Summer festivals in Europe. The most interesting festivals in Europe this summer

What could be better than good music and travel? Only good music while traveling. We have prepared a selection of the most exciting European music festivals in Europe this summer, which you should not miss!

JUNE

InMusic (Croatia). Since 2011, the Croatian festival has brought together several thousand music lovers and hundreds of famous European musicians on the island of Jarun near the capital Zagreb. This year the festival program is dominated by the British: PJ Harvey, the Kooks, the Coral, Florence and the Machine. Accommodation is not provided for visitors, however, there are a lot of hotels and apartments in the capital of Croatia.

When: June 20-22

Ticket price: 75 euros
Where to stay: You can find a hotel.

Roskilde Festival (Denmark).

One of the oldest and largest festivals in Europe continues to delight lovers of good music and active recreation. In 2016, the festival lineup is replete with bright names: Elle King, Neil Young, Chvrches, Red Hot Chili Peppers. A tent camp with all amenities and an area with small field cafes and restaurants have been organized for visitors. Denmark's main music event takes place annually in the small town of Pladsen Darupvej, near Copenhagen. There is a regular bus service from and to the capital.

Ticket price: 1995 DKK (about 270 euros) – for all days of the festival + place in the tent camp
Where to stay: Accommodation options can be selected

Pinkpop (Netherlands). Since 1970, the Dutch festival has attracted lovers of different genres: rock, pop, jazz, funk. 2016 will be no exception, and Rammstein, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Paul McCartney, Lionel Richie, Bring me the Horizon and other artists will perform in the city of Landgraf in the south of the Netherlands (200 km from Amsterdam). Festival visitors can stay in tents for a fee. You can also eat inexpensively and exercise on the festival grounds.

When: June 10 – 12
Ticket price: 195 euros (all days of the festival + place in the tent camp)
How to get there: Tickets to Amsterdam can be purchased on the aviasales website. The town of Landgraf can be reached by
Where to stay: You can find a hostel or hotel room on booking.com

Open'Er Festival (Poland). The famous Polish music festival has been offering its visitors a variety of music since 2002. In 2016, Pharrell Williams, Florence and the Machine, Foals, Sigur Ros, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Tame Impala, M83 and other diverse artists will perform in the town of Gdynia in northern Poland on the Baltic Sea coast. Accommodation will be provided for everyone in a large tent camp on the festival grounds.

When: June 29 – July 2
Ticket price: 150 euros (all days of the festival + tent)
How to get there: the nearest city you can fly to is Gdansk
For those who don’t really like spending the night in tents, it’s better to stay in a hotel or hostel in Gdansk

July

Montreux Jazz Festival (Switzerland). The festival, with a 50-year history, has long been inviting not only jazz performers, but also musicians of other genres. So, in 2016 the headliners will be Lana del Ray, Sigur Ross, Deep Purple, Muse, ZZ Top, Patti Smith, Simply Red. The musical event will traditionally take place in the city of Montreux in the largest concert hall in Switzerland - Auditorium Stravinski. Since thousands of people from all over the world come to the festival, you should take care of accommodation in advance: there are not too many hotels in Montreux.

When: July 1 – 16
Ticket price: full ticket for all days of the festival – 1420 Swiss francs (about 1300 euros)

Tomorrowland (Belgium). The main European dance music festival has been taking place for several years in the town of Boom, 31 kilometers from Brussels. Last year the festival was attended by 38 thousand people. In 2016, Martin Garrix, Nicky Romero, Armin van Buuren, Tiesto and 50 other DJs and performers from around the world will perform on the main stage of the festival. On the festival grounds there is a comfortable tent camp with all the necessary conditions for living.

When: July 22 – 24
Ticket price: 290 euros (all days of the festival + place in the tent camp)

Colors of Ostrava (Czech Republic). Since 2002, the third largest city in the Czech Republic, Ostrava, has hosted Europe's main open-air hipster music festival. Every year, lovers of fashionable genres come here: indie rock, indie folk and post-rock. Björk, Kasabian, MGMT, The xx have already attended the festival, and this year music lovers will come to the Czech Republic to hear Kodaline, Of Monsters and Men, Passenger, Underworld. There is no campground on site, but Ostrava has many inexpensive hotels and hostels.

Exit (Serbia). At the very beginning of its history, the festival in the city of Novi Sad, 100 kilometers from Belgrade, meant youth protests against the authorities and open-air strikes, accompanied by live music. Over the years, the event has grown into a full-fledged major music festival, which over the 10 years of its existence has attracted 3 million music lovers. This year the festival program consists of representatives of the rock and electronic scenes: Bastille, David Guetta, Ellie Goulding, Hurts, the Prodigy, the Vaccines, Robin Shculz, Nina Kraviz and others. Visitors can purchase a spot in a tent camp on the beach.

When: July 7 – 10
Ticket price: from 107 euros (all days of the festival + tent + transfer from the airport)

August

Sziget (Hungary). On the small island of Óbuda, right in the middle of the Danube between the Buda and Pest sides of the Hungarian capital, the main musical event of central Europe has been taking place since 1993. Every year, more than 400 thousand music lovers from all over the world come to Sziget to listen to good music and at the same time spend time in Budapest. Among the headliners of 2016 are the most diverse artists: Rihanna, Sia, Muse, David Guetta, Noel Gallagher, Sigur Ross, the Lumineers, Sum 41, Die Antwoord, Chvrches, Kodaline, and also known to Russian listeners “Leningrad” and Therr Maitz. All infrastructure is organized for festival visitors: tent camp, cafes and canteens, laundry, safes, excursions around Budapest and much more.

