The Best Music Festivals in Budapest and Hungary

Home to one of Europe’s biggest fests, Budapest attracts plenty of live music buffs who want to enjoy some of the greatest artists in the world on stage. And if you’re happy to venture outside of Budapest, from psytrance to metal, festivals in Hungary have got you covered this festival season. 

Hungary definitely deserves more recognition for the cracking festivals it puts on every year, and hopefully, this blog will help do just that. 

Check out the best festivals in Budapest in 2024, plus plenty of Hungary festivals too, below, featuring eclectic forest festivals, gatherings by Lake Balaton, dance and EDM raves with boat parties, and much more. 

 

Festivals in Budapest 

 

Sziget Festival

Photo: Sziget Festival Official / Facebook.com 

When: Wednesday 7th - Monday 12th August 2024

Where: Hajógyári Island in Budapest, Hungary

2024 lineup: Fred again.., Halsey, Janelle Monae, Kylie Minogue, Liam Gallagher, Skrillex, Martin Garrix, Stormzy, FISHER, Louis Tomlinson, RAYE, Fontaines D.C., Yves Tumor, Honey Dijon, and more

Sziget is the champion of Budapest music festivals, being the biggest in the capital and even one of the biggest in Europe. 

With a super diverse lineup, everyone stays happy and all your mates have a good few artists to look forward to. We’re talking indie, pop, house, tech house, techno (including hard techno), DnB, EDM, and rock. 

If you need a break from the music, you can head to the beach and take a dip, sit in on some talks, and even check out the cinema! The fest also offers parties on boats and at The Fisherman's Bastion, an impressive castle. 

Other artists performing at this year’s bash include Nia Archives, Nico Moreno, Camo & Krooked, Charlie Sparks, Mannequin Pussy, Blondshell, Pip Blom, Hector Oaks, and Narciss.

 

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Budapest Park

Photo: Budapest Park / Facebook.com 

When: multiple dates from June - September 2024 

Where: Budapest Park in Budapest, Hungary 

2024 lineup: Take That, Carl Cox, Rise Against, Deborah De Luca, Quimby, Thomas Anders, Majka, Tom Morello (different Budapest venue), Thievery Corporation, Parov Stelar, and more

Budapest Park is a series of concerts and themed parties (R&B, hip-hop, etc.) with artists from a variety of genres including rock, pop, and house and techno taking to the stage. Many huge Hungarian artists will perform as well as some international names you’ll recognise.

At Budapest Park’s events, the concerts go on until 10pm. But there’ll be an afterparty with DJs across four dancefloors - so you can find the sounds you like - until dawn, and that’s included in your ticket for the gig. 

A family-friendly fest, kids under 6 go free. Budapest’s largest open-air nightclub invites you to come over and escape reality for a bit while enjoying some of the best-loved names in music. 

 

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Festivals in Hungary 

 

SZIN: Szegedi Ifjúsági Napok

Photo: Szegedi Ifjúsági Napok – SZIN / Facebook.com 

When: Wednesday 28th - Saturday 31st August 2024

Where: Sor in Szeged, Hungary

2024 lineup: Armin van Buuren, Zara Larsson, Kamrad, Azahriah, Honeybeast, Elefant, Nusha, Sikdope, Matroda, Anima Sound System, Krubi, and more

SZIN Festival, when it started, was a festival different from the rest. SZIN refused to censor the artists who performed there. In that sense, SZIN started as one of the freest festivals, refusing to stifle creativity and expression. Fast forward to the present, and SZIN still prioritises freedom and still seeks to give its guests a party to remember. 

Many more artists are still to be announced but with electronic legend Timmy Trumpet on the decks, we're sure it'll be top. 

 

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Bass Paradise 

Photo: Bass Paradise / Facebook.com

When: Thursday 11th - Saturday 13th July 2024 

Where: DomaFarm, Torokbalint in Hungary  

2024 lineup: Subtronics, A.M.C, Friction, Enei, Grafix, Kanine, Jessica Audiffred, Mefjus, Koven, Andromedik, Barely Alive, Mollie Collins, ATLiens, and more

All about those low frequencies, this festival is the place to be in Hungary if you love bass music. 

Bass Paradise features five stages: the main stage, the DNB Stage, the Dubstep/Riddim Stage, the Rave Cave, and Kare Busz, which will showcase UKG, breaks, and garage. Over the weekend, Rave Cave will see takeovers that flood the festival with techno, hardstyle, and the sounds of Frat, a Budapest-based DJ collective. 

Each day, the festival will kick off at 3pm and keep the tunes bumping until 6am, giving you 15 hours of music, and plenty of time to discover your favourite artists and tear it up to your faves on the scene. 

