lindy exchanges

Once you are bitten by the swing bug you will find that a lot of your holiday plans revolve around when and where you can go swing dancing - and fortunately the choice is endless!! There are swing dance schools all over the world, and most of them host lindy or balboa exchanges where you can do workshops and social dancing with some of the best teachers and dancers around today.

Here are just a FEW of the options on offer (chosen either because they are in a great location, are hosted by a great swing scene, have a great line up of teachers and bands, have a funky website......or if you are really lucky, all of the above)

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new zealand, australia

Margaret River Summer Camp - Perth (Swing Zing) [Jan 2-5 2010]
A weekend of funky Lindy and Balboa classes, social dancing under the stars, and some wine tasting to boot!

Margaret River Adventure Dance Camp - Perth (Simply Swing) [Jan 7-11 2010]
4 nights of live jazz and open air dancing, and days filled with exciting adventures in the wilderness (abseiling, canoeing & caving),

Swing Camp Oz - Adelaide [Jan 16-21 2011]
A week long camp of workshops and social dancing with Steven Mitchell and other international teachers.

Perth Lindy Jam - Perth (Swing It!) [Feb 25 - Mar 1 2010]
Five nights of social dancing, live bands, a DJ battle, and two days of workshops with international Lindy Hop teachers Sakarias Larsson and Jessica Lennartsson!

Art Deco Swing - Napier [February 19-21 2010]
Workshops and dancing at Napiers Art Deco Weekend

Blues before Sunrise (BBS) - Melbourne (Swing Patrol) [Mar 5-8 2010]
Melbourne's biggest blues dancing weekend with 4 levels of workshops

Hullabaloo (Perth Lindy Exchange) - Perth (PSDS) [Apr 22-26 2010]
An experiment in sleep deprivation each Easter at one of the liveliest scenes in Oz - this year with workshops by Hasse & Marie!

Soul Glo 2010 - [May 21-23 2010]
This is a massive party at a mansion halfway between Sydney and Canberra. Live music, exclusive cocktail list, dancing and of course the big potato.

BASE Camp - Auckland (The Swing Station) [Jun 4-7 2010]
Our very own Balboa and Swing Exchange ! 5 nights of dancing, 3 days of workshops, oodles of fun. This year with Derek & Trish and Jake from Sydney!

Melbourne Swing Festival (MSF) - Melbourne (Swing Patrol) [Jun 10-14 2010]
Five days with eight international teachers and swagloads of dancing

Devil City Swing - Hobart (TAS Swing) [Jun 25-27 2010]
More dancing to live bands and smokin' Dj's in one weekend than you thought possible

Sydney Balboa Weekend - Sydney (Swing Time NSW) [Jun 26-28 2010]
Two streams of classes, four international instructors (including Nick Williams Laura Keat) and two big social dancing nights!

Canberrang - Canberra (Jumptown Swing) [Aug 5-8 2010]
3 days 4 nights 5 bands . . . 100% social dancing!

Windy Lindy - Wellington (Full Swing) [Sep 17-19 2010]
An action-packed weekend of daring dancing, wonderful workshops, cosmopolitan competitions and brilliant big band sounds

Bal on the River - Brisbane (Swing Dance Brisbane) [Sep 23-26 2010]
Run by Balboa dancers for Balboa dancers, this has 3 days/3 levels of classes and 4 nights of social dancing, and this year the teaching line up includes Heidi & Steve, Joel & Sophie and Mickey & Kelly !! Whoah!

NZ Balboa & Blues - Auckland (The Swing Station) [Oct 1-3 2010]
More great workshops this time with Joel and Sophie, in NZ for the first time!! A bit of swing, a bit of balboa, a bit of blues.......and one heck of a good time!

Sydney Lindy Exchange (SLX) - Sydney (Swing Time NSW)
Workshops and social events held in conjunction with the Manly Jazz Festival

Church City Blues - Adelaide [Oct 15-17 2010]
A weekend of pure Blues workshops and dancing til the wee hours of the morning

Big Band Festival - Christchurch (Hepcat Swing) [Oct 20-25 2010]
LOTS of workshops and live band dances - including the Battle of the Bands featuring no less that 6 bands in one night!

Sydney Swing Festival (SSF) - Sydney (Swing Patrol) [Nov 11-14 2010]
A jam-packed weekend as Sydney goes SWING CRAZY with a HOT line up of teachers and social events - including Bobby & Kate this year!!!

Melbourne Lindy Exchange (MLX) - Melbourne (MJDA) [Nov 25-28 2010]
The swing capital of the southern hemisphere doin' what it does best - good ol' fashioned social dancing with 9+ events, 3+ live bands, 4 days & nights

Hanmer Swings - Hanmer Springs (Hepcat Swing) [3-5 Dec 2010]
Relaxing, eating, biking, soaking in the spas....oh, and a little swing on the side

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europe

Goodnight Sweetheart (GNSH) - University of Hertfordshire, UK (Jive Swing)
The largest swing camp in the UK, attracting 20 international teachers and 400 dancers

Rock That Swing Dance Camp - Munich (World of Swing - Marcus & Barbel)
An extremely impressive line up of international teachers and events

Paris Balboa Shag Festival - Paris (Spirit of Lindy)
3 crazy days for Shag & Balboa lovers

Crazy Rhythm Challenge - Toulouse (Studio Hop)
Huge parties, huge craziness!

