Are you a concert junkie? Do you travel for festivals? If so, you still have a few destinations to hit this summer and fall, including Budapest, NYC, Berlin, and Austin. With a pulse on festival travel, I asked a peer and wanderluster, Lela, to put together a post of recommendations for August through October. Please enjoy and dance like nobody’s watching! Take it away Lela!
Summer’s not over until you’ve baked your brain under a blazing sun listening cutting edge bands play their hearts out for a pulsating crowd! If you haven’t made it to an iconic festival yet this year, never fear, 2013 still has some fine prospects for breaking away from the everyday to become one of the crowd at these mega-festivals that may have started small but have grown exponentially into profound summertime events!
Early August (still a couple days to go)
Sziget Festival turns the tranquil little island in the Danube into a rocking party that has taken everyone in Budapest by surprise as it has grown from a simple student event to a 7-day festival that hosts over 1,000 performances. Held this year from August 5-12, the city has done its best to welcome festival attendees by launching programs like the Sziget Budapest CityPass that provides easy access to all public transportation, including boat services, and promotes discounts to local shops and restaurants. The town is even putting up the popular Sziget Eye Ferris wheel six weeks early so locals can enjoy it before the crowds descend. To simplify monetary transactions related to the festival, all participants are issued a Metapay Festivalcard and asked not to carry cash to reduce theft-related issues. Seats are still available on the ABSOLUT Sziget Party Train and Party Bus to Budapest.
Labor Day Weekend
Electric Zoo has managed to remain a sensible venue by limiting ticket sales to the over 18 crowd who come to trance out at Randall’s Island Park along Manhattan’s East River over the Labor Day weekend (August 30-September 1). Live acts blend music and lights into electronic extravaganzas that bring the crowd to its feet and keep it there. Tickets are available for single days or the entire 3-day event and hassle-free transportation is provided by the river ferries that run every 15 minutes from East 35th Street. To enhance the eclectic experience, the park will also present an interactive art exhibit called FLOW.13
September
Berlin Festival 2013 on September 6-7 is once again being held at the repurposed Tempelhof Airport in the heart of the city. Quickly proving to be much more than a music event, this festival quickly spawned spins-off like an Art Village where the Church of Phonk has bloomed amid the hangars, poets are welcomed to orate in the circus tent and there’s always an eclectic crowd at the Village Pub. Of course there’s plenty of live music and trance-dancing, but for the full experience take the ride to Club Eberg where the party continues around a market square and a swimming pool equipped with a sauna.
October
Austin City Limits (affectionately known as ACL) has officially outgrown its 3-day limitations and the 2013 festival has bloomed into two full weekends with over 130 bands performing on eight stages! This Texas-sized party kicks off October 4 – 6 and continues on October 11-13 on the grassy fields of Zilker Park amid the skyscrapers of downtown Austin. Since the ACL attracts more than 75,000 visitors each day, tickets are limited to 3-day passes to control the crowds and parking. This well-managed event has maintained a family-friendly atmosphere by including sections like Austin Kiddie Limits where shows and games are designed for the younger crowd. ACL patrons can wander along the river walk to Barton Springs Road and sample some of Austin’s infamous “down home” cooking or listen to homegrown musicians at the local bars.
Check out great deals on rooms and bunks near the hottest music events all over the world at the Festival Accommodation Guide compiled by HostelBookers.com
**Guest post written by Lela, a travel writer for Hostelbookers.com, which provides chic and affordable hotels.