Music Festivals in the Netherlands

There are two main music festivals in the Netherlands, Pinkpop and Lowlands. Neither is in Amsterdam, but both are easily accessible by train from Amsterdam’s Centraal Station.

Pinkpop: Pinkpop is the older of the two, and is in fact the oldest running festival of its kind. The first Pinkpop festival took place in 1970, and has since settled in the town of Landgraaf. The festival is named after the weekend it takes place on: Pinksteren, which is Pentacost weekend. Held over 3 days from Saturday to Monday, it’s visited by 60 000 people coming to see a variety of bands perform on 3 different stages.
Because Pinkpop is the longest running festival of its kind, many people who were young bohemian festival goers in the 70s continue to attend the festival with their children. As a result, it’s a calmer, more family friendly festival than most, with more acts catering to an older audience.

Lowlands Paradise: A Campingflight to Lowlands Paradise, more commonly known as Lowlands, is an annual festival held August in the town of Biddinghuizen, next to the amusement park Walibi World. You can buy single day, full day or festival/amusement park combo tickets. Also 3 days long and accommodating approximately 60 000 visitors, the festival has more stages and a greater variety of acts than Pinkpop.
The stages are under tents, which is great if it starts to rain (which is very common). However, if you don’t arrive early to catch your favourite act you won’t have a spot under a tent and will be stuck outside watching the performance on one of the jump screens. Attracting a younger crew than Pinkpop, the festival also has more non musical accents, including huge artistic structures, more shops, and a greater commercial presence.

For information on both festivals including dates and line-ups check out their official websites which also offer English pages: www.pinkpop.nl and www.lowlands.nl