In spring, each year, Belgium starts preparing for an epic summer festival season.
The country is rather tiny, but there’s no lack of music festivals in Belgium. And it wouldn’t be too difficult to find an amazing event somewhere in Belgium every weekend of summer.
There are a lot of articles on the internet where you can find the same 5 top music festivals Belgium. So, with this article, we want to go just a tiny bit further than that!
Let’s start with some of the best and most popular Belgian summer festivals. Keep scrolling to find the smaller and more charming events!
Tomorrowland
Tomorrowland is, by far, the largest and most popular music festival in Belgium. The festival was first organized in 2005 with a small audience.
Over the years, Tomorrowland has become one of the worlds’ largest and most popular summer music events.
You can expect to see and listen to the very best DJ’s in the world, while being surrounded by thousands of party people.
If you want to enjoy the party at Tomorrowland, you should hurry!
Even though the festival expands over 2 weekends in July, tickets usually sell out within hours.
When: July
Where: Boom (Antwerp)
Music style: Electronic dance
Camping: Yes
Rock Werchter
Rock Werchter is one of those immensely popular music festivals in Belgium that has been around since 1976. The concept changed just a tiny bit over the years and the event has received multiple awards for being the best festival in the world.
That’s just to emphasize how amazing Rock Werchter actually is J
At this festival, you get to see live performances by famous international artists. The athmosphere is relaxed and friendly, even though thousands of people visit the festival each year.
During previous editions, over 150 thousand people visited Rock Werchter. It’s safe to say that this festival is among the largest summer festivals in Belgium and even in Europe!
When: July
Where: Werchter (Brabant)
Music style: Various
Camping: Yes
Pukkelpop
Pukkelpop is another super popular music event near the city of Hasselt. Each year, since 1085, the festival and the party crowds grow larger.
Pukkelpop is a contemporary and progressive music festival.
There’s a wide variety in music styles and you can expect to enjoy live music by international artists. Over the years, musicians like Radiohead, The Red Hot Chili Peppers, The Prodigy, Eminem, … have performed at the event.
Pukkelpop is, in fact, an all-round and interesting experience that has expanded into one of the very best music events in Europe!
When: August
Where: Kiewit near Hasselt (Limburg)
Music style: Various – Alternative
Camping: Yes
Couleur Café
Couleur Café is a diverse urban music festival near the city of Brussels. The Indie festival used to be held at the Tour & Taxis venue, but in recent years, the event moved to a green area near the Atomium.
Performers at this event range from internationally recognized artists, to local bands and less-known music groups from all over the world.
Couleur Café stands for world music of all kinds in a super relaxed and natural setting.
During the day, activities for children are organized, which makes this a real family festival.
When visiting Brussels, you might want to add an extra day to explore the city of Brussels.
When: End of June – Beginning of July
Where: Brussels
Music style: World music
Camping: Yes
Graspop Metal Meeting
Graspop Metal Meeting is the largest heavy metal festival in Belgium and probably even in Europe. Each year, the event draws over 150 thousand spectators, who visit from all over the world.
The festival is held near a tiny town called Dessel and Graspop is by far the largest event taking place in the village each year!
Graspop was first organized in 1986 as a family event. Over the years, the focus changed to heavy metal, hardrock, and extreme metal. This caused the event to really boom internationally!
When: June
Where: Dessel (Antwerp)
Music style: Heavy Metal
Camping: Yes
Gentse Feesten
The Gentse Feesten festival is a whole different experience than the other events in this list! The massive party completely takes over the entire city for 10 whole days. Above all, it takes place in the Instagrammable city of Ghent.
During the daytime, there are street acts, activities and workshops, spread over the city center.
At night, the Gentse Feesten are full of music, performances, party, and love!
During these 10 days of fun, a dozen of other mini events take place in the city, such as Comedy Festival Ghent, Polé Polé, Ten Days Off, …
Notable fact: the Gentse Feesten were organized for the very first time in the year 1843!
When: July
Where: Ghent (West-Flanders)
Music style: Various
Camping: No
Reggae Geel
Reggae Geel is a relatively small festival for reggae lovers. As you already suspected, the atmosphere is super chill and friendly.
