Our Luxury Calendar provides a comprehensive overview of the top events unfolding around the world every month. Some are micro-luxuries (like a really good book) and others are on a grand, epic scale. Personally, if schedules and money were no object, and we could do anything we’d like, here are our top picks for the best luxury calendar events and experiences in the world in May 2023. Consider it your luxury calendar of the can’t-miss events in fashion, art, music, sports, travel and culinary arts in this month of May.
luxury calendar: how to have a brilliant may
What to do in May, you ask? The better question is where to start. And how to squeeze it all in.
The star studded Met Gala, Frieze New York, the Kentucky Derby, the Nantucket Wine and Food Festival, the LA debut of Keith Haring: Art is for Everybody at The Broad Museum, the 76th Cannes Film Festival and the opening of the annual Glyndebourne Festival Opera, May is filled with glamorous and intellectually stimulating events around the world.
If you have the resources and the time, you can spend every day this month having an incredible luxury experience. There are also whimsical spring celebrations, Mother’s Day and the unofficial start of summer on Memorial Day weekend.
The top 25 events on the luxury calendar around the world for May 2023. Courtesy Photo.
But there’s no need to rush the season. Right now, let’s just say “yes” to May.
the best events in the world of luxury in may
It’s hard to narrow the list down to just the top 25 picks in the world of luxury in May 2023, but here goes.
the best events in the world of luxury in may
we want to see
1. met gala
Referred to as “fashion’s biggest night out,” the Met Gala 2023 is a fundraising benefit for the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. This year’s theme will be Karl Lagerfeld: A Line of Beauty to honor Karl Lagerfeld, who was a regular attendee at The Metropolitan Museum of Art Costume Institute. Co-hosts are La La Anthony, Derek Blasberg, Chloe Fineman and special correspondent Emma Chamberlain – May 1
The top 25 events on the luxury calendar around the world for May 2023. Courtesy Photo.
2. karl lagerfeld: a line of beauty
The Met is set to host a dedicated survey of Karl Lagerfeld’s designs for fashion houses including Balmain, Patou, Chloé, Fendi, and Chanel. Karl Lagerfeld: A Line of Beauty features more that 150 objects spanning the designer’s six-decade career, and most pieces will be accompanied with a corresponding sketch – May 5 – Jul 16
3. days of wine and roses
Kelli O’Hara and Brian d’Arcy James star Days of Wine and Roses, a new musical at the Linda Gross Theater about a couple falling in love in 1950’s New York and struggling to rebuild a family – May 5
4. the kentucky derby
Get your hats ready. The race for the Triple Crown starts with the 149th running of The Kentucky Derby. Often referred to as “The Most Exciting Two Minutes in Sports”, the Derby is the 2nd oldest horse race in America. It’s always held on the first Saturday of May at Churchill Downs – May 9
5. glyndebourne festival opera
The annual Glyndebourne Festival Opera opens and will include performances of Don Gionvanni and L’elisir d’amore kicking off the festivities – May 19 – 27
6. van gogh’s cypresses
For the first time in more than a century, two of Van Gogh’s most beloved paintings – “Wheat Field with Cypresses” and “The Starry Night”will be on display together in a new exhibition at The Met. Titled Van Gogh’s Cypresses, is presented on the 170th anniversary of Van Gogh’s birth and brings together 40 works by the artist and focuses on the towering cypress trees featured throughout his work – May 22 – Aug 27
7. keith haring: art is for everybody
The Broad will present the first-ever museum exhibition in Los Angeles of Keith Haring’s expansive body of work and will feature over 120 artworks and archival materials spanning nearly the full arc of the street artist’s career, from his studies at New York’s School of Visual Arts to 1988, two years before Haring’s death from AIDS at age 31. Inspired in large part by Haring’s personal journals, Keith Haring: Art is for Everybody will highlight his engagement with pressing social issues, such as nuclear disarmament, Apartheid and the AIDS crisis. But there will also be interactive elements, like a gallery illuminated it black light and set to the sounds of one of Haring’s own playlists – May 27 – Oct 8
The top 25 events on the luxury calendar around the world for May 2023. Courtesy Photo.
we want to read
8. edward hopper & cape ann
Get in the summer spirit with Edward Hopper & Cape Ann: Illuminating an American Landscape ($55). The book focuses on summers Hopper spent there in the 1920s, starting in 1923, when he first embraced watercolor during outdoor painting excursions and discovered one of his favorite subjects: houses and vernacular architecture. The success of his Gloucester watercolors set the stage for his monumental career.
we want to watch
9. queen charlotte: a bridgerton story
The team behind Bridgerton are bringing a new series to Netflix based around our favorite queen. The spin-off, named Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story, will serve as Charlotte’s origin story, gifting us with a new romance as the young woman meets and falls in love with the King of England – May 4
The top 25 events on the luxury calendar around the world for May 2023. Courtesy Photo.