Berlin Balboa Weekend - Berlin
"You are not too slow, its just too fast"

La Santa Swing - Lanzorote, Canary Islands (Jump n Jive)

Brit Hop (London Lindy Exchange) - London
A weekend long party where the name of the game is dancing, socialising and fun!

Barswingona (Barcelona Swing Festival) - Barcelona, Spain
Gorgeous location, GREAT line up

Swing Brother Swing - Bologna, Italy
GORGEOUS location, great line up

London Swing Festival - London, England (Swing Patrol London)
History in the making as Swing Patrol continue their northern invasion with the first LSF!

Montpellier Swingjammerz Festival - Montpellier
Featuring the awesome Ninjammerz in their birthplace

Swing Crash - Como, Italy (Flying Alligators - Vince & Isa)
GORGEOUS location, GREAT line up

HERRANG DANCE CAMP - Herrang, Sweden (Harlem Hot Shots) [June 27 2009]
THE SWING EVENT OF THE YEAR!! 4 weeks of 24 hour round the clock swing with THE BEST teachers and dancers in the world. A MUST DO at least once in your lifetime

The Battle - Stockholm, Sweden
A no-mercy winner-takes-all lindyhop battle by the best of the best - the weekend after Herrang

Ryan & Jenny's Camp Savoy - Guildford, England (Ryan and Jenny)
Hosted by the great Ryan Francois and Jenny Thomas duo

Summer Jamboree - Senigallia, Italian Riviera
8 days of music and fun Italian style - with a few workshops in between

Festiv' Alan Swing - Alan (south of Toulouse), France

Studio Hop Summer Camp - Santiago de Compostela, France (Studio Hop)

Munich Lindy Exchange - Munich, Germany
Coincidently at the same time as Ocktoberfest - now thats a good mix

Edinburgh Lindy Exchange - Edinburgh (Edinbop, Edinburgh SDS, Zoot Swing)
Cos the Scots know how to party!

London Balboa Festival - London (The Lindy Circle - Dan Guest)

Cambridge Lindy Exchange - Cambridge (Cambridge Lindy Hoppers)

Paris Swing Dance Fesitval - Paris, France (Les Fous du Swing)
A week of swing with awesome teachers in the most beautiful city in the world!!

Grenoble Swing Dance Festival (GSDF 09) - Grenoble, France (Grenoble Swing)
"Un weekend de choc" with Kevin, Emily, Zack, Frida, Peter and Ramona - yeah!

The Snowball - Stockholm, Sweden
4 days of classes with a great line up of international teachers, 7 nights of Lindy Hop & Balboa and a great New Years Eve party

Frenchie Balboa Festival - Toulouse, France (Studio Hop)
The best Balboa dancers and teachers, and the biggest Balboa parties and competitions in Europe

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asia, south america, the world

Honk Kong Swing Festival - Saigon (Hong Kong Swings)
FIVE Big Bands, EIGHT incredible lindy hop performances, and workshops by an ALL STAR line-up of renowned dancers & teachers (including Max and Tommy!)

Moscow Christmas Swing Dance Camp - Moscow

Lindy Hop Argentina International Festival (LHAIF) - Buenos Aires, Argentina

SeaJam - Singapore (Jitterbugs Singapore)

Vietnam Lindy Exchange - Saigon (Saigon Swing)
Imagine dancing on a purpose built wood deck only 5 meters away from the sea!
Swimming, kite surfing, beach volleyball, spa, massage, sun lazing, and....some swing!

Korea Lindy Hop Revolution - Seoul
If its good enough for the Silver Shadows, its good enough for us

Great Wall Swingout - Beijing
Yes, I think you can literally swing dance on the Great Wall ! Now that would be something. Oh, and they have workshops and bands too....

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north america

Oahu, HI : Hawaii Lindy Balboa Exchange
Ottawa, Canada : Shag Explosion with Nathan Shetterley & Véro Paquet
Ft. Lauderdale, FL : South Florida Lindy Exchange
Salt Lake City, UT : Utah Lindy Exchange
Atlanta, GA : Enter The Blues Blues Workshop Weekend
Quebec City, QC : Québec Swing Rendez-vous (QSRV)
Austin, TX : Lone Star Championships
San Diego, CA : San Diego Fusion Exchange (SDFX)

Bloomington, IN : Big Red Swing Weekend
Atlanta, GA : Down South Camp Meeting
San Diego, CA : California Girl Jam
Seattle, WA : Northwest Balboa Festival
Memphis, TN : Bluesalicious
Denver, CO : Rocky Mountain Balboa Blowout

