20 ways people celebrate St. Patrick’s Day around the world

Most Americans know that the Chicago River is dyed green yearly for St. Patrick’s Day, but other cities in the United States also participate in the tradition. In Washington, D.C., fountains at the White House are dyed green for the holiday, and the San Antonio River is dyed green, as well. 

Dozens of famous landmarks worldwide are lit up green for St. Patrick’s Day. The London Eye, the Sydney Opera House, and the Empire State Building are just some of the well-known landmarks that visibly celebrate St. Patrick’s Day. 

The Caribbean island of Montserrat takes St. Patrick’s Day very seriously. The citizens don’t celebrate for a day or a weekend. Their celebration lasts for 10 days. Everyone engages in traditions that combine Irish and African history. 

There are loads of parades on St. Patrick’s Day. Large and midsize cities throughout the United States host parades, as do cities around the globe like Buenos Aries, Auckland, and Munich. There’s no shortage of spirit in the streets during St. Pat’s.  

If you want to get really fancy for St. Patrick’s Day, take your celebration to Brussels, Belgium. There, you’ll find a ball to mark the occasion, replete with champagne and a dance floor. The ball is a charity event to raise funds for children in need. 

Typical Irish fare like shepherd’s pie or corned beef might come to mind when thinking of food to eat on St. Patrick’s Day, but in Ise, Japan, the locals celebrate with an oyster festival. They have a parade, dress in leprechaun costumes, and decorate. 

Japan’s awesome St. Patrick’s Day festivities aren’t limited to Ise. Tokyo holds a two-day festival full of dancing, food, and fun. Celebrants are in the streets for the festival, which they call the I Love Ireland Festival. 

New Orleans knows how to party, and the city doesn’t contain its celebrations to Mardi Gras. Shortly after Fat Tuesday, New Orleans citizens and guests from all over congregate again with a parade and multiple block parties throughout the city. 

If you’re on a cruise over St. Patrick’s Day, you can still expect a fun celebration. For example, carnival ships host pub crawls, duck hunts, trivia, and more for their guests on the holiday. There’s no reason to miss the fun just because you’re on a boat. 

If you want to be enveloped in a sea of green on St. Patrick’s Day, head to Montreal. The streets are full of celebrants decked out in green and partying with a parade and an enormous St. Patrick (also in green). It’s a sight to behold. 

On St. Patrick’s Day, people living in New London, Wisconsin, become citizens of New Dublin, Wisconsin. Leprechauns of the city are responsible for the name change, as well as a variety of other fun festivities throughout the day. 

The Russian Orthodox Church recently added the feast day of Saint Patrick to its liturgical calendar, making St. Patrick’s Day an official church holiday. However, the day to celebrate it religiously in Russia is March 30 instead of the long-recognized March 17. Secular Russians still celebrate on the usual day, though. 

A large Irish population across Argentina and its capital city, Buenos Aires, takes St. Patrick’s Day very seriously. The city has a week-long celebration full of the typical parades and such, but it also hosts concerts and a costume contest. 

St. Patrick’s Day is a holiday prominently associated with alcohol, but Sydney, Australia, makes sure some of its festivities are suitable for the whole family. It has parades, arts and crafts, face painting, and more that are great for those who aren’t yet of a legal drinking age. 

Over in the Northern Territory of Australia, St. Patrick’s Day is celebrated with usual festivities, as well as some sports competitions that the entire family can get in on. These include wheelbarrow races, three-legged races, and racing with an egg balanced on a spoon. 

Okay, the entire country of Singapore isn’t sponsored by Guinness, but the brand does sponsor a festival in Singapore on St. Patrick’s Day. It’s got all the typical events of a St. Patrick’s Day celebration, but it’s got the backing of Guinness, which isn’t something every festival can say. 

Due to its large Irish expat community, St. Patrick’s Day celebrations across Bosnia and Herzegovina are very cultural. There are parades and drinking, but there are also Irish folk dancing concerts, showings of Irish films, and more that celebrate Irish art. 

St. Patrick’s Day is celebrated normally on March 17 in Switzerland, but on March 16, some of the citizens celebrate the holiday’s eve. Swiss students have been known to have at-home celebrations on the special evening. 

St. Patrick’s Day is especially cold for citizens of Portland, Maine. The holiday is marked with a Padđy’s Day Plunge for charity every year. Plungers are rewarded with an Irish breakfast. Hopefully, it warms them up. 

Unsurprisingly, many fun events are happening on St. Patrick’s Day throughout all of Ireland. Near Dublin, there’s a carnival in the street and Dublin there’s a five-day long festival. Food festivals, dances, concerts, and general merriment are everywhere from Cork to Letterkenny.