This is another insanely busy year in music, with festivals across Europe, North Africa and the Middle East every week and weekend of 2026. At mid-summer, Bulgaria seems to be having a breakout moment. But there are more and more new festivals from Lisbon to Romania, so maybe tickets will be easier to score.
The music biz is now the concert biz since Spotify, Youtube and the streaming services have cut actual album sales to the point where artists get pennies. Bad news for musicians, but great news for people who love concerts. It’s gotten to the point where superstar EDM DJs such as Calvin Harris and David Guetta are performing somewhere in the world every night, zipping between cities in their Gulfstreams and Bombardier Globals.
Pop stars such as Sabrina Carpenter and rockers such as the Foo Fighters don’t spend as much time on the road, but you’ll be able to catch them at various festivals in Europe this year because there’s not another Glastonbury Festival until 2027. And should you choose an event, please monitor the website because several this year including Defcon.1 in the Netherlands have been cancelled due to extreme temperatures or contract disputes.
So, let’s get to the party.
All the biggest EDM-plus events are back, along with a few new ones. All in all, a solid start to 2026, though we’re seeing more festivals are sold out. And as we move to fall, a word … hot. It’s hot from the Netherlands to Croatia, so stay cool and stay hydrated.
Untold
6 thru 9 August in Cluj-Napoca, Romania
Untold is kind of a big deal this year. If we named all the Names, we’d be here all day. But we can tell you they include Chainsmokers, Carl Cox, Afrojack, Martin Garrix, Marshmello, Steve Aoki and (weirdly) Sting. Then there’s Zara Larsson, the Swedish Sabrina Carpenter, along with a number of local acts.
When we say this is a big deal, yes, the lineup is big. But this is physically big – just you and 349,999 other music lovers.
Four-day passes start at about 1,000 lev, or 500 euros and you can get yours here.
Lovefest 2026
7 & 8 August, and 14 & 15 Augusts, Vrnjačka Banja, Serbia
Okay, we’re getting to that part of the summer where every festival from Boomtown to Hideout is sold out. This is what you get fro waiting. BUT, Lovefest in Serbia is a two-weekend festival in the middle of nowhere, Serbia, so we’re thinking you have time to salvage the summer.
Now, for a festival in the remote hills of Serbia, Lovefest has some Names including Loco Dice, Nina Kraviz, Art Bat and ALISHA. There are multiple stages. Tickets start at 40 euros, and you can get yours here.
Brunch Electroik Festival
7 thru 9 August in Barcelona
Brunch Electronik Festival crams a lot of music into three days. This year, festival Names include Camelphat, Seth Troxler, Paul Kalkbrenner, Jeff Mills, I Hate Models and Kevin De Vries. So it is a blast from the past party. BUT, there are also more contemporary artist including 999999999 and Mind Against fresh from Tomorrowland.
Single day passes start at 59.90 euros and you can get yours here.
Sziget
11 thru 15 August on Óbuda Island in Budapest
Putin’s puppet and EU super villain Viktor Orbán just got voted out as prime minister, so we’re adding Hungary to our list of expat-friendly nations. And to celebrate, we can think of no better place than Sziget festival his year,
Headliners include Bring Me the Horizon, Florence + the Machine, Skrillex, Dom Dolla, Taylor Swift’s BFF Lewis Capaldi, break out artist Sombr (“Back to Being Friends”) and 21 Pilots. A little something for everyone, with a crazy number of artists on multiple stages.
This being Hungary, day tickets for his lineup start at 99 euros, and full festival passes are 339 euros. Primitive camping is free, though you can pay to upgrade to something approaching luxury. You can get all tickets here.
Pukkelpop
20 thru 23 August, Hasselt, Belgium on the border of Belgium and the Netherlands
Pukkelpop is where you go when you need a break from the transe and heavy EDM. This is pop festival, and “pukkel” is Dutch for “pimple.” As in teenagers. So you’re not going to bump into Carl Cox here. You will see some of the instant superstars that social media has spun out including Wet Leg, Sombr and established names including Adriatic, Dom Dolla and Kölsch, as well as pop/ock bands such as Sweden’s The Hive and Zara Larsson. Their football sucks, but the music lives on.