Houston, TX : Great Southwest LindyFest (Houston Swing Dance Society)
Portland, OR : Portland Lindy Exchange
Sacramento, CA: : Sacramento Lindy Exchange
Vancouver, BC: : Swing Summit
Danvers, MA : Boston Tea Party
Seattle, WA : Battle of Swing

Montreal, Canada : Bring It!
New York, NY: Babble (Big Apple Blues Balboa & Lindy Exchange)
Vancouver, Canada : Lindy Bout
Denver, CO : Denver Blues Summit
Rochester, NY : Stompology
San Diego, CA : Balboa Rendezvous
Virginia Beach, ; The Experiment (Balboa)
New Orleans, LA : Fleur de Lindy Exchange
Washington DC : Washington DC Lindy Exchange (DCLX)
Atlanta, GA : Atlanta Lindy Exchange (ATLX)
Rochester, NY : Northeast Girl Jam

Stillwater, MN : MidWest LindyFest
Charleston, SC : Charleston Lindy Exchange (CHEX)
Columbus, OH : Columbus Blues and Swing (CBUS)
Seattle WA : Camp Jitterbug
Boston, MA : Boston Independence Exchange
Chicago, IL : Blues Shout
Montreal, Quebec : Canadian Swing Championships

New York, NY : Frankie Manning's 95th Birthday Festival (May 21 - 26 2009)

Chicago, IL : CUBE: Chicago Underground Blues Experience
Cleveland, OH : All Balboa Weekend
Virginia Beach, VA : Virginia Beach Lindy Exchange (VBLX)
Beverly, MA : Beantown Camp (Hop to the Beat)
Washington, DC : Big Big Event
Montreal, Quebec : Montreal Balboa Revue

Los Angeles, CA : Camp Hollywood
New York, NY: The Blues Collective
Ann Arbor, MI : Ann Arbor Lindy Exchange ( A2LX)

Danvers, MA : Wicked Lindy
Nashville, TN : Music City Mini-Camp
Hebron, NH : Swing Out New Hampshire
Denver, CO : Lindy On The Rocks
Washington, DC : International Lindy Hop Championship (ILHC)
Ottawa : Balboa Explosion

Orange County, CA : Inspiration Weekend
Atlanta, GA : Southern Belle Swing Bash
Omaha, NE : Cowtown Jamborama
La Honda, CA : Indian Summer Swing Camp (Yeahman - Rob & Dianne)
Virginia Beach, VA : Dirt Cheap Blues Exchange
Los Angeles, CA : Bal Jam
Seattle, WA : Camp Balboa Seattle
San Francisco, CA: : San Francisco Lindy Exchange

Stamford, CT : American Lindy Hop Championships (ALHC)
Chicago, IL : WCLX Windy City Lindy Exchange
New Orleans, LA : Ultimate Lindy Hop Showdown (ULHS)
Las Vegas, NV : Las Vegas Exchange
Quebec City, Canada : Canadian Balboa Championships
Montreal, Canada : Cat's Corner Tenth Anniversary
Denver, CO : Lindy Diversion Weekend
Richmond, VA : Jammin on the James
Albuquerque, NM : ABQLX

Knoxville, TN : Knoxville Lindy Exchange (KLX)
Pittsburgh, PA : Pittsburgh Exchange
Austin, TX : Austin Lindy Exchange
Phoenix, AZ : Phoenix Lindy Exchange (PHXLX)
Seattle, WA : Emerald City Blues
Avalon, CA : Catalina Jazz Dance Festival
Quebec City, Canada : Followlogie

Atlanta, GA : Swing and Soul
Seattle, Washington : Killer Diller Weekend
San Diego, CA : Rhythmic Arts Festival
San Diego, CA : Swingin' the New Year
Ashville, NC : Lindy Focus VII
New Orleans, LA : Dance Renaissance

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balboa

Hawaii Lindy Balboa Exchange - Hawaii

Rocky Mountain Balboa Blowout - Denver
Paris Balboa Shag Festival - Paris
Northwest Balboa Festival - Seattle

Berlin Balboa Weekend - Berlin

Balboa Rendezvous - San Diego
Babble - New York
The Experiment (Balboa) - Virginia Beach

Sydney Balboa Weekend - Sydney

All Balboa Weekend - Cleveland
Montreal Balboa Revue - Quebec

Camp Hollywood - Los Angeles
Twin Cities Balboa Festival - Minnesota

Studio Hop Summer Camp - France
Balboa Explosion - Ottawa

Bal on the River - Brisbane
Bal Jam - Los Angeles
Camp Balboa Seattle - Seattle

NZ Balboa & Blues - Auckland
London Balboa Festival - London
Canadian Balboa Championships - Quebec
Eastern Balboa Championships - North Carolina

Followlogie - Quebec

San Francisco Balboa Swing Festival - San Francisco

Frenchie Balboa Festival - Toulouse, France (Studio Hop)