Love tunes? Then Travel!

Follow the sound of music to unforgettable experiences in great destinations around the world.

The styles of music to choose from are almost as numerous as the countries in which you can hear them. Classical. Rock. R&B. Jazz. Blues. Folk. Pop. Reggae. Gospel. And those are just a few of the old standbys.

Music is an excellent reason to travel. Whether taking in talented street musicians playing for change, small clubs where talented gig musicians play their trade or major concert events featuring a lineup of world-renowned artists, a love of music can take you to almost every country on Earth.

Turn to the modern modern stuff and the choices are dizzying. Electronic, funk, techno, hip-hop, trip hop. House, acid house, deep house, hip house…it’s enough to make one’s head spin.

Africa alone has about 100 genres of modern music, with Afropop and Afrojazz among the best known.

Every year, all over the world, talented musicians and singers come together for festivals in almost every style of music there is. Some are held in large outdoor settings, others in immense stadiums and grand concert halls, while still others scatter their performance across an array of small local venues, from clubs to churches.

This list of 50 top international music festivals isn’t even close to being all-inclusive, but it will give you a small idea of what is out there.

Prefer to search for your favorites soundsin your preferred destination? You can do that, too. Music festivals by country.

If your preferred musical genre isn’t represented on either of those lists, fear not. There’s a music event somewhere out in the world that will absolutely make you want to start packing.

And at Trips by Greg, we know how to find it.

You don’t even have to be on land. Specialty cruises offer concerts at sea, whole weeks devoted to your favorite styles and your favorite artists. Not only do you get to see and hear them perform, but you also may get to mingle with them at the pool or in the dining hall or onew of the shipboard lounges.

Try doing that at an onshore concert.

Maybe you have musical aspirations of your own. Why not take a class in your chosen instrument, in the country that inspired one of your favorite artists? Violin in Austria. Guitar in Spain. Flute in France, or pan flute in Peru. Drums in Jamaica or Ghana. The possibilities are endless.

And when you’re not listening and/or learning, you can walk the streets and take in the sights and flavors of a different country.

But it’s more even than that.

A country’s traditional music, especially when you hear it in the country where it was born, cane give you insight into history, culture, traditions, all the things that shaped that place and its people. What yu hear becomes a window to help you better understand what you see.

So when you’re thinking about where to go on your next vacation, don’t just think about things to see. Think about what, and who, you might have a chance to hear. You might find yourself bringing back some music among your souvenirs.