The Best Music Festivals in the World

There are so many festivals out there catering for all tastes. Music which was once underground now has a place everywhere and these genres have now crossed over into festivals that may not have put them on the bill in the past. Here are some of the most popular.

Glastonbury

Perhaps the most famous music festival in the world, Glastonbury has been around since Michael Eavis, a farmer, first held a two-day festival on his farm in 1970. It’s long and well-maintained reputation has seen it become the best festival in England for seeing the biggest bands in the world. It may be the muddiest and rainiest too. Most notably, 1997 turned Glastonbury into a muddy bog. Everything from Rock to hip-hop has headlined the festival, and with more than 700 acts each year, there is something for everybody. Some of the proceeds from the festival go to Oxfam and Greenpeace.

Lollapalooza

Rocker Perry Farrell began Lollapalooza in 1991 as a farewell tour for his band, Jane’s Addiction. The biggest grunge rock festival during the 1990s disappeared for awhile and was then revived in 2005 as ‘big weekend’ in Chicago. The past few years at Grant Park have been marked by hot summers, huge crowds, and even bigger bands. The anticipated crowd of nearly 200,000 is staggering.

Bestival

The trendy Bestival, the original boutique weekend festival on the Isle of Wight, is the best way to end the summer festival season in Europe. It also boasts a yearly fancy dress competition: 2008 was ’30,000 freaks under the sea’, and 2009 was the year of ‘Outer Space’, so make sure to dress accordingly when themes are chosen. Thousands of Bestival-goers will always witness an eclectic lineup in the picturesque surroundings of Robin Hill Park. If you’re with your family, look no further than Camp Bestival, a three-day family festival by the sea in July.

Sunburn

Sunburn launched in December 2007 as South Asia’s first electronic music festival, featuring big electro and trance names. Located seaside in Goa, on India’s west coast, the festival has its roots in ‘Goa Trance’, a type of pulsing, transcendental electro music that became popular in the early 1990s. 5,000 electro revelers were treated to a three-day party by the beach in December 2008. The festival’s founder has always said Sunburn will be free to attend, and it is not to be missed, so make your way to India in the winter.

SÓNAR

An enormous cosmopolitan celebration, similar to other great European events but with a Mediterranean feeling, SÓNAR has a unique festive atmosphere. SÓNAR by Night has 3 locations occupied by distinguished national and international names from the world of electronic music. Each night DJs, VDJs and concerts from the broadest spectrum of dance music appear simultaneously in the four areas. SÓNAR by Night occupies an area of more than 10,000 meters, divided between covered and open-air spaces.

Fuji Rock

Japan’s biggest outdoor festival takes its name from Mount Fuji, the site of the first festival in 1997. Fuji Rock is surrounded by cool forested mountains of the Naeba ski resort for the past ten years – you are transported by gondolas and hilly trails from stage to stage, and the streams and forests between them are the reason why it has been called the most beautiful festival in the world. Over 100,000 people will trek through the mountains to see headliners.

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