When: August 10 – 17
Ticket price: 269 ​​euros (all days of the festival + place in the tent camp)

Flow Festival (Finland). A huge open-air right in the center of Helsinki since 2005 combines the music of famous musicians and visual art. Performances by world stars are accompanied by video installations by European artists. In August 2016, at the festival you can see performances by Massive Attack, Sia, Jamie xx, Iggy Pop, M83, the Last shadow puppets, Anohni and others. A large food court with many cafes and restaurants will be organized on the festival grounds. There is no tent city, but in Helsinki you can easily find a hostel room and a hotel room.

The season of fun open airs and cool concerts is approaching, which means it’s time to talk about where this summer in Europe promises to be the hottest. We are planning vacations, holidays and going to the European summer festivals 2016!

MELT!

Sziget Festival

Glastonbury Festival

Reading Festival

InMusic Festival

Tomorrowland Belgium

Rock Werchter

Pukkelpop Festival

EXIT

Pinkpop Festival

Dance Valley

Open"er Festival

Pohoda Festival

Fib Festival

Roskilde Festival

Rock en Seine

Primavera Sound

Warning your fair comments, we immediately note that we already have a separate article about the best jazz festivals in Europe, about the main musical events of the summer in Ukraine -.

Western Europe

Primavera Sound, Barcelona (Spain)

Headliners 2017: Bon Iver, Frank Ocean, The xx, Arcade Fire, Aphex Twin, Solange, Kate Tempest, Grandaddy, Run The Jewels, Skepta.

Prices: 80 euros – 1 day, officially – 195 euros, but only tickets costing from 200 euros are available for resale.

Primavera is one of the most impressive music festivals in Europe. In 2014, it was visited by 190 thousand people, 292 groups performed on 16 stages. In the 15 years since its founding, Sonic Youth, The White Stripes, Blur, Portishead, Arcade Fire, The XX, Pulp - and almost all the heroes of modern rock music - have come to Primavera. No less pleasing than the list of participants is that the festival takes place in Barcelona, ​​a city reminiscent of paradise (for more details, see our guide). In 2012, another festival of the same name spun off from Primavera. On June 8-10, NOS Primavera Sound will take place in Porto (Portugal). The list of artists here is not so large, but also attractive: Bon Iver, Justice, Aphex Twin, Run The Jewels and many others.

How to get there: To Barcelona - direct flight or with a transfer (Lufthansa, KLM). From the center of Barcelona the festival can be reached by public transport.

Rock am Ring and Rock im Park, Mending and Nuremberg (Germany)

Headliners 2017: Rammstein, System of a Down, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, Bastille, Liam Gallagher, Rag'N'Bone Man, Die Toten Hosen.

Prices: 210 euros.

Rock am Ring and Rock im Park are simultaneous and almost identical festivals. The first will take place at the Nürburgring circuit (previously held at the old air base in the city of Mendig) in western Germany, the second - in Nuremberg (Bavaria). Having played at one of the brother festivals, the artists move to another the next day. Compared to other summer festivals in Europe, Rock am Ring / im Park is heavier and more uncompromising. Pop stars and electronic artists are sometimes miraculously found on the list of participants, but for the most part the line up lives up to the name of the event.

How to get there: If you're heading to the Rock am Ring in Mendig, the closest airports are Frankfurt (we have a guide for that city, by the way) and Cologne. Getting to Nuremberg is even easier. There is an airport in the city itself, and it’s just over an hour by train from Munich.

Glastonbury, Pilton (Somerset, England)

Headliners 2017: Radiohead, Foo Fighters, Ed Sheeran, The xx, The National, Katy Perry, Alt-J, Lorde, Solange, Run The Jewels, Anderson .Paak, Major Lazer, Laura Marling, Stormzy.

Prices:£238 + £5 booking fee. Sold out can be fast.

Glastonbury is the king of festivals, an event that even those who are not at all interested in music know about. The festival, in fact, does not need any additional advertising from us or anyone else. From year to year, tickets are sold out instantly, before the announcement of participants, as soon as they, the tickets, go on sale. It's not difficult to predict the headliners - whoever reigns at the top of the charts this year will lead the Glastonbury lineup. Legends of pop and rock music also happily take part in the festival. So, over the past few years, among the main faces of Glastonbury were Kanye West, Florence & The Machine, The Who, Arcade Fire, Metallica, Kasabian, U2, Beyonce, Coldplay, Stevie Wonder. Every year the festival attracts about 135 thousand spectators. I could have more, but it doesn't fit anymore.

How to get there: If you managed to get tickets and are seriously studying how to get there, write to us. We will admire and envy with white envy. The closest decent airport to Glastonbury is Bristol. From Bristol Airport you will need to take a bus to Bristol Temple Meads station, where there are regular buses to the festival. If you are flying into London, there is also a special bus from Heathrow to the festival.

Roskilde Festival, Roskilde (Denmark)

Headliners 2017: Foo Fighters, A Tribe Called Quest, Arcade Fire, Justice, Moderat, Solange, The Weeknd, Bonobo, Lorde, Father John Misty.

Prices: 134 euros – 1 day, 268 euros – full ticket.

Roskilde is one of the pioneers of the summer festival movement. It was first held in 1971. They say that everything was terrible with the organization, but the enthusiasm of the creators, inspired by Woodstock, was off the charts. Now, 45 years later, the enthusiasm remains, and we have learned to organize. Roskilde is the largest music and arts festival in Northern Europe. More than 30 thousand volunteers take part in the event. In the 90s, electronic music was added to the traditionally strong rock scene. It's funny, but true: the festival is famous not only for its rich and stellar musical program, but also for a very unique event - the naked people's race. The fastest naked people win a ticket to next year's festival as a prize.

How to get there: The journey from Copenhagen to Roskilde takes half an hour. You will have to fly from Kyiv to Copenhagen with a transfer (a direct flight will appear only in August); there are direct flights from Moscow. A direct train to Roskilde leaves every hour from both the airport and Copenhagen Central Station. There are also regular and night buses to Copenhagen. Special buses run regularly from the center of Roskilde to the festival.