For this event, performers from all over the world travel to Geel to play music for music lovers from all over the world! This event truly is an international and worldly experience.
People visiting Reggae Geel can expect to have a relaxed and fun time at the event, while enjoying Indie reggae music, as well as, international and famous artists.
The event was first organized in 1979 and it was the very first reggae music festival to be organized in Europe.
When: August
Where: Geel (Antwerp)
Music style: Reggae
Camping: Yes
Dour Festival
Dour Music Festival is an alternative music festival, which has been around since 1988. The festival lasts for 5 days and it has an easy-going atmosphere and mentality.
You can expect a variety of different music styles and artist from all over the world.
People who attend Dour, usually return the next year, because they fall in love with the vibe at this cool event in the South of Belgium.
Dour belongs in the list of the most popular festivals in Belgium, holding a 5th position!
When: July
Where: Dour (near the French border)
Music style: Alternative
Camping: Yes
Festival Dranouter
Dranouter Folk Festival takes place near the French border. It has been around since 1977 and Dranouter is the largest folk festival in Europe.
The event lasts for 3 days and live music is organized on 5 different stages. What’s so fun about this festival, is the relaxed vibe and the small-town mentality.
You can expect to hear quite a few smaller folk groups, but there will also be major music bands. In the past few years, singers like Bart Peeters, Intergalactic Lovers, Triggerfinger, Passenger, … and more acts have performed at Dranouter Folk Festival.
When: August
Where: Dranouter (West-Flanders)
Music style: Folk
Camping: Yes
Deep in the Woods
Deep in the Woods is a small and cozy music festival in the French part of Belgium. The event lasts for 3 days, with the main acts on Friday and Saturday.
On stage at the Deep in the Woods festival, tons of independent artists entertain the party going crowds.
When visiting Deep in the Woods, you can expect to enjoy a small event with a few thousand people and a chance to get to know new artists and music.
When: September
Where: Hastière (near Dinant)
Music style: alternative / mixed
Camping: Yes
Sunrise Festival
Sunrise Festival kicks off the summer holidays in Belgium, so you can expect this to be a wild party! The event terrain is an actual swimming pond. If you plan on attending this event, don’t forget to bring your bathing suit!
Sunrise Festival boast a colorful summer vibe with a massive EDM party all through the night. There are a few different stages where you can enjoy different music styles and settings.
Did we say EDM? There will be house music, hardstyle, and some drum ‘n bass!
When: June
Where: Lille (Antwerp)
Music style: House / Drum ‘n Bass / Hardstyle
Camping: Yes
Extrema Outdoor
Extrema Outdoor is one of the earliest festivals of the year. It’s happening in the month of May. This electronic music festival is held in the province of Limburg, in the North-East of the country.
The Extrema Outdoor music festival is gaining popularity each year and it’s easy to see why!
There’s this fantasy rich setting, which is fun to explore, but the vibe at this festival is just amazingly fun and friendly!
When: May
Where: Houthalen – Helchteren (near Hasselt in Limburg)
Music style: Electronic music
Camping: Yes
Fire is Gold
Fire is Gold is the follow-up festival from the makers of Laundry Day dance festival.
Laundry Day Music Festival used to be known for its impressive line-up with Belgian DJ’s. It was first organized in 1998 and it’s one of the last music festivals in Belgium, as it took place in September each year.
The new and improved Fire is Gold happens at the end of August. With this urban festival, the music focus has shifted to hip-hop, rap, and pop music. The global festival focus is pretty broad, as the festival is about music, fashion, sports, and talks.
You can expect a variety of tattoo shops, graffiti workshops, skate contests, and places where fashion rules, aside from the music!
When: September
Where: Antwerp
Music style: hip-hop / rap / pop
Camping: Yes
Cactus Festival
Cactus Festival is a 3-day event near the city of Bruges in Belgium. The festival is held in an idyllic green area near Bruges. You can expect a lot of coziness and friendly faces! It’s all about world music and wonderful experiences, workshops, shows, and other activities.
Cactus is a family friendly festival all day long, but there are parties and performances late at night as well.
