International Music Festivals: A How-To Guide

Although many of us were still feeling pretty anxious about travelling abroad last year, international music festivals made their mostly triumphant return in 2022 – the less we talk about the Primavariant, the better. With the majority of COVID restrictions now a distant memory, maybe you’re thinking about jetting off on a musical adventure this year? Whether it’s a return to old habits since the before times, or the first time you’ll have ever left the country for a festival, we’ll do our best to help make planning your dream musical getaway that little bit easier for you.

COVID, new passport rules and insurance

First up, we’ll go through the boring COVID- and travel-related stuff. It’s highly unlikely you’ll need to take a lateral flow or PCR test before travelling abroad. It’s also now rare that you’d be asked to prove your vaccination status, but rules vary from country to country and due to the nature of the pandemic, things can change last minute. This can also apply to face mask rules, so it’s probably best to look out that reusable one that’s likely hiding in the back of your sock drawer. If you’re buying disposable, FFP2 NRs are the one.

Before travelling, check if your passport is still valid. This might sound super obvious, but since we left the EU, the rules have changed. Most travel within the EU now requires your passport to have been issued less than ten years before you are due to enter the country, and the expiry date should be at least three months after the date you return home.

Mad Cool 2022. Credit: Paco Poyato

Rules around health insurance have also changed since we went our separate ways, but if your European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) is still in date then it’s still valid. If it’s not, you can sign up for a Global GHIC card, which does pretty much the same thing. While these cards should cover you for an unplanned trip to A&E, they won’t cover you for everything, so consider getting additional travel insurance, which is advisable anyway just to cover you for things like accommodation cancellations, theft, loss of luggage etc. More info on healthcare abroad can be found at here, and for the most up-to-date travel info surrounding COVID restrictions at your chosen destination head here.

Where to stay, what to pack

While a lot of music festivals abroad do offer camping options, who in their right mind would want to camp in 30+ degrees heat!? Um, no. Festivals like Primavera Sound in Barcelona, NOS Alive in Lisbon and Rock en Seine in Paris are the dream, because after a long day and night dancing, you can sleep in a proper bed and enjoy a rejuvenating shower the next day. While this luxury does come at a price – having to find and pay for accommodation on top of your festival ticket is far from ideal – it does make for a highly elevated festival experience. It also means you can have a bit of a holiday at the same time; for the ultimate act of self-care, take some extra time either side of the festival (or both!) to properly relax and explore the area.

It’s important then to consider what you want to do while you’re away when deciding where to stay. More often than not, festival sites aren’t in the centre of a city, where you’ll likely want to spend a lot of your time, so while staying near the festival site might seem appealing, it's far from the best option and will leave you gagging on an out-of-reach bar, coffee, bakery or taco crawl the rest of time.

Melt Festival 2022. Credit: Michael Bomke

Where you stay will also determine what you need to take with you. So before you pack, check what your hostel, hotel or Airbnb provides as most will include towels as well as basic toiletries, meaning there’s more room for that extra pair of shoes. If they don’t provide anything, to help combat those frustrating budget airline luggage allowances, invest in a travel towel and consider packing a bar of soap instead of shower gel, a shampoo bar instead of liquid shampoo. You can also cut your liquids again by opting for a deodorant stick, and Boots’ Soltan Kids Suncare Stick is a game changer.

Festival essentials, phone advice and how not to lose your friends

Every day at the festival will be long, and you can't just nip back to your apartment, so a jumper/jacket for when the temperature drops, toilet roll for when the loos run out, and a fully charged power bar for when your phone dies should be high up your priority list. Also, your step count will be through the roof, so a comfy pair of trainers is essential too, as well as sunglasses, a hat, hand sanitiser, and A FAN – you will thank us later. If you're on any kind of prescribed medication, like insulin or strong painkillers, get an official letter from your doctor before you fly; thorough bag checks always take place on entry to festivals, so consider getting a copy of that letter translated into the country's native language to avoid confusion.

Dekmantel. Credit: Tim Buiting

Back to that bit about your phone running out of charge. While you're away, you’ll rely on your phone more than ever: you’ll be constantly looking up directions, checking the lineup/festival app for updates, your festival and plane tickets will likely be on there, and you will at some point, we’re sure, not be able to find your friends, so plan ahead. Does your phone tariff still offer free data roaming? If not, consider a bolt-on.

Before you leave, print the lineup on clashfinder.com, save the address of your accommodation on Google Maps and take screenshots of important info like accommodation details as well as your festival tickets; consider sharing your festival ticket within your friendship circles in case something happens to one of your phones. No ticket = no entry. Finally, plan for a poor phone signal – festival sites are busy, making for overloaded networks, resulting in that WhatsApp message not arriving until two hours later. So if you are planning to split up, arrange to meet at a set time later by the hotdog stand next to whatever stage. It’ll be zero fun if you lose all your pals.

Any Other Business...

A few more things worth thinking about before you step off that plane and the heat hits you like a heavyweight knockout. Downloading Google Translate and trying out a few phrases in the local dialect will always be appreciated, even if the response is in English. Know when the festival finishes and plan how you're getting home ahead of time. If you have an allergic reaction to something while abroad (mosquitoes, we’re looking at you!) or suffer a minor injury, don’t be nervous about popping into a pharmacy. Also, antihistamines are your friend – don’t leave home without them.

Roskilde Festival 2022. Credit: Kim Matthäi Leland

Finally, some saving tips: a currency card provider like Monzo or Caxton FX will negate any bank charges that might otherwise be incurred by using your UK bank account abroad, so definitely consider getting one. They’re usually free, so why wouldn’t you? And I cannot stress this enough: do not waste your money on a VIP festival ticket. It might feel boujie AF at the time of purchase, but once there the benefits rarely outweigh the expense.

Now that you're ready to festival abroad, here are some good European options that you can get to easily on budget airlines from Glasgow and Edinburgh...

Melt Festival, Ferropolis, Germany, 8-11 Jun
Lineup: FKA twigs, Róisín Murphy, Beabadoobee
Fly to: Berlin

Roskilde Festival, Roskilde, Denmark, 24 Jun-1 Jul
Lineup: Kendrick Lamar, Blur, Rosalía
Fly to: Copenhagen

NOS Alive, Lisbon, Portugal, 6-8 Jul
Lineup: Arctic Monkeys, Lizzo, Rina Sawayama
Fly to: Lisbon

Mad Cool, Madrid, Spain, 6-8 Jul
Lineup: Lil Nas X, Franz Ferdinand, Janelle Monáe
Fly to: Madrid

Dekmantel, Amsterdam, Netherlands, 2-6 Aug
Lineup: Hudson Mohawke (live), Helena Hauff, Sevdaliza
Fly to: Amsterdam

Rock En Seine, Paris, France, 23-27 Aug
Lineup: Billie Eilish, The Strokes, Fever Ray
Fly to: Paris

Iceland Airwaves, Reykjavik, Iceland, 2-4 Nov
Lineup: Squid, Yard Act, Lime Garden
Fly to: Reykjavik

Club 2 Club Festival, Turin, Italy, 2-5 Nov
Lineup: Flying Lotus, Caroline Polachek, Yves Tumor
Fly to: Milan