Rock Werchter, Werchter (Belgium)

Headliners 2017: Kings of Leon, Arcade Fire, The Chainsmokers, Imagine Dragons, Lorde, Savages, Mark Lanegan Band, Beth Ditto.

Prices: 100 euros – 1 day, 236 euros – full ticket.

Werchter, like Roskilde, is an old-timer. The first Verchter was held about 40 years ago - in 1975. The names of the first participants most likely won’t tell you anything, but already in 1978 Talking Heads performed at Verkhter, in 1982 – The Kinks, in 1983 – Eurythmics, U2 and Peter Gabriel. In general, the further you go, the steeper and larger it becomes. Werchter is now a four-day concert on three stages with the participation of 75 groups and solo performers.

How to get there: Werchter is located just 30 kilometers from Brussels (direct flights available). A festival ticket entitles you to 1 free train or bus ticket from to the festival site. Details on issuing such a ticket are available.

Nos Alive, Lisbon, (Portugal)

Headliners 2017: Depeche Mode, The xx, The Weeknd, Alt-J, Foo Foghters, The Kills, Parov Stelar, Bonobo, Imagine Dragons, Fleet Foxes, The Avalanches, Savages.

Prices: 59 euros – 1 day, 123 euros – full ticket (sold out).

The Nos Alive festival was founded relatively recently (2007) and is not yet as well known as other events on this list. However, the festival boasts both a top-notch lineup of headliners and an excellent reputation for organization. The program features modern indie stars, current pop artists, rock legends and local musicians. What’s important is that Lisbon is a wonderful city that we recommend any traveler to visit. A music festival in addition to the charm of Lisbon is just some kind of holiday. Moreover, after the festival you can go traveling around Portugal. For example, to the south - to the beaches. By the way, we have guides for Lisbon and our beloved Sintra, a small city half an hour away.

How to get there: The festival takes place 15 minutes by car from the center of Lisbon. There are direct flights to Lisbon from Kyiv and Moscow, and a lot of options with transfers.

Flow Festival, Helsinki (Finland)

Headliners 2017: Lana Del Rey, Aphex Twin, London Grammar, Young Thug, The xx, Flume, Sparks, Sampha, Frank Ocean, Ryan Adams, Moderat, Angel Olsen, Goldfrapp.

Prices: 99 euros – 1 day, 149 euros – 2 days, 185 euros – full ticket.

The Flow festival is held on the site of an abandoned power plant near the center of Helsinki. Every year Flow opens 10-12 stages: from very tiny ones to the main stage for 20 thousand spectators. The festival's most famous attraction is the Ballon 360o stage, which features a giant hot air balloon for a roof. In addition to the cool music component, Flow places a special emphasis on the theme of art - the program is usually developed in collaboration with the Helsinki Art Institute. Also on the Flow territory there are discussions, seminars and lectures on socially useful and cultural topics.

How to get there: The festival takes place within walking distance of the center of Helsinki. Getting to Helsinki is easy and simple by direct flight.

Pukkelpop, Kjevit Hasselt, (Belgium)

Headliners 2017: Chance the Rapper, The xx, Flume, PJ Harvey, Sampha, The Shins, Stormzy, Mumford & Sons, Nicolas Jaar, Parov Stelar, Interpol, Moderat, Clean Bandit, Editors, Elbow, The Flaming Lips, Band of Horses, Bastille.

Prices: 99 euros – 1 day, 199 euros – full ticket.

Everything about the Pukkelpop festival is perfect: the name, the location, the line-up of participants. When creating a program, organizers usually try to invite both legendary musicians and still little-known young writers with a guitar. On the posters you can find the names of world pop stars, authors of electronic music, punks, metalheads - there are simply no genre restrictions. The number of festival visitors annually is about 180 thousand people.

How to get there: Don't let the unfamiliar and hard-to-pronounce name of a locality scare you. The village of Kjevit is located just an hour's drive from. Moreover, usually a ticket to the festival entitles you to a free train or bus ride.

Closer to us

Open’er Festival, Gdynia (Poland)

Headliners 2017: Radiohead, Foo Fighters, The Weeknd, The xx, James Blake, Moderat, The Kills, Royal Blood, Solange, Nicolas Jaar.

Prices: about 55 euros – 1 day, 130 euros – a full ticket for 4 days of the festival.

How to get there: From Kyiv - even by car (as an option, BlaBlaCar). The distance is about 1200 km, along the way you can see Warsaw. You can also travel by plane to Gdansk – with a direct Wizz Air flight or with a transfer in Warsaw. You can consider more complex, but economical options: walking across the border or taking a bus is much cheaper and further as it goes. Explore PolskiBus routes - an easy and affordable way to travel around the country (we talked about this carrier in our article about the road to Krakow). In addition, every year there are enthusiasts offering bus tours from Ukraine to the festival. Free buses that take you directly to the festival site depart regularly from the Gdynia railway station.

EXIT Festival, Novi Sad (Serbia)

Headliners 2017: The Killers, Liam Gallagher, Years & Years, Paul Kalkbrenner, Lost Frequencies, Solomun, Duke Dumont, Robin Schulz, Hardwell, Rag'n'Bone Man.

Prices:£30 – 1 day, £98 – full ticket for 4 days of the festival, £119 – full ticket, including entry to day zero (The Killers concert).

Every summer, the quiet university town of Novi Sad in Serbia welcomes thousands of tourists in just 4 days. It all started in 2000 with a student protest, and grew to one of the main parties in Europe. Until now, the festival has not lost its social and political orientation. The organizers consider EXIT a symbol of progress, an engine of change in society and a key cultural platform for the Balkans. Musically, the festival is quite eclectic. Traditionally there is a lot of electronics, a separate stage is reserved for heavy music. The headliners of the festival were Guns N' Roses, Kraftwerk, Arctic Monkeys, Pet Shop Boys, Pulp, Underworld, Massive Attack, and The White Stripes. EXIT's greatest strength is its location. Arriving at the festival, immediately see the main attraction of the city - EXIT takes place directly in the 17th century Petrovarida fortress. If we have convinced you that you need to go, pay attention to our guide to Novi Sad. By the way, while studying the festival website, we discovered that the word “values” is translated into Serbian as “vrednosti”. The Serbian language is harsh and unpredictable.