You can try to get tickets here, but months ahead is too late in this part of the world.
Creamfields
27 thru 30 August, Daresbury, Chesire
Creamfields is celebrating 20 years of bringing big Names to this village just east of Liverpool. And they have one huge act you probably haven’t seen in years … Swedish House Mafia. That’s just the beginning. Also in the lineup are acts from back in the day including Calvin Harris, Armin Van Buuren, Patrick Topping, Camelphat and EDM OG Carl Cox along with current top acts Calvin Harris and lots of underground acts. A HUGE LINEUP. And there’s a huge enclosed main stage, so no weather worries
Of course, all this comes at a price and that prices starts at 75 pounds for day tickets. Four day passes with camping will run you about 300 pounds, and you can get yours here. (Some passes are sold out.)
Reeperbahn Festival
16 thru 19 September at various locations across Hamburg
Music Festival Wizard calls Reeperbahn “one of the three most important meeting places for the music and digital industries in Europe.” The festival has about 600 events in more than 70 venues on and around Hamburg’s Reeperbahn.
Okay, the EDM thing has blown up into a multi-billion dollar/euro biz where the top DJs all fly around in Gulfstreams. But there is still a less commercial corner of the music world where you can see new artists and and more authentic acts leaning toward the avant garde.
Reeperbahn Festival is an actual contemporary Indie music and pop culture festival – a celebration of new acts and industry trends … and a chance to explore different clubs in Hamburg. Acts this year include English Teacher, James Emmanuel and Dea Matrona. This is really two festivals – one music festival and one industry gathering conference.
Festival tickets start at 59 euros for one day and you can get yours here. Conference tickets start at 69 euros and you can get them here.
Amsterdam Dance Event
21 thru 25 October at various venues across Amsterdam
A festival/industry conference and networking event rolled into one, the Amsterdam Dance Event is one of the biggest get-togethers of the year. One thousand events at more than 200 venues. For 2026, it runs from 21 to 25 October across the city. This year is the 30th anniversary, so might be smart to get tix early. You can get them here.
International festivals
UNITED STATES – 26 September
CBGB Festival 2026 is about as far from EDM as you can get … guys (mostly) banging out three chords at top volume on their guitars. But CBGB, a dingy club in New York’s Bowery, and the punk scene revolutionized rock music when the Sex Pistols and the Clash came from London.
This is a chance to relive that moment with the biggest names including Morrissey, Patti Smith, the Sex Pistols, the Buzzcocks and others. Maybe your last chance because punks don’t live forever.
Tickets start at $179 and you can get yours here.
EGYPT – 8 to 11 October outside Cairo.
Starlight Festival is part of the newly global Exit Festival, which started in Serbia.
Here’s the blurb from the website: Set on the desert sands beside Great Pyramids of Giza, one of the world’s most significant symbols of ancient civilization, the festival will unite the global electronic music and festival community within a setting shaped by thousands of years of history.
Tickets start at about 6,300 Egyptian pounds, or about 110 euros. You can get yours here.
INDIA – 13 to 19 December in Mumbai
Sunburn Festival is one of the biggest global EDM events, and Asia’s largest festival. Yes, India a bit of journey from Europe, but this year, it might be worth it. On the bill are Chainsmokers and the theme is “Awaken the Core.” No idea what that means …. This year, Sunburn Festival has moved to historic Mahalaxmi Racecourse in Mumbai. We’ll have more on the lineup as it’s released.
It looks like you can only get tickets here on bookmyshow.
SOUTH AFRICA
Wolfkop Weekender returns from 14–18 January 2027. Marketed as “South Africa’s leading boutique music festival,” Wolfkop is set amid a World Heritage setting of rugged mountains, orchards and open grassland.
This is a showcase for African talent and international DJs, and genres including disco, house and “feel-good electronic energy,” according to the release we got. And this is kind of cool: Wolfkop is home to the largest glamping village in South Africa. So you won’t be roughing it.
This is one of those Instagramable beautiful people gatherings, with music, wellness, art and food. You can see the ticket options here.
