the world, drawing hundreds of thousands of revellers each year. Expect flamboyant 'krewe' floats, masked Mardi Gras revellers and foot-stomping jazz melodies.

Studio presidents, agents, producers, PRs, stars and filmmakers get together for a well-rehearsed orgy of mutual backslapping and publicity at the Kodak Theatre. The Oscars ceremony (Academy Awards) is, without doubt, the biggest movie-related media event in the world.

The Daytona 500, staged at the Daytona International Speedway in Florida, is the crowning jewel of the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series. Among American motor races, only the Indy 500 is more famous.