When: July
Where: Bruges (West-Flanders)
Music style: Rock / World Music
Camping: Yes
Belgian Pride
The Belgian Pride is the only LGBTQ+ event we added to this list. But if you’re interested in more lesbian festivals or LGBTQ Pride events, we got some information about that too!
The Belgian Pride is the main pride event for Belgium, and it’s held in the city centre of Brussels. Usually, during the Belgian Pride, Brussels is transformed into one massive street party all over the city. Definitely a recommended event!
When: May
Where: Brussels city center
Music style: All kinds of music
Camping: No
Maanrock
Maanrock is an amazing (and free!) city festival in the city of Mechelen. This beautiful city is often skipped by tourists, but it’s definitely worthy of your time!
Maanrock festival lasts for 3 days. Aside from the fact that Maanrock hosts a lot of local artists and performers, the mainstage line up also boasts international artists and popular bands.
Maanrock is one of these typical music festivals in Belgium, where the entire city and people from the region gather and have a great time!
When: August
Where: Mechelen (Antwerp)
Music style: Mixed
Camping: No
Ieper Hardcore Fest
Ieper Hardcore Fest used to be called Ieperfest. The 3-day event is hosted in an open area just outside of the city.
The music style for this event has evolved throughout the years. The music styles you can expect to hear at this festival are hardcore, death metal, grindcore, and metalcore. People from all over Europe attend Ieper Hardcore fest, as it is one of the most popular festivals in this style.
When: July
Where: Ieper (West-Flanders)
Music style: Hardcore
Camping: Yes
Antilliaanse Feesten
The Antilliaanse Feesten in the Belgian Hoogstraten is a fun and accessible festival, not too far from the border with The Netherlands.
This international festival brings a mix of music style, mostly with a Caribbean flavor. Artists and visitors from all over the world gather for this exciting festival in Belgium.
The Antilliaanse Feesten were first organized in 1983 and the main message has stayed the same throughout the years.
When: August
Where: Hoogstraten (Antwerp)
Music style: world music – Caribbean music
Camping: Yes
Lokerse Feesten
The 10-day city festival in Lokeren is called Lokerse Feesten. With its location in between Ghent and Antwerp, this festival is easily accessible from both towns. The Lokerse Feesten was first organized in 1975 and it has become more and more popular over the years.
The concept for this event is similar to the Gentse Feesten, which is also an urban festival, which lasts for almost 2 weeks.
At this festival, a variety of music styles and artists is spread over 10 full days. You can expect to see a lot of big names in the lineup for this festival.
When: End of July – Beginning of August
Where: Lokeren (East-Flanders)
Music style: Various
Camping: Yes
Sfinks Festival
Sfinks Festival is a free festival in Belgium, which is organized twice a year. In May, there’s the 1-day Sfinks Mundial Festival. Then in July, the main 3-day Sfinks Mixed Festival is the actual multi-day summer event.
Skinks is a tradition in the Antwerp region, since the festival has been around since the 70’s. And you can still feel the 70’s vibe when attending this popular music festival.
During the summer event, the 4 days are filled with international acts, workshops, and fun activities for the entire family. At night, you can listen to (and watch) music performances by artists from all over the world.
When: 1 day in May – 4 days in July
Where: Boechout (near Antwerp)
Music style: Pop and world music
Camping: Yes
Spa Francofolies
Francofolies de Spa is a 5-day music festival in the city of Spa in the region of Liege. As the name of the event implies, there’s mostly French music to be heard here. A variety of French speaking (singing) artists line up on the large festival stage in the heart of the city of Spa.
When: July
Where: Spa (Liege)
Music style: French
Camping: Yes
Linkerwoofer Festival
Linkerwoofer is a 2-day music event at Linkeroever in Antwerp. This laid-back festival features a lot of Belgian artists.
During the day, there is also entertainment for kids and tons of other fun things to do, street food to eat.
Linkerwoofer is a great Belgian festival to combine with a visit to Antwerp. It’s also one of the more budget-friendly festivals in Belgium.
