If all the amazing music line ups isn’t exciting you to book a festival then the UK’s deteriorating cold and confusing weather definitely should. Unfortunately for us, Glastonbury is taking a wee rest this year so now is the time to remind everyone that Europe is right here and festival-goers in the UK can in fact rejoice in the sun listening to their favourite music.
Aside of Europe’s fantastic variety of music festivals, traveling to a new place also guarantees better views, food, beaches, attractions and cheaper drinks than here in the UK. So why stay local?
If you’re looking to take your summer festival plans beyond your local scene, Primavera Sound Barcelona should be high on your Europe list — especially with heavyweights like The Cure, Gorillaz, and Doja Cat alongside promising acts such as Wet Leg and Ethel Cain.
Primavera Sound Barcelona has unveiled its exciting 2026 lineup, featuring a stellar mix of iconic and emerging artists from June 4-6. The festival will showcase heavyweights like The Cure, Gorillaz, and Doja Cat alongside promising acts such as Wet Leg and Ethel Cain.
Tomorrowland
Being voted five times in a row as the “best musical event of the year,” Tomorrowland is no ordinary festival. It is the mother of all festivals. Welcoming more than 400,000 people from over 200 countries. This year’s theme is ‘Consciencia,” features major headliners like David Guetta, Martin Garrix, Calvin Harris, Hardwell, and Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike and featuring over 500 artists across 16 stages, More information here.
Iceland Eclipse Festival is set to be one of 2026’s most extraordinary events, bringing together music, art, science and wellness against the backdrop of Iceland’s once-in-a-century total solar eclipse.
Taking place in Hellissandur on the Snæfellsnes Peninsula from 11–15 August 2026, the festival promises a rare mix of immersive programming, dramatic landscapes and a truly one-off celestial moment.
Kala Festival
Think of beachy holiday, picturesque landscape, yoga and electronic music – can’t imagine it? You don’t have to because Albania’s Kala Festival really is the perfect package for holiday-goers and music lovers. With its first editions headlined by the likes of Peggy Gou and Moodyman, the festival has launched itself seven years later to be one of the “must do” lists for dance music lovers across Europe.
You can expect the view of stunning clear blue waters, incredible food and all things music at night. Taking place in an intimate beach location on the Albanian Riviera, Kala is a boutique festival at its finest with a curated 7-day beach holiday feel. You can find more information here.
Montreux Jazz Festival
Founded in 1967, the iconic Montreux Jazz Festival is one of the most celebrated festivals drawing over 250,000 music lovers from all over the world. With legendary performances from the likes of Prince, Aretha Franklin, Miles Davis, Talking Heads, Nina Simone and more, the festival is so well-respected that BBC made a Three-part docuseries, ‘They All Came Out To Montreux’, that tells the history of the famous jazz festival and its founder, Claude Nobs. More information here.
Live is Live is a boutique three-day concert series that blends the atmosphere of a festival with the intimacy of a standout live music event.
Set in a large city park with the Antwerp skyline as a backdrop, it features three major headliners across three nights Robbie Williams, Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, and Iron Maiden with each delivering a full-length, two-hour performance, supported by additional acts.
Sziget
Over six massive days and 50 stages, ‘The Island of Freedom’ aka Sziget takes place and in fact really is one of the biggest festivals in Europe. In 2018 that record was broken when 565,000 visitors attended the festival. Sziget Festival has been increasingly labelled as a European alternative to the Burning Man festival due to its unique features. So expect gigantic sculptures, sci-fi corridors filled with light, drag queens, late-night ravers, circus performers, theatre and more. More information here.
Roskilde Festival
Denmark’s Roskilde Festival is one of the largest festivals in Europe. Created in 1971, the festival is run as a non-profit organisation to support the development of music, culture and humanism. For the past 50 years, it has attracted 32,000 volunteers, catering to a 130,000 audience and a line-up with no less than 180 acts. There is no doubt that the sense of community Roskilde brings every year among festival goers and everybody involved is unmatched. More information here.
Love International
Think secret island parties, sunrise morning acoustic sessions and late night discos. All things that make this marathon electronic festival so much fun and relaxing at the same time. With a world class lineup of DJs, it’s eight full days of dance and fun beachside in Croatia. What more could you want from a festival experience? You can find more information here.
Awakenings Festival
This ones for all the Techno favourites. Awakenings has been organising techno events for more than 25 years now. In 1997, the famous Gashouder was the first place a legendary Awakenings techno night was held. Since then, the festival has welcomed more than 300,000 visitors a year. No one can dispute that Awakenings, is the ultimate techno experience. More information here.