How to get there: The nearest airport is in Belgrade (an hour and a half drive to the festival). The noble and prudent organizers offer transfer by bus from Belgrade and from other airports in the region: Timisoara (3.5 hours travel), Budapest (5.5 hours), Zagreb (6 hours), Zadar, Split and Dubrovnik (10- 11 o'clock).

Colors of Ostrava, Ostrava (Czech Republic)

Headliners 2017: Jamiroquai, Imagine Dragons, Norah Jones, Justice, Alt-J, Moderat, LP, Laura Mvula, Benjamin Clementine, Unkle, Michael Kiwanuka.

Prices: 96 euros currently, on the day of the festival – 112 euros.

The Colors of Ostrava festival takes place on the territory of a former industrial zone in the Czech city of Ostrava. The organizers do not have favorite genres: the festival, true to its name, is truly colorful and diverse. There are electronics, jazz, traditional pop rock, and street performances - 16 stages accommodate everything you can imagine. Pay attention to the price. With a very decent list of artists, this is one of the cheapest festivals to attend in Europe.

Picnic Afisha, Moscow (Russia)

Headliners 2017: Kasabian, Foals, Mushrooms, GSh.

Prices: So far 2500 rubles (about 40 euros). Closer to the date it will most likely be more expensive.

Afisha's picnic was included in our list in advance - for his years of service. So far, several participants have been announced, and we can only believe that it will be as great as in past years. Afisha magazine holds a music festival in Moscow's Kolomenskoye Park every summer. Representatives of different musical genres perform: pop music, rock, electronics, hip-hop, jazz. The main principle is to please the Afisha team. Traditionally, a lot of attention at the festival is paid to interesting Russian bands. The headliners of the “picnics” of past years were Jamiroquai, Blur, Franz Ferdinand, Pet Shop Boys, Mumiy Troll, Madness, Ivan Dorn, Zemfira. For guests there is usually a market with clothes, comics, jewelry and other useful and useless things, as well as a large and very cool food court. In addition to concerts, organizers always come up with other entertainment: lectures and master classes, sports competitions, games and other events.

How to get there: From Ukraine - by train. Or by plane, but with a transfer. The least painful transfers are through Warsaw, Riga and Minsk.

Sziget, Budapest (Hungary)

Headliners 2017: Kasabian, Major Laser, P!nk, Wiz Khalifa, Flume, PJ Harvey, Alt-J, Interpol, The Kills, Jamie Cullum, Tom Odell, Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike.

Every summer, Budapest's Óbuda Island hosts Sziget, one of Europe's largest music festivals, a week-long non-stop party attended by over 400,000 people. For each day of the festival, the organizers invite a worthy headliner. This role has already been played by Radiohead, Nick Cave, Franz Ferdinand, The Prodigy, Faith No More, Placebo, The Offspring, Fatboy Slim, Lily Allen, Iggy Pop, Robert Plant and others. Traditionally, the list of festival participants also includes Ukrainian bands. In addition to musical concerts, the festival always hosts performances by theater and circus groups, and organizes film screenings, sports competitions, master classes and other entertainment for guests. The local attraction Luminarium deserves special attention - it is an inflatable structure of a bizarre shape with fantastic lighting. You should definitely come here for impressions.

How to get there: You can get to Budapest by bus, train or plane - WizzAir and UIA airlines operate direct flights from Kyiv. Like Open’er, Sziget is also often organized by bus tours by all sorts of enthusiasts. The festival website has detailed instructions for those traveling for the first time from Russia and Ukraine.

Its own game: electronic music festivals

Sonar, Barcelona (Spain)

Headliners 2017: Anderson. Paak & The Free Nationals, Arca, Cerrone, Daphni & Hunee, De La Soul, DJ Shadow, Dubfire, Eric Prydz, Jon Hopkins, Joe Goddard, Justice, Moderat, Nicolas Jaar, Nina Kraviz, Soulwax, Thundercat.

Prices: 54 euros – 1 day, 72 euros – 1 night, 125 euros – 2 nights, 180 euros (195 euros from May 6) – full ticket.

Every June, Barcelona (as we already said, one of the best cities in the world) hosts a large electronic music festival, Sonar. The organizers' goal is to strengthen the links between technological advancements and creativity, creating a global platform and meeting place for creative people from various disciplines and regions. Sonar consists of two parts. The daytime Sonar takes place at the Fira Montjuïc fairgrounds and features concerts, DJs, showcases for up-and-coming musicians and a series of events called Sonar+D, aimed at strengthening the links between creativity, innovation and business. Night Sonar is a party with the participation of world stars of electronic music, taking place at the Fira Gran Via de L’Hospitalet exhibition center.

How to get there: To Barcelona - direct flight or with a transfer (Lufthansa, KLM). From the center of Barcelona the festival can be reached by public transport. A special SonarBus bus also runs to the night site (fare 2.5 euros).

Tomorrowland, Boom (Belgium)

Headliners 2017: David Guetta, Armin Van Buuren, Eric Prydz, Nicky Romero, Markus Schulz, Ferry Corsten, Steve Aoki, Martin Solveig, Tiësto, Carl Cox, Paul Van Dyk, Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike, Solomun, Netsky, Martin Garrix, Fat Boy Slim , Duke Dumont.

Prices: 105 euros – 1 day, 285 euros – full ticket. No matter how much the tickets cost, they are no longer on official sale - they have been sold out.

