The Best UK and European Music Festivals in 2024

Festival season is nigh upon us, and figuring out which one is worth making yourself ill over (c’mon, you know this always happens) can be tricky. Lucky for you, we’re here to share our personal favourites – the ones worth fucking up your Salomons for, at least.

This all-day rave is arguably the unofficial start to British Summer Time, taking place on the Saturday of the early May Bank Holiday weekend. Spread out over 20 venues around Queen’s Yard in Hackney Wick – including Colour Factory and Crate Brewery – there are over 100 DJs and collectives performing, from DJ Caspa to Madam X. Buy tickets here

As you get older, you realise festivals aren’t always for getting absolutely off your nut. Cross the Tracks provides chill vibes to bask in the sun to, with an immaculate selection of soul, hip-hop, funk and jazz. Artists include legends like Erykah Badu and Eve and newer artists like Sekou and Victoria Jane. Plus there are panel talks, workshops, 50+ food stalls and creative market. Maybe you won’t even have a hangover the next day – just maybe. Buy tickets here

Let’s face it, if you’re going to BTS Hyde Park, you should be only going for one person: Robbie fucking Williams, who is playing on the 6th of July. How much do we love Robbie? So much we profiled him. So much that every work karaoke session must end on a rendition of “Angels” (“Kids” is also mandatory, but can be stuck somewhere in the middle of the playlist if necessary). Sorry to the music purists, but you should show some respect to England’s greatest living legend this summer. Buy tickets here

August just isn’t August without an APE blowout at Vicky Park. Maybe you promised yourself you’ll mix it up this year, but chances are the line-up has clawed you back in again. From Kaytranada and Joyty on the 16th to Mitski and Ethel Cain on the 18th – plus Ezra Collective, LCD Soundsystem, Nas, and Death Cab for Cutie – there really is an energy for everyone and every mood.

Field Day is part of this year’s programming, too, on Saturday 24th of August. Get ready for Justice, PinkPantheress, Charlotte DeWitte, ShyGirl, and Romy to send off the final weekend in style. Buy tickets here

At the gorgey lake-side Crystal Palace Bowl, South Facing stakes a claim to being one of London’s most feel-good festivals. This year, Grace Jones and Popcaan headlines, with a closing set from Damien Marley and Channel One Sound System in perfect timing for Carnival. 

Low-key and intimate R&B festival Cloud X joins the roster on the 2nd of August too, moving on up from last year’s Beckenham Palace Park site. Artists aren’t confirmed yet, but if BERWYN, Samm Henshaw and Pip Millett last year are anything to go by, it’ll be bliss. Buy tickets here

Limp Bizkit take Margate? Bet you didn’t see that one coming. This year’s roster sees a truly rogue mix of bands and artists take the Dreamland amusement park stage, including Kaiser Chiefs, Giggs, Craig David and (maybe best of all) Busted. A day trip to the pier and the last train home just levelled up. Buy tickets here

DJ Gilles Peterson’s lovingly curated four-day-er returns to Dorset this summer. If you want to break from the yoke of pills and techno, We Out Here’s blend of jazz, electronica, hip hop and all sorts else makes it as good a bet as any festival in the UK. Still a lot of bucket hats about, mind – you’re in England, after all. Acts include Andre 3000 (and his clarinet), Floating Points, Mount Kimbie, Sampha and more. It’s got a wellness centre and good food, too, with East London restaurant Brawn dishing up. Go there! Get a bit weird in the woods! Buy tickets here

Sometimes, though, it does a body good to descend into the ol’ pill-and-electronic-music mine. In that case, Eastern Electrics at Lea Valley Showground by Waltham Cross, with its heavy focus on dance music in its many fractal forms, is a must. The organisers trace their roots back to the disused buildings of 00s east London, where their hedonistic warehouse parties graduated to their first festival in 2010. International dons like Seth Troxler, Kerri Chandler, Groove Armada and more are set to play across the five stages this year. Buy tickets here

Peckham’s very own ever-expanding London music festival takes place over three days across the second bank holiday in May, with a focus on the warm and soulful foundational sounds of dance music. There’ll be stage takeovers from NTS and The Pickle Factory, and a stellar ensemble of DJs including Joy Orbison, Antal & HUNEE, DJ EZ, Chaos In The CBD and Yu Su. Have a day of it and then off you pop on the Overground off your chops. Buy tickets here

This one’s nice because it’s only one day in Camberwell’s Burgess Park and it’ll have more of a jazzy “for the heads” aspect, which means the crowd will be a bit chiller and consist of fewer 18-year-olds doing their first pill – good news for the esoteric, the world-music oriented and the American hip-hop enjoyers among us. German composer Nils Frahm headlines, supported by Earl Sweatshirt, Eliza and Beuna Vista All Stars. Omar Souleyman’s playing, too, which will be quite sick! Buy tickets here

Maiden Voyage is always one of the more glorious ways to end the summer, striking the perfect balance between fun festival stage design and just an all-round wonderful music experience, including a noticeably great soundsystem. Some of the big names this year are Arca and Jayda G, but the stage takeovers from PXSSY PALACE, Adonis and UNFOLD will go off too. Previously in the furthest reaches of north London, Maiden Voyage will also finally not be a total trek to get home from, as it moves to Burgess Park in Camberwell. Buy tickets here

If you fancy a bit of a tear-up in the Balkans, then why not give Europe’s best multi-genre festival a try? It’s set in a fortress, for one, and for two, you’ll get to see a truly deranged mix of artists, including but not limited to the Black Eyed Peas, Carl Cox, Gucci Mane and Franky Wah. Novi Sad is also a charming gem of a city on the Danube, so you can defo make a cultured holiday out of it. Buy tickets here

Okay, sure, there was that douching station incident last year and some Twitter queers attempted to (wrongly!) brand this Berlin festival as the new Fyre Fest. But with capacity increased to 9,000 people, Whole now comfortably tops the rankings as the biggest LGBTQ electronic music festival in the world, which is sick in and of itself. The lineup this year is a lot of fun, with Peach, Octo Octa, DJ Fuckoff, SHERELLE, The Blessed Madonna and Eris Drew headlining. Not here for the music? There’s workshops, talks and oh yeah, multiple darkrooms for people of all genders. Glastonbury could never! Buy tickets here

Has every “creative” you know has moved to Lisbon? MEO Kalorama is another reason to visit Europe’s artsiest city. Now in its third year, artists include Peggy Gou, Gossip, LCD Soundsystem, Jungle, Overmono, Burna Boy, Raye and more. Plus, there’s loads of crafty experiences like mural workshops bringing huge wholesome community vibes. Buy tickets here

The Mediterranean island of Malta is hitting new heights in the festival scene, with this year Elrow Island making its debut there. The line-up is TBC, but with secret beach parties, crystal-clear waters, boat parties, epic sunsets, and the utter bliss of staying in an actual hotel with a real bed, it’s worth taking a look at anyway. Buy tickets here