Midsummer hotspots

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France:Lille

The French even scrap their marathon lunch breaks when they indulge in the countrywide Fete De La Musique on 21 June, which sees street ­corners occupied country-wide by wannabe indie bands and accordion players.

Happily for Eurostar travellers, one of the best places to make the festival is Lille, France’s answer to Brighton (but with cobbled streets). Only 80 minutes from London, you’ll find electro, jazz and classical acts, such as Faux Passeports and Electek, doing their stuff at venues including the stunning Palais des Beaux Arts gallery.

But each town involved has a different­ flavour. Chamonix celebrates with a snowboarding festival, for instance, while the entire population of La Rochelle hits the beach for free music concerts. And when the official ones stop, the locals start up their own.

fetedelamusique.culture.fr

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Getting there:

Eurostar goes to Lille from £59, eurostar.com

Where to stay:

Minted: Hotel Carlton has doubles from £205, carltonlille.com

Skinted: Best Hotel offers­ double rooms from £55 per night, www.besthotel.fr

Sweden:Gothenburg

With 24-hour daylight, Midsummer­’s Day comes second only to Christmas in the revel-rousing stakes in Scandinavia. In pagan times, the solstice marked new life. Nowadays, it’s an excuse for carnage, with celebrations rolling from 20 to 22 June – or until the last Swede drops.

Go, and you’ll find people dancing around maypoles, rolling in grass and downing herring – and that’s before they’ve opened the schnapps. Gothenburg, in particular, holds some of the best parties in Sweden. Head to the island of Styrsö, 6km from town – it goes car-free for the weekend. DJs, folk music and maypole dancing should keep everyone happy. Those who make it through to the end are ­rewarded with a music festival­, West Coast Riot, on 26 June. Expect indie music and bands such as Bad Religion and Comeback Kid. Tickets cost £55.

westcoastriot.se

Getting there:

BMI from £85, flybmi.com

Where to stay:

Minted: Avalon Hotel, avalonhotel.se

Skinted: Scandic Rubinen Hotel, scandichotels.com

Malta & Gozo

Celebrating the solstice might be a pagan ritual, but even the staunch Catholic islands of Malta and Gozo put on events wild enough to outdo any heathen. 24 June is the Day of St John for the Maltese. It starts as a civilised street party before evolving into dancing until dawn. Each year, one village on each island hosts the party. This year, Valletta in Malta and Xewkija in Gozo are the lucky ones, although other villages have their own smaller celebrations.

The annual blow-out also coincides with Malta hosting the World Bikini Model Contest­ (at the Dragonara Casino in San Julians on 24 June) and the Isle of MTV Festival, in Floriana. The Kooks are headlining this year – that’s at the festival, not the bikini contest.

Getting there:

Air Malta flies from £105, airmalta.com

Where to stay:

Minted: Corinthia Palace Hotel, corinthiahotels.com

Skinted: La Topaz Hotel,www.topazhtl.com

Lithuania:Vilnius

It’s going to be the European Capital of Culture come 2009, so this year’s solstice is going to be a practice-run for the biggie. The midsummer festival Let There Be Night on 21 June is a city-wide mix of open air cinema, laser shows, catwalk fashion, poetry readings and music. The whole shebang starts at 6pm and runs for 12 hours, finally­ winding down the next morning.

On a darker note, visitors are invited to 1984: The Survival Drama, a two-hour simulation of Orwell’s nightmarish vision to reflect on Lithuania’s Stalinist past, where you’ll rely on your wits to survive in a dark  bunker.

If that’s not jolly enough, a three-hour train ride away is a long strip of golden sand at beach resort Palanga.

Getting there:

Air Baltic fly from £95,airbaltic.com

Where to stay:

Minted: Narutis Hotel had doubles from £100, narutis.com

Skinted: Victoria Hotel had doubles from £35, victoria.lt

Spain:Lanjaron

You may know Andalucia as one of Spain’s most picturesque ­regions. What might surprise you is that the home of the Costa del Sol is also one of its wettest – or at least it is at Lanjarón, a village in the Sierra Nevada, for one day a year. Every 24 June, the locals drench each other as part of the Fiesta­ del Agua y del ­Jamon (festival of water and ham). Fill your weapon of choice – be it balloon, water pistol or inflatable­ sheep – with water, and throw it at everyone around you.

To recover from the onslaught, revellers are given free ham for breakfast the next morning. An estimated 6 million litres of water are thrown every year but, because of drought scares, this year’s might be the last. Make it quick, or you’ll have to brave the tomato­ stains from La ­Tomatina in Buñol, Valencia.

Getting there:

Ryanair fly to Granada, 50k away, from £52 return, ryanair.com

Where to stay:

Minted: Palacio de los Patos has doubles from £183 – but it’s in Granada, www.hospes.es

Skinted: Hotel Lanjaron has doubles from £25, +34 958 770 094

UK:Devon

There may be no guarantee of sun, but Devonians don’t need heat to brave the midsummer night. Sea junkies should flock to Oceanfest at Croyde from 20-22 June – a beachside mini Olympics of volleyball, surfing and music at Kelly Brook’s favourite­, Croyde Bay.

If surfing’s not your thing, the Lost Vagueness stage has broken ranks from its ­Glastonbury showcase to hold its own Midsummer Nightmare party in Northampton on 21 June – with cabaret, burlesque and a “Lost Luck” casino.

For something more demure­, the week-long St Magnus Folk and Classical Music Festival is held on the Orkney Islands, which will catch the longest daylight hours in the UK.

goldcoastoceanfest.com, lostvagueness.com, stmagnusfestival.com

Getting there:

First Great Western From £39 return, firstgreatwestern.co.uk

Where to stay:

Minted: Whiteleaf Hotel has doubles from £75, thewhiteleaf.co.uk

Skinted: Secret Spot Campsite offers tent pitches costing from £7, www.croyde-bay.com/secretspot.htm