Tomorrowland is one of the world's premier electronic music festivals. Over three days there are more than 200 performances, including sets from the leaders of the TOP 100 DJ MAG rating. Tickets for Tomorrowland usually sell out almost instantly – in the first days after the start of sales. Even when the festival is spread over two weekends and the number of visitors exceeds 350 thousand people, there are still not enough tickets for everyone.

How to get there: The city of Boom is located between Antwerp and. The easiest way is to fly to Brussels and get to your destination by train or special shuttle. BikesBooking.

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Long summer evenings lend themselves perfectly to attending a festival or two.

And there's plenty to choose from during the summer months.

Here's a selection of some of the most exciting and vibrant festivals taking place across Europe this June.

Food and drink festivals

Held in the delightful Cotswolds, the UK is one where music and comedy combine with incredible food and Ale Festival Real.

Attracting around 1 million visitors every year, it is an amazing place to see with so many visitors dressed in Roman clothing.

The ancient city of San Gimignano, Italy, honors this past when it hosts the FERIE Messium - the Medieval Harvest Festival.

This massive three day event features leading international acts along with great local talent.

Now in its 21st year, Once again will be held over eight different weekends, and makes a great excuse (if needed!) to visit Paris.

Covering all musical genres, Norway puts on a truly extraordinary show.

Electronic music and digital media come together at . It offers a unique combination of innovation, technology and creativity.

Take an island, bring in some world-class jazz, blues and funk, and you have the makings of another superb, Binz on Rügen, Germany.

Wild, crazy, quirky and eclectic describe Denmark's oldest and biggest music event, this is one to experience.

Held in a stunning setting, the alternative has developed a loyal following.

This true multicultural festival caters to music, art, cinema for all those who attend this celebration of life held just south of Barcelona.

From June to September, the whole of Europe becomes a huge field of experiments for the summer for promoters who hold not only large international festivals, but also very small events in not very large cities. The advantage of such events is that for very modest money you find yourself in not the most obvious European regions, from the Basque Country to the Mediterranean coast, see local life without tourist guides and come up with your own unforgettable summer trip, where good summer concerts are only part of the program.

Look At Me selects 20 less obvious festivals, too small to be global and too many outsiders to know about them. In addition, these places themselves are usually famous among advanced tourists, so a trip can bring much more excitement than one big rave. Even if you just find yourself somewhere nearby, pay attention - it is possible that what is happening literally 50-100 kilometers away will pleasantly surprise you.

Southside

Listen

And also: Blink-182, Rise Against, The Temper Trap, The Kooks, Stoned Roses, Gus Gus, Nneka, Die Antwoord, Twin Shadow, Mumford & Sons, High Flying Birds, Kettcar, The Mars Volta and others.

The rock festival, taking place in the south of Germany since 1999, is not the most obvious, like some Primavera, but no less worthwhile. Like its twin Hurricane (which is located in the German north), it has proven itself well among fans of independent music. The first Southside was held at an air base, and since 2000 the camp has been located in the picturesque location of Neuhausen ob Eck on the border with Switzerland. 100 thousand people from Germany, Switzerland and Holland come here and hang out there for three days in a row in the noisy surroundings of the giant European festival. One of the advantages and at the same time disadvantages is the large territory: four separate stages are located in different corners, so the sound of different teams, be it pop-punk, country or electronic, does not overlap at all. One of the ideas of the festival is eco-friendly: no glass and plastic bottles, household waste and other garbage artifacts. If you collect a bag with the latter, you get 5 euros back.
The event takes place without any problems in absolutely any weather - there have been hurricanes and torrential rain, the rockers don’t mind anything. By the way, disposable raincoats are also returned for reincarnation.

Around

From too secluded and super-quiet rural Germany, you can go to lively and very pleasant French Strasbourg, to Lake Constance, to student and fun Munich or to Austria - look at the secluded European life from the other side. At the Spremberg Dam you can camp and enjoy fishing, water skiing, mountain biking or horse riding. The campsite has some amenities: toilet, shower and even a washing machine. In the Drieschnitz area you can play golf, and for an adrenaline rush, head to Debberner Beach, where there are many high ropes courses.

Main Square Festival

Listen

And also: Wiz Khalifa, The xx, Editors, M83, Ben Howard, Florence + the Machine, The Subways, X, Metronomy, etc.

The festival has been held for 7 years in the main square and in the ancient citadel of the 17th century in the French city of Arras. This place is very atypical: French cuisine, many Europeans and gingerbread Flemish houses that line the entire old center. Main Square is rightfully one of the largest summer festivals in France at the intersection of the main routes of Europe, equidistant from Brussels, Paris and London, so getting there is quite easy. And the sea is not far away - a very good place for musical, and not only, travel.

Around

From Arras you can go straight to Paris, or you can go on a more exotic trip along the northern coast of France, Normandy with an unpredictable climate, cider, which they love more than wine, and a tour of the medieval fortress cities of Amiens, Le Havre and Caen.

Hop Farm Festival

Listen

Also: Billy Ocean, Suede, Athlete, Damien Rice, Ian Hunter And The Rant Band, Leftwich, Tallest Man On Earth, The Stranglers, The Futureheads, Lianne La Havas, Howling Bells, British Sea Power, I Am Kloot, Field Music , Peter Hook And The Light and others.

The fifth annual festival takes place in Paddock Wood, south-east Kent, UK. Over its history, it has seen performances by Bryan Ferry, Iggy Pop, Lou Reed, Patti Smith, and Morrisey and Prince became headliners. In addition to three large concert venues, there are dozens of other ways to have fun at Hop Farm. For example, there is a popular comedy stage Late Night Comedy, an Ultimate Indie Disco dance floor, amateur gatherings Camp Acoustic and a couple of other small stages. It is noteworthy that the festival is not branded, without any VIP or sponsorships, so the atmosphere is extremely personal and friendly. Couples with children from two to 12 are allowed and welcomed, and if parents have paid for their tickets, then their children have fun absolutely free.

