Wednesday 26th June – Sunday 30th June

I couldn’t start with anything but my favourite festival in the world, the world-famous Glastonbury Festival. Glastonbury, or Glasto as it’s fondly referred to by regulars, is a household name across the globe, whether you’re a festival-goer or not. Every festival fanatic should have this five-day music and performing arts festival at the top of their bucket list, because there’s no where in the world quite like it. Dating back to its first edition in 1970, the festival still holds its original bohemian, free-spirited ethos transporting its citizens from the everyday mundane to a tight-knit community.

From the iconic Pyramid stage, that has seen sets recently from the likes of Arctic Monkeys, Rolling Stones, Beyonce and more, to the depths of Shangri-La, a completely immersive, dystopian wonderland, to the sacred Stone Circle where people gather in the evenings and the monstrous fire-sprawling robotic spider of Arcadia, Glastonbury really does have something for everyone of every age.

12-14 June 2020

Tucked away in the woods of Hilravenbeek is one of Europe’s best kept secret festivals, aptly named Best Kept Secret. Every June, BKS sets up in the grounds of a safari park, so if you take a stroll beyond the festival you might bump into some of the furry locals. The lineups are notoriously good and indie-focused with headline sets from The Libertines, Radiohead, The National and more in the past. The stages and festival site are set up alongside a vast open lake meaning that you can go for a swim between sets if you fancy!

4-7 June 2020

MITM is a festival unlike no other, taking place above the clouds in Bulgaria’s Rhodope Mountains – it truly is a festival unlike no other! It’s a hedonistic festival that aims to create an unforgettable experience for its festival-goers, taking them far, far from their everyday life and transporting them to an other-worldy, serene setting for a few days. Despite its hedonistic tendencies, it’s a socially and eco-conscious festival that encourages its festival-goers to be as sustainable as possible (it’s completely plastic-free) and gives back to the local community – you can even choose to stay at a local’s home during the festival.

17-22 July 2019

Electric Castle takes place within the grounds of Banffy Castle in Romania and it’s a truly unique setting for a festival. Nestled within the rolling green hills of Transylvania, this festival invites a glut of international talent every year making it one of the biggest festivals in Romania. Whilst I’ve only been once, I absolutely fell in love with it; the setting, the production, the setting and the welcoming people. Work your way through the trees to discover a man-made beach or head into the castle for an all-night rave.

7-13 August 2019

Sziget – the Hungarian word for island – is a festival that sits on Óbuda Island, surrounded by the Danube river in Budapest. Reckon you could hack a seven-day festival? Because that’s exactly what Sziget is. For a week, the island is taken over by 400,000 “Szitizens” to indulge in non-stop music from a pool of artists from across the globe spanning across different musical genres.

Sziget proudly prizes itself on its community and its ethos of celebrating diversity, inviting people from different backgrounds and festival-goers from all over the world to join them in their celebrations.