10. guardians of the galaxy volume 3
In what is likely the last of Guardians movies, in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 once again, Peter Quill (aka Star-Lord) has to muster his motley group of space travelers to defend the universe – May 5
11. cannes film festival
Hollywood heads to the South of France for the 76th Cannes Film Festival with a stacked lineup that includes WWII movie The Zone of Interest, Pixar’s Elemental, Disney’s Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny and Killers of the Flower Moon by Martin Scorsese – May 16 – 27
12. american born chinese
Based on the genre-hopping graphic novel by Gene Luen Yang, American Born Chinese tells the story of Jin Wang, an average teenager juggling his high school social life with his home life. The Disney+ series reunites Everything Everywhere All at Once costars Michelle Yeoh, Ke Huy Quan and Stephanie Hsu – May 24
13. the little mermaid
Halle Bailey gets fins in the live action remake of the Disney classic The Little Mermaid. Melissa McCarthy, Javier Bardem and Awkwafina also star – May 26
we want to hear
14. electric daisy carnival
In addition to the music, at the Electric Daisy Carnival in Las Vegas, individuals can experience the three-dimensional superstructures, colorful, glow-in-the-dark environments and all manner of LED-infused flora and fauna – May 19 – 21
15. yunchan lim plays rachmaninoff
Fresh off his 2022 Van Cliburn International Piano Competition win, Yunchan Lim will make his NY Philharmonic debut in Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 3 with James Gaffigan – May 10 – 12
we want to check out
16. keels & wheels concours d’ elegance
Keels & Wheels Concours d’ Elegance is a classic car and vintage wooden boat show. It takes place 30 miles south of Houston at the Lakewood Yacht Club. Nearly 60 car judges and 20 boat judges evaluate approximately 40 car classes for cars and 20 boat classes – May 6 – 7
17. antigua bermuda race
After a three-year Covid hiatus, the 4th edition of the Antigua Bermuda Race will take place. It’s organized by the Royal Bermuda Yacht Club in association with Antigua Sailing Week. The 935-mile oceanic race starts off in Fort Charlotte, Antigua – May 9
The top 25 events on the luxury calendar around the world for May 2023. Courtesy Photo.
18. tefaf new york
Taking place at the Park Avenue Armory, TEFAF New York focuses on modern and contemporary art and design – May 12 – 16
19. the french open
The French Open is the 2nd of four annual Grand Slam events. It takes place on the red clay at Roland Garros in Paris – May 22 – Jun 11
20. frieze new york
Art lovers flock to Frieze for its dreamy display of works from local and international galleries. This year’s event at The Shed will feature imaginative projects from 65 galleries, as well as a virtual viewing room connecting galleries and audiences across the globe – May 17 – 21
The top 25 events on the luxury calendar around the world for May 2023. Courtesy Photo.
21. icff
One of the most important fairs taking place during the annual NYCxDesign is ICFF. The event convenes 36,000 designers, architects, retailers and other design world insiders at the Javits Center – May 21 – 23
we want to check into
22. hotel san fernando
Located in a 1947 building that originally housed apartments, Hotel San Fernando will bring the boho vibes to La Condesa, a hip Mexico City neighborhood. The hotel makes use of original architectural details like encasement windows, encaustic tile floors, wainscoting and stained glass. A ground-floor lounge will serve coffee and pastries by day and small bites like tostadas with natural wine in the afternoon and evening
we want a taste of
23. nantucket food and wine festival
After a quiet off-season, Nantucket Island wakes up for the 25th Nantucket Wine and Food Festival. Annual highlights include the Harbor Gala, with wines from forty exceptional wineries paired with bites from forty chefs. Another treat is “Great Wines in Grand Houses” — tastings and wine-pairing dinners hosted in Nantucket’s grand historic private homes – May 17 – 21
24. paso wine fest
The Paso Wine Fest will offer visitors the chance to explore more than 500 different Paso Robles wines with four days of wine tastings, winemaker dinners, live music, seminars and more – May 18 – 21
25. taste of tribeca
Now in its 29th year, Taste of Tribeca brings together 60 of Tribeca’s best restaurants for one unforgettable outdoor food festival and fundraiser benefiting the arts and enrichment programs at local public schools PS 150 and PS 234 – May 20
The top 25 events on the luxury calendar around the world for May 2023. Courtesy Photo.
what else is going on?
the first of may celebrations
May Day is one of the most popular holidays of the year in France; most shops and museums are closed to celebrate the nation’s Labor Day. Be on the look-out for lilies of the valley, which are a symbol of good luck. In China as well, May 1 is the country’s annual Labor Day.
The top 25 events on the luxury calendar around the world for May 2023. Courtesy Photo.
May Morning at Oxford in England is a joyous way to greet the month. There is a choir singing a hymn from the Magdalen Tower at dawn. It will be followed by dancing and singing in the streets.
the fifth of may parties
Cinco de Mayo is the annual celebration held to commemorate the victory of Mexican forces over the French at the Battle of Puebla in 1862 – May 5. Tequila!
the rest of the month
The annual Aids Walk New York first started in 1986. It is still the largest walk-a-thon in the world, attracting over 30,000 people. The money raised goes to Gay Men’s Health Crisis (GMHC) and over 40 other local AIDS service organizations – May 21.
The much loved Chelsea Flower Show will run for six days from May 23 to 27, at The Royal Hospital.
In addition to all of that, May is Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month and Jewish American Heritage Month. Mother’s Day in the United States is on the 14th and Memorial Day is the 29th. Get ready to fire up your grills and don’t forget to treat your mom to something extra special like flowers or a trip to the spa together.
what to do to have true luxury experiences in may 2023
That’s it. Our luxury calendar of the best luxury events and true luxury experiences in May 2023. What are you most excited about, dear reader?