Around

Paddock Wood is located 65 kilometers from London, you can get there either by car or by train. The journey takes approximately 50 minutes and costs £16 each way. But it’s even more pleasant in the summer to go not to stuffy London, but to the North Sea coast - to the very popular Brighton or less hackneyed, but no less charming Plymouth: go to the famous Lido, to a flea market at the Barbican, end up in a marine aquarium and eat seafood a year in advance.

Putte I Parken

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And also: Tinie Tempah, Ane Brun, Slagsmålsklubben, Timbuktu, Thåström, Hank Williams III, Familjen, Markus Krunegård, Melissa Horn, Young Guns, Weeping Willows, Jonathan Johansson and others.

This is a young Swedish festival in a typical Scandinavian style - it is very cozy, there are no superstars and there are a lot of local musicians and tourists from all over Scandinavia who are very patriotic towards their scene. The number of smart groups in Sweden and nearby gives reason to hope that new Peters, Bjorns and Johns, in principle, can be found on any of the platforms. On the territory there is a camp and three music stages, which are located in peculiar amphitheaters of natural origin. In addition to concerts by rock, noise-pop and folk bands, the event also features various art-punk brigades with strange productions - from cabarets and musicals to small performances designed to get the audience involved in the process. Overall, this is a very friendly and human story of the Scandinavian variety.

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Karlstad is the largest city on the pride of every Swede, Lake Vänern. In the week before or after the festival, you can go on vacation to a quieter place in the suburbs; besides, at this time of year in Sweden there are almost white nights. If time and money allow (be prepared to spend money on a trip to Sweden), you can go east to conquer Stockholm and, if there is time, Uppsala. There, among other things, you should definitely take a cruise to the hundreds of islands scattered around, drink and dance on floating boats, look at Swedish designers and artists in the SoFo and WIP centers and spend days on the verandas of coffee shops in Stockholm, as the locals call it, fika. Remember the key words - Södermalm and Gamla Stan, these are the main areas in the center where it is impossible to get bored.

Super Bock Super Rock

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And also: Little Dragon, Incubus, Bloc Party, The Shins, Bat For Lashes, Friendly Fires, Lana Del Rey, Battles, Dam-Funk, TRG, Kenny Larkin, Peter Doherty and others.

Super Bock Super Rock is a Portuguese rock festival, which traditionally attracted all fans of rock and heavy music, but recently it has been repurposed, and now just good and super popular musicians perform here. Since its inception, the festival has changed locations many times and even took place in several cities at once, but in the next ten years it will be held on Meco Beach, in the municipality of Sesimbra, south of Lisbon. There are three huge stages on the territory, on which, in addition to the stars announced in the lineup, several winners of the Super Bock Super Rock Preload Competition usually perform. Of course, the festival has camping facilities. The place itself, like the entire Atlantic coast of Portugal, is very charismatic and unforgettable.

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Having jumped over the peninsula on which Sesimbra is located, you can find yourself in the main Portuguese city - Lisbon, which is definitely worth visiting at least once in your life. It's not just about the unforgettable Old Town, where you have to climb narrow streets in the mountains among churches, ride on a tram without doors or try the famous salted cod. But also that the Portuguese language and all Portuguese in general are a very special and unusual phenomenon. After three days in Lisbon, head out into the suburbs to colorful medieval Sintra, one of the funniest and most distinctive country towns in Europe: medieval castles, colorful houses with daub walls, an amazing baroque garden and an excellent modern art museum.

10 Days Off

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And also: Booka Shade, Lindstrøm, Dj Koze, John Talabot, Holy Other, Gaiser, Sheridan, Len Faki, Matthias Tanzmann, Ambivalent, Salva, Mark E, Maceo Plex, Lapalux, Kutmah, DJ Harvey, Pachanga Boys and others.

17 years ago this festival started under the name 10 Days Of Techno, but the days of the unconditional reign of techno are long gone. Now it's just a 10 Days Off festival with one of the best lineups of electronic music in Western Europe: 10 days (or rather nights) of parties and concerts inside the Vooruit art center - an ancient building in the center of Ghent. The ten-day marathon takes place at the same time as City Day, so the fun is doubled, plus crowds of Flemish and Walloon Belgians appear in the city, drinking and partying around the clock in several squares in Ghent and in the cities around.

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It so happened that when they find themselves in Belgium, they end up first in Brussels, then in Antwerp, but never get to Ghent. This is an unfortunate omission: the usual bars in Ghent play excellent music, and the local embankments are not inferior in beauty to the over-praised Bruges. The best place to hang out is around the student quarter of Blandijnberg. The city's most important landmark is the Cathedral of St. Bavo, which houses Jan van Eyck's famous masterpiece, The Adoration of the Lamb. Pub lovers should visit Waterhuis aan de Bierkant at Groentenmarkt 9, a pub with 400 beers. Otherwise, this is a fantastic opportunity to travel around charming and unique Belgium city by city: Antwerp with its high-brow fashion life and harsh climate, cozy French-speaking Brussels, which looks like a big village, quiet Leuven with a monumental cathedral and quiet Bruges, whose nightmares There were a lot of lies in the film.

Paleo Festival Nyon

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And also: Manu Chao La Ventura, Camille, M83, Foreign Beggars, Justice, Miles Kane, Raggasonic, Caravan Palace, Chinese Man, etc.

The largest and oldest festival in Europe takes place in Switzerland - more than 200 concerts are expected at this event over six days and nights, and it has been held since 1976. The lineup is completely unpredictable, and an old folk band or even a retired rock star can easily squeeze in next to the strong headliners from the 2000s.
The festival area has already been developed and is fully developed - now it is a prosperous tourist village with a pleasant design, the organizers have a meticulous choice of food products and the placement of stalls, so that lunch turns into a concert, which in turn becomes a market or a picnic with summer games.

