1. Zürich Sechseläuten

The Buzz -- Zurich's spring festival celebrates the end of winter with a fantastic parade full of wild costumes, beautiful floats, hundreds of horses and a couple dozen music corps. After the parade, at 6pm sharp, a firecracker-stuffed effigy of the Böögg (the traditional Swiss symbol of winter) is set alight – the notion is that the faster the Böögg's head burns and explodes, the better the summer will be. The fun then continues into the night, with local bars and restaurants offering special deals and more revelry. As a sort of precursor to the main event, there's a children's parade the day before.