Musical Fountain Hunting

Some find them super cheesy, but to me, there is almost nothing like finding a musical fountain in your current city. Most of the time, information about them online is very sparse, blatantly incorrect, or only about the most touristy, largest fountains, mostly in big cities. While these are ok and fun to see, I’m talking about the smaller, lesser-known musical fountain variety. The one that you may have heard a whisper about. The one where ‘ok-its-getting-dark-out-and-I-should-probably-get-back-to-the-hotel-now-but-wait!-there’s-music-lets-check-it-out’ and it turns into a magical experience (for the record; following music has never led me wrong, and often leads to great experiences). The one where you notice speakers by a fountain and make a mental note to swing by later, just in case.

Am I the only one who does this?

Most of the time, these under-the-tourist-radar fountains are frequented by locals after dark, and everyone just hangs out and watches the magic. Kids run through the sprays, couples serenade each other, and others, no matter how many times they my have seen the show, stand spell-bound, watching the fountains, or possibly lights, or even just listening to the music.

In short, most of the time, these are fantastic local experiences that you mostly have to just stumble upon. But luckily, I’m willing to share some knowledge I’ve gleaned about where exactly to find these fountains, and how to go about getting the best experience from them, and you too, can be one of the people lucky enough to experience them!

1. Musical Fountain, Lenin Square, Ulan-Ude, Russia

Unless you are one of only 18 countries who don’t require a visa to get into Russia, this will likely prove to be an expensive and lengthy process. Ulan-Ude is in the far South-East of the country, a popular stop on the trans-mongolian train journey, and unless you are taking this journey, you will probably not even think about visiting this small centre. However, it is well worth a visit, as it combines uniquely its Russian location, with many Mongolian and Chinese influences (due most likely to its proximity to these countries – it is only 230km to the Mongolian border, in comparison to the 6500km to Eastern Europe’s borders).

The musical fountain just off of Lenin Square – at the end of Lenin Street – is one of the best I’ve ever seen. Shockingly little information can be found online, and that which can be found can be a little conflicting. From what I’ve observed and heard, the fountain music starts to play when it is dark enough for the light show to be seen (you might see how conflicting reports exist – in the summer, this can be as late as 9:30 or 10pm, but in spring or fall, it can be as early as 7pm. The fountain operates as long as the water runs (until it is about 10 degrees celsius as a low – after this, the pipes are cleared and water is turned off for the winter. Some years, this is September. Sometimes, not until November, and likewise for spring; sometimes as early as April, sometimes not until June. If seeing this is a priority, go in the middle of summer to be sure it will be working!) As long as weather is on your side, the show will play every evening.

The music and fountain height and colour are amazingly coordinated. If you’ve ever seen the Disney movie ‘Fantasia!’, it is similar to the obscure drawings that are set to various classical music pieces. Similar to that, the surrounding speakers play some of the most well-known and loved classical pieces and the fountain changes shapes and colours along with the song.

The entire show lasts more than 30 minutes. It is possible to meander around the square, and when you hear the music, walk over to the fountain, and still see the majority of the show. Likewise, it is perfectly fine to stop in, and leave whenever you like.

The show is populated by mostly locals. Children run through the splashes during more energetic pieces. Couples serenade each other, or simply gaze spell-bound into the fountain. Occasionally local vendors walk around, selling popcorn and ice cream for incredibly reasonable prices (~.75c US for a scoop, or ~1$ a bag for popcorn).

Check out my brief video of this musical fountain here on my youtube channel.

Pros: Mostly locals, impressive display, excellent atmosphere

Cons: difficult to predict when it will actually occur

2. Musical Fountains, Big Wild Goose Pagoda, Xi’an, China

The sheer amount of people in any main city in China means that anything that is meant to attract tourists, had better be well-prepared for millions of visitors to be there, at any point. The same is true for the musical fountains in Xi’an. While there is a raised seating area, and tickets are reasonably priced, if you haven’t bought them a week ahead in the summer time, there is very little chance of getting into the area.

Thankfully, the fountains span an area of just over 1 kilometre in length, and it runs through a park, ending at the Big Wild Goose Pagoda. The fountains can be viewed along both sides of the park.

The show starts around 9:30pm each evening, however if you are not in your spot by 9:00, you won’t have a front row, or unobstructed view of the fountains. While they can still be enjoyed from farther back, imagine millions of people in a relatively small area, all with cameras in the air, children on their shoulders, and standing on just about anything, in order to get a good view.

The show is quite impressive with various sprays, heights, colours, and music, all synchronized together, with a beautifully lit pagoda in the background.

Depending on where you stay in town, walking/traveling to the park can be extremely difficult. There are very few ‘lanes’ of traffic, and you may find yourself winding through car-to-car traffic, none of whom are particularly gentle towards pedestrians. While there is a pedestrian bridge, if you are on the ‘wrong’ side of the street approaching, you won’t be able to access it. (if you are coming from the centre /north of the Big Wild Goose Pagoda, approach from the East side of the street/park).

Pros: Massive, lengthy, impressive display and show. Popular with locals and tourists alike. Excellent atmosphere with artists, musicians, souvenir sellers around the park

Cons: extremely busy. Must go early to get a decent spot. Easy to lose your group. Can be difficult to access

3. Musical Fountains of Margaret Island, Budapest, Hungary

Margaret Island is a small island in the middle of Budapest. It is easy to get to either by walking, or by tram (yellow number 6), from nearly anywhere in the city. The island provides some of the best views of the parliament buildings, a beautiful, shaded area for those hot summer days, and is excellent for relaxing with a picnic and people watching.

However, the real highlight of the island is the light show and musical fountains that so few people seem to know about! Located on the southern part of the island, during the day, it seems like just a nice fountain to relax by. But from March to November (weather permitting), it features a beautiful light show to music.

Nightly, the full (8-song) show runs at 6pm and 9pm. If you are looking for something shorter, or just happen to miss the full show, there are small shows at 10:30am, 5pm, and 7:30pm. The show features both classical and pop music and of course, includes a dramatic light and water show to go along with it.

Perhaps due to the frequency of the shows, or the fact that few people seem to know about it, but it is possible to show up at the last minute and have an excellent view of the fountain. Many times, after the music starts, people will stop by, but it seems rare that many people watch and listen to the entire show.

Pros: easy to find, accessible, many showtimes, not many other tourists and people to block your view

Cons: easy to miss, if you don’t know what you’re looking for. There are several fountains in the park, and if you aren’t clear on where the fountain is, unless the show has started, it is possible to walk right by it, or be at a different fountain in the park. Thankfully, if you are close by, you will see and hear it, and the shows are long enough that you will be able to make your way to the right fountain.

Of course, this is by no-means an exhaustive list. Many other cities have musical fountains. Irkutsk (Russia), Chisinau (Moldova), Bucharest (Romania), just to name a few in Europe, and of course, many more throughout the world. In general, these are free shows, and are an excellent chance to see both tourists and locals and interact with each other.

Have you ever seen a musical fountain? Were you on the hunt for them, or did you stumble on one by accident?