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For convenient and quick travel around the city and surrounding area, it is better to rent a bicycle right at the station for 30 francs per day. In 20 minutes you will find yourself on the shores of Lake Geneva. And if you are impressed by nature, you should go to the Jura National Park to look at the Swiss mountains - here, in ideal summer conditions, you can camp for several days. And in half a day you can reach the south of France - from bourgeois Cannes and Nice to the colorful half-Arab Marseille and the secluded Camargue reserve with white horses and the charm of the small French city of Arles, where Van Gogh painted his most famous canvases.

Arenal Sound

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And also: Crystal Fighters, Love Of Lesbian, Keiser Chiefs, Los Campesinos!, The Ting Things, The Wombats, Monarchy, Dorian, Seconds, The Zombie Kids, etc.

Arenal Sound is a large musical settlement on the Mediterranean coast. Four camping areas right next to the beach, dance floors on land, water and even a boat and a summer set of everything you need - a lot of sun, sea and southern chill. The zones are geographically separated, and the infrastructure is thought out to the smallest detail, so that during six days of intensive recreation, the likelihood of finding yourself among other people's things, friends and piles of bottles is reduced to a mathematical error. There is also the official event hotel nearby and, of course, parking. You can dance to almost all the music until the morning, and there will also be two competitions on the festival grounds - one for DJs, and the second for live bands. But the real apogee of Arenal Sound is a party on a boat with an after-party right in the sea. The boat departs every hour during the day, including at sunset.

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It’s better to come to L’Arenal beach early, otherwise you may not find a single free sun lounger. The most obvious advice: you shouldn’t buy budget paella at all, it looks like undercooked pilaf with rare seafood. It’s worth paying a little extra and you can really enjoy appreciate the beauty of this dish. Fans of Burrianan architecture will love the 19th-century churches of El Salvador and the monastery of La Merced. Like any small city, it has its own absurd museum - the Orange Museum, where you can learn in detail everything about one of the main objects of Spanish export Nearby on the coast is lively Malaga, and a little further down is Gibraltar with its surfers and ships to Morocco that depart every two hours.

Sonne Mond Sterne

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Also: Deichkind, Vitalic, Sebastian, Ellen Allien, Frittenbude, Steve Aoki, Marteria Camo & Krooked, The Disco Boys, Lexy & K. Paul, John B, The Hundred In The Hands, Tiefschwarz, Fritz Kalkbrenner, Marek Hemmann, Boogie Pimps, Turntablerocker Âme, etc.

SMS - this is the abbreviated name for this event - takes place in the second week of August near Frankfurt. On the territory there are two main open stages, a large circus tent and four smaller ones; each of the tents resembles a separate club, and the pleasure boat is equipped with a dance floor. There are several camping areas nearby, divided according to the distance to the festival site, so when choosing a place to camp, you can decide whether you want to live away from all the action or sleep almost near the stage. This is also one of the rare festivals where drinking beer and dancing to musicians is not the only thing you can do. Sonne Mond Sterne hosts sports competitions: volleyball and football, not to mention frisbee and badminton.

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Immediately after the end of the festival, you should go to Frankfurt and then to Cologne. The main attraction in Frankfurt is its cideries in Sachsenhausen, where you should celebrate the summer season. In addition to the Goethe House, botanical gardens and the old center in an indescribable baroque style, there are five not the most popular, but no less interesting museums - from cinema to classical art, a flea market on Saturdays and boat trips along the Main. And no matter how much they say that Cologne Cathedral is an eyesore to everyone, seeing it with your own eyes, or better yet, standing close to it, is truly an indescribable experience.

Ms Dockville

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Also: Sven Kacirek, Justus Köhncke, Prinz Pi, Frittenbude, Move D, Slow Club, Wye Oak, We Have Band, Future Islands, The Jezabels, WhoMadeWho, Boy & Bear, The Hundred In The Hands, Ghostpoet, Go Back To The Zo, Dear Reader, Robag Wruhme, etc.

Calling Ms Dockville just a music festival is completely misleading. This is a large art parade, consisting of two stages: Art Camp, an exhibition of contemporary art objects, and the musical part itself. Among the docks and industrial buildings there will be a whole village where designers, artists and media artists from all over the world will place their installations and galleries. Concerts and parties will be held there two weeks later. Sound, light, video, music, all kinds of physical objects - all together in one area. Of course, there is a separate recreation area and camping with all the necessary options.

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Hamburg itself is worth a visit and a short stay. The third most important German city (after Berlin and Munich) with a port spirit and northern charm - here even on hot summer days a strong wind can blow, and on the verandas of the city they always serve fresh fish and seafood with local German wine. About how to properly spend time in Schanz and not waste a single hour in Berlin, Look At Me.

Frequency

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And also: The Cure, The Black Keys, Bloc Party, High Flying Birds, The xx, Lykke Li, Wilco, Ed Sheeran, Cro, Enter Shikari and others.

This annual festival will take place in Green Park in the heart of the Austrian city of St. Pölten on the banks of the Traisen River. It started in 2000, and then only six groups performed here. Since then, the festival has grown noticeably, and now even a cursory glance at the lineup makes your eyes wide open. In addition to the musical performance, during the festival there is a field game Spy Game - spy gadgets, gadgets, appearances, passwords, etc. - in several stages using everything that comes to hand. There is also an art park on site with many installations, pieces of graffiti and other impressive examples of spectacular modern and street art. You can live very inexpensively in excellent conditions in a green campsite, with simply magnificent views all around.

