updated 6:37 p.m. ET Jan. 9, 2007

Baby, it's cold outside! But this year, why hibernate at home when you can be enjoying the best of what winter has to offer the world over? Some of the greatest festivals of the year take place during the coldest months, and we've rounded up the ten best to get you inspired to get on the road and celebrate the season. The approach of Lent means you may be giving up something for forty days, but we've found three hedonistic festivals on three continents to let you party to excess beforehand. You can also take a plunge into a frigid bay for a charitable cause, soak up the sun while listening to great music in a warm-weather destination, or tango your nights away — whatever your pleasure, you're sure to find a festival on our list that will get you jazzed about winter.

1. Barbados Jazz Festival
Imagine lazing on sandy beaches with the music of the world's most talented jazz musicians filling the tropical air. Sound like paradise? It is — and it happens every year at the Barbados Jazz Festival (January 8-14, 2007). This year's scene brings legends like Anita Baker, Arturo Sandoval, and Terrence Blanchard to the shores of this former British island, along with more recent songsters like Macy Gray and Ruben Studdard. The festival's diverse venues — which range from the historic Sunbury Plantation House to the open-air playgrounds of the impressive Farley Hill National Park — make for a unique symphony of natural beauty and musical genius.

2. Buenos Aires Tango Festival
The spirited soul of Buenos Aires lies in its most famous export — the sultry tango — which has been enjoying a renaissance of late among local porteños (as residents are known) and visitors alike. The annual Buenos Aires Tango Festival (held this year from February 24-March 5, 2007), brings the music outside from the tango halls and onto to the streets of Buenos Aires, along with some of the country's top milongeros (tango dancers) to show spectators just how the dance is done. And thanks to free tango dance classes (for everyone from beginner to advanced dancers), you can learn this sexy dance at its place of origin and bring home some moves that'll last a lifetime.

3. Carnaval
Rio de Janeiro's annual celebration attracts revelers from the world over, and although the partying starts weeks prior, Carnaval is actually only a four-day event (this February 17-20, 2007) that ends the day before Ash Wednesday (known as Fat Tuesday). Dancers in exotic itsy-bitsy costumes, scantily clad bathing beauties, and carousing Cariocas (as the locals are known) hit the streets, particularly so Praça General Osório, just two blocks from Ipanema Beach, where the Banda de Ipanema puts on its famous drag-queen parade. The culmination of Carnaval — the official Samba Parade that takes place at the Sambodromo downtown — is the celebration's highlight.

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4. Carnevale
It's surely the most anticipated event on Venice's cultural calendar — Carnevale, the riotous, indulgent period which, just like Rio's and New Orleans's annual festivities, occur just before the Christian period of Lent. A series of extravagant masquerade balls and gala dinners reminiscent of 17th-and 18th-century Venezia fill social calendars, while the streets bustle with parades, fireworks, music, theater, acrobats, and more. But the most celebrated aspect of the Carnevale is the tradition of wearing exquisite, intricately designed masks, often combined with a hooded cloak to give revelers complete anonymity. The celebration (February 9-20, 2007) will cover everywhere from St. Mark's Square to quiet canal-lined streets.

5. Las Fallas
Calling all pyros: This Valencia, Spain fiesta is en fuego! Every year (and on March 12-19, 2007), Las Fallas sees several hundred ninots (massive cardboard, wood, and paper puppets) fashioned after local politicians and celebrities hung at 350 spots around town over the course of a week. On the last day, the streetlights are turned off and the effigies are stuffed with fireworks before being set afire – much to the awe of the gathered crowds. The event is thought to have evolved from Pagan rites that welcomed the onset of spring by burning the wooden posts that held the streetlights used in winter. Whatever its source, this awesome display is reminiscent of July 4th fireworks.

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