Rock, electronic, jazz, folk, classical โ our guide to the planet's most extraordinary music festivals, organized by genre and experience level.
Every genre of music has its world-class festival gathering. Find yours.
The world's most famous festival. Five stages, hundreds of acts, and a culture that defines British summer. The Pyramid Stage headliners are cultural events in themselves.
Fashion-forward, art-infused desert festival that sets cultural trends each year. The lineup spans rock, pop, hip-hop, and electronic across multiple iconic stages.
The UK's premier hard rock and metal gathering. Drawing legends from Iron Maiden to System of a Down alongside cutting-edge heavy acts from around the world.
Grant Park transforms into a musical city. Lollapalooza's global expansion has brought editions to Berlin, Paris, Sรฃo Paulo, Chile, and Argentina โ each with local flavor.
The most extravagant stage production in electronic music. Tomorrowland's theatrical mainstage sets a new standard each year for visual spectacle and sound system quality.
One of the world's most respected underground techno events. Held in an industrial exhibition center, Time Warp delivers a pure, uncompromising techno experience.
From legendary industrial raves in Amsterdam's Gashouder to one of Europe's premier outdoor festivals. Awakenings represents Dutch dance culture at its finest.
Bayfront Park's waterfront setting provides the backdrop for one of the world's most-watched electronic festivals, with global live streams reaching millions.
Founded in 1967 by Claude Nobs, Montreux is where jazz, soul, R&B, and rock royalty perform against the stunning backdrop of Lake Geneva and the Alps.
The spiritual home of jazz celebrates its birthplace with 12 stages, 500 performances, and 300,000 square feet of culture, craft, and Louisiana cuisine.
One of the world's largest jazz festivals, North Sea Jazz presents 1,000+ musicians across 15 stages inside Rotterdam's Ahoy convention center, rain or shine.
Founded by Peter Gabriel, WOMAD (World of Music, Arts and Dance) is the essential celebration of global folk traditions, with editions across six continents.
The world's largest Celtic music festival celebrates Scottish, Irish, Breton, and global folk traditions with concerts, ceilidhs, and cultural workshops across Glasgow.
Where Bob Dylan went electric in 1965. Newport remains the conscience of American folk music, with surprise supersets and collaborations that become legendary.
The world's largest classical music festival. 70+ concerts including the iconic Last Night of the Proms, with standing tickets available from just ยฃ7.50.
Richard Wagner's own festival house. Tickets are some of the most sought-after in classical music โ waiting lists run up to 10 years. A once-in-a-lifetime pilgrimage.
In a spectacular Alpine setting, the world's finest classical musicians gather for chamber music, orchestra concerts, masterclasses, and late-night informal performances.
Electronic music festivals are among the fastest-growing events in the world, combining cutting-edge sound systems, visual art installations, and community experiences that few other genres can match.
From intimate warehouse raves to stadium-scale productions with pyrotechnics and 50-meter stages, the electronic festival spectrum is vast.
Jazz festivals offer something unique in live music โ the promise of spontaneity. No two performances are ever the same. Collaborations between artists happen in real-time, creating moments that could never be planned or repeated.
From intimate club stages in New Orleans to world-class concert halls in Switzerland, the jazz festival circuit spans every corner of the globe, celebrating a musical tradition born in America that now belongs to the world.
View All Jazz Festivals
Handpicked by our team of 12 global music journalists โ the must-attend events of the year.