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St. Pölten is considered a remote place, so you can easily find a real Austrian baroque town there. Residents often wear national clothes, especially on weekends - this is considered a sign of good manners. If you quickly get bored with the prim Austrian province (and this happens with cities where all life stops at 9 pm), Vienna is 2 hours by train, and Vienna in the summer is a very special place. In addition to the trend that has absorbed everyone, there are several excellent exhibitions held here in the summer, and new wine prepared this summer is bottled in the wineries, which makes the city much more fun than usual. And in order not to wander around Vienna for a long time in search of bars and clubs, go to Spittelberg, Josefstadt and Neubau.

Zurich Openair

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And also: Skrillex, Tocotronic, SBTRKT, 2 Many DJs, Maximo Park, White Lies, Lykke Li, Orbtal, Soulwax, Magnetic Man.

A mainstream festival with a large camping area for 6,000 people and all the delights of a civilized pastime: you can get here by anything - from a plane to a train or a bus. Just a great option for those who decide to visit Switzerland at the end of summer, plus the most interesting Swiss city, which always comes to life when European tourists arrive.

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The easiest way to start exploring is Zurich, where there is always something to see - for example, the famous Kunsthaus Museum and the green city zoo with amazing exotic species. Later, if you don’t mind spending money on the train (it will be cheaper to travel by bus), you can go to French Geneva and Italian Locarno to find out how three different ways of life differ within one country. Then it’s worth getting to the mythical county of Liechtenstein, where you probably won’t have another opportunity to come. If you have a free day, feel free to go to Mount Utliberg, where you will have a stunning view of the city. And if even quiet Switzerland does not seem secluded enough, you can do as many Swiss do - go on vacation to Lake Constance with the landscape of a real Alpine idyll.

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Also: Gang Gang Dance, Rustie, L-Vis 1990, Sepalcure, Kwes, Chris Clark, Caribou & Four Tet, The Field, Michael Mayer, Speech Debelle, Eskmo, Jimmy Edgar, Mouse On Mars, The Black Dog, Hot Chip , John Talabot, Morphosis, etc.

The naive name “New Music” in the case of Poland is a long-standing brand and the embodiment of what the organizers dream of - to open up as much new music as possible to the general public and allow legendary electronic artists to present their fresh program here. And indeed, in six years, Autechre, DJ Krush, Prefuse 73, Jamie Lidell, Amon Tobin, Flying Lotus, Battles, Bonobo, Fever Ray played at Nowa Muzyka. In 2010, the event was awarded the title of "Best Small European Festival", and it is the first and only open event taking place in an unmodernized industrial area, namely on the territory of abandoned coal mines, the infrastructure of which was frozen and left open. So if someone suddenly wants thrilling technogenic sensations while listening to the sounds of The Black Dog, here they are.

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Poland is generally not the most obvious travel destination, however, in addition to the pretty Katowice, where you shouldn’t stay longer than a couple of days, you can go to the absolutely unique in its beauty medieval Krakow with castles and baroque mansions in an exceptional Eastern European style, or even more mysterious Poland the city of Lodz, where David Lynch once filmed a film.

Rock en Seine

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Also: Grimes, The Shins, The Black Keys, The Dandy Warhols, Foster the People, Bombay Bicycle Club, Eagles Of Death Metal, Social Distortion, Little Dragon, Ed Sheeran

This summer, the Parisian festival Rock En Seine celebrates its 10th anniversary; the program, traditionally, includes not only music, but also carnivals, a photo exhibition and even, oh my God, magicians and big top artists. Parc Saint-Cloud, west of Paris, can be reached directly by metro or bus, of which there are many. Tickets to the campsite may be sold out, but there are several nice hotels nearby, and it’s better to take care of rooms in advance so as not to overpay upon arrival. And while you're dancing to Grimes or The Shins, kids and little brothers are hanging out at the Mini Rock themed festival, where they're taught how to sing, play the guitar and draw posters.

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Having been there at least once, you immediately understand why Saint-Cloud is considered not only one of the favorite vacation spots among the townspeople, but also the most beautiful park in Europe: the first cycling competitions in Europe were once held here. On an area of ​​460 hectares there is a rose garden of Marie Antoinette, an English park founded by Louis XVIII, and a French Baroque garden. When the park gets boring, you can head to the charismatic Saint-Cloud Castle Museum and the Pasteur Institute. Also, in addition to the festival, there is a show of vintage cars. To save time, money and not miss the most interesting things, it is best to stay at a campsite located near the festival. Moreover, very close by is Paris, where it is especially free and relaxed in the summer: Parisians undress, drink cold whites on the street, lie on the grass in the shade of chestnut trees and dance salsa near the Place de la Bastille at night.

Electric Picnic

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And also: Azaeli Banks, The Roots, Patti Smith, Squarepusher, The xx, SBTRKT, Bat For Lashes, Roots Manuva, Greezly Bear, Metronomy, Ed Sheeran and others.

A unique Irish art festival, where people from all over the world come to not only listen to the music of their favorite celebrities, but also watch theater productions, comedy performances, listen to poetry recitations and prose readings, and generally experience culture and art in a relaxed summer atmosphere.
In addition to the above-mentioned cultural events, visitors can relax in the shade of 400-year-old Irish oak trees and dine in a cafe with local cuisine. And all these theatrical and interactive activities are just a bonus to the dozens of top-notch concerts that take place on several stages. Well, the Irish themselves and the local way of life, for which almost everyone has a weakness, is also an argument.

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Boring, but practical advice: we advise those attending the festival to take an adapter with them, because all electrical outlets have three holes. Public transport is poor in these parts, so a rental car will come in handy. Ireland is, in principle, a small country (except very expensive), and you can travel around it length and breadth in two weeks. But if you need to choose a couple of cities, then it’s worth heading, of course, first of all to Dublin - for beer, the city and the landscapes described by Joyce, very tasty and simple Irish food, which consists of various hearty combinations of potatoes and meat, and green cliffs of the Howth coast.