When: August
Where: Antwerp
Music style: Pop and rock
Camping: No
Voltage Festival
Voltage Festival is organized in a small town in West Flanders, near the French border. The cool part is that it’s held in an abandoned electricity plant, which results in an extraordinary setting for this type of event.
The festival lasts for 2 days and party people travel from all over Europe to attend this electronic dance festival.
When: August
Where: Zwevegem (West-Flanders)
Music style: Electronic music
Camping: Yes
Sjock Festival
Sjock Festival in Gierle is a popular rockabilly festival near the border with the Netherlands. It has been around since 1976, but the great concept hasn’t changed too much.
Music enthusiasts from all over Europe gather for this festival as it has a different vibe and atmosphere.
Sjock boasts a relaxed rockabilly vibe all through the festival, complete with an old-timer car show-off!
When: July
Where: Gierle (Antwerp)
Music style: Rockabilly – Punk rock
Camping: Yes
Summer Sessions
Summer Sessions is a young and growing music festival in the city of Turnhout. The event lasts for 3 days and features popular artists as well as local bands. It also includes a kids afternoon which makes this festival very family friendly.
With a beautiful setting in the heart of the city, Summer Sessions offers amazing music performances and a cozy atmosphere. This feel-good music event near the Dutch border promises to grow into one of the most wonderful events for true music lovers.
When: June
Where: Turnhout (Antwerp)
Music style: Pop and various styles
Camping: No
Brussels Summer Festival
This 10-day music festival in Brussels is taking place in 3 prominent places in the heart of Brussels. Stages are set up in the Mont des Arts (where the Belgian Pride stage located as well :p), near the royal palace, and near the Central train station. This music festival in Brussels is one you should not miss!
Brussels Summer Festival is an urban event that resonated through the entire city, just like it is with the Gentse Feesten festival.
When: August
Where: Brussels
Music style: Mixed
Camping: No
Elrow Town
Elrow Town festival is a Spanish festival concept with events in various places in Europe. The Belgian edition happens in the city of Antwerp.
The setting and staging have an extraordinary feel and the general decor is set up in fantasy style. You can expect to be wowed by your surroundings, while enjoying amazing EDM.
When: July
Where: Linkeroever Antwerp
Music style: Electro
Camping: Yes
Paradise City
Paradise City is an electronic dance festival near the city of Brussels. The largest clubs in the country are hosting the different festival stages and you can expect to enjoy some of the best DJ sets and artists at this festival.
Just like many of the other events, Paradise City is an environment-friendly festival. It lasts for 3 full days and people flock from all over the country to attend this festival.
When: June
Where: Perk (Flemish Brabant)
Music style:
Camping: Yes
W Festival
W Festival is a Belgian new wave and synth pop festival. You can attend the event in Waregem, West Flanders. The festival lasts for 4 days and it’s one of the first of the year.
Aside from the main stage, you can expect awesome live performances by national and international artists on 3 smaller stages.
When: May
Where: Waregem (West-Flanders)
Music style: New wave and synth pop
Camping: Yes
Suikerrock
Suikerrock is the official urban festival, organized by the city of Tienen. The festival has been around for over 30 years, as it was first organized in 1987.
This music festival also boasts multiple stages and you only need tickets for the main stage. The other stages have free access.
In short, the entire city of Tienen will be upside down for this event, as there is an acoustic, stage, a DJ stage, a food court, … and tons of fun to be had!
Spoiler alert: the 2020 edition of Suikerrock is a farewell edition and it will be the last Suikerrock festival ever. Sadly…
When: End of July – Beginning of August
Where: Tienen (Brabant)
Music style: Pop and feel-good
Camping: No
30 best music festivals in Belgium – Conclusion
As you can read, there are tons of cool music festivals in Belgium. The 30 music festivals we mention in this article are only just the tip of the iceberg, as there are many more!
We really hope that you found the perfect music event in Belgium to add to your Belgian itinerary. Or maybe you’re traveling to Belgium especially for a music event, without even visiting the rest of the country (as tons of people do!)
Don’t hesitate to let us know about your favorite music festival in Belgium… or for that matter… in Europe!
Happy festival season!
Had enough of the festivals? Head into the beautiful nature in Belgium to get some relax time!