 

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Rockmaraton

Photo: Rockmaraton Fesztivál / Facebook.com

When: Thursday 11th - Monday 15th July 2024

Where: Dunaujvaros, Szalki-Sziget in Hungary

2024 lineup: Judas Priest, Alestorm, Igorrr, Beast In Black, Amorphis, Dynazty, The 69 Eyes, Dying Wish, Carcass, Marduk, Cavalera, Hypocrisy, Juhasz Marci, and more 

A staple of Hungary’s metal scene since 1992, Rockmaraton is one of the best metal festivals in the country, and it’s also family-friendly!

Besides the monster riffs from legendary and up-and-coming bands, there’s a free beach next to the festival, open from 9am until 7pm, which will help beat that hangover and rejuvenate you for a good mosh.

There’ll also be the Off-Rock Tanya which will host Viking training, the creative corner for littluns, board games, lectures, film screenings, rock and metal quizzes, karaoke, a rock disco, and hair and beard glitter stations.  

 

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O.Z.O.R.A. Festival

Photo: Ozora Festival official / Facebook.com

When: Friday 26th July - Tuesday 6th August 2024

Where: Igar in Dadpuszta, Hungary

2024 lineup: Carbon Based Lifeforms, Laughing Buddha, Medicine Drum, Ozric Tentacles, Cosmosis, Nihiloxica, Breger, Fluidum, Calm Spirit, Oleg, and more 

OZORA is a “psychedelic tribal gathering” in Dadpuszta and it’s about so much more than just great music. 

This trance music festival fuses music with psychedelic themes, including trippy decor and performers in mushroom costumes. The most common genres here are psy and goa trance but there are also splashes of techno, ambient, psychedelic rock, and future dub. 

Since its inception in 1999, OZORA has grown to become the biggest and most influential psychedelic gathering, with around 30,000 people attending each year. 

Easily one of the best music festivals in Hungary, if you like a trippy vibe and electronic tunes, you should check this one out for sure. 

 

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Kolorádó Fesztivál

Photo: KOLORA?DO? / Instagram.com

When: Wednesday 3rd - Saturday 6th July 2024 

Where: Sztrilich Pál Cserkészpark in Nagykovácsi, Hungary

2024 lineup: Chlar, Call Super, DJ Fart In The Club, Carson Coma, Red Axes, Krubi, Nicola Cruz, Blawan, Sedef Adasi, Sisi, Polygonia & Gigi FM, and more 

One of Kolorado's core values is diversity. With artists representing hip-hop, rock, electronic, experimental electronic, techno, house, IDM, ambient, world music, pop, jazz, classical, and more on its 2024 lineup, this forest festival has smashed it with its lineup. 

Another value Kolorado holds dearly is freedom. And with this, they encourage the crowds to feel free and express themselves, while encouraging the artists to experiment and be creative. Kolorado also offers dance, theatre, and art performances, circus shows, a bubble show, art, discussions including one on conspiracy theories, hip-hop dance lessons, and all sorts of thrills outside music.

It seems Kolorado has the perfect vision of what it wants to be. And judging by the success of the festival, we’d say they’ve nailed it.

 

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Balaton Sound

Photo: Balaton Sound Official / Facebook.com 

When: Wednesday 3rd - Saturday 6th July 2024

Where: Lake Balaton in Zamárdi, Hungary

2024 lineup: Marshmello, 9x9, Alison Wonderland, James Hype, Sara Landry, Mau P, Honeyluv, Amelie Lens, Adam Beyer, Nico Moreno, Meduza, Malugi, Timmy Trumpet, Nervo, Warface, and more

Balaton Sound is the biggest electronic beach festival in Europe, inviting dance music fans to enjoy their favourite music the way it's meant to be - at a beautiful, sunny location with sand and sea. 

Put together by the same team behind Sziget Festival, Balaton Sound can accommodate 140,000 music fans who visit from around the globe. Covering plenty of genres from huge EDM DJs to lesser-known hardstyle DJs, deep house, and dubstep, there’s plenty to check out. 

And if you’ve got the energy after a long day dancing to your favourite tunes, there are 250-capacity boat parties to get the last bit of party out of your system from Wednesday to Friday. Looking for a massive, sunny rave? Balaton Sound might be the perfect festival for you. 

 

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DAAD Gathering 

Photo: DAAD Gathering / Facebook.com

When: Thursday 20th - Monday 24th June 2024

Where: Igar in Dádpuszta, Hungary

2024 lineup: Ben Klock, Radio Slave, Fatima Hajji, Dax J, Floating Points, Adiel, Dixon, Slam, Francesco Del Garda, Kaleema, Jane Fitz, and more

While DAAD 2024 has wrapped up, we wanted to show you it as it’s easily one of the best festivals in Hungary. 

The four-day open-air techno and art festival was launched in 2021. Set deep in Hungary’s countryside, it uses the same site as O.Z.O.R.A. Festival. DAAD attracts legendary underground talent who perform across DAAD’s multiple stages, including the lakeside Am/Beach stage. 

More than just banging music, there are plenty of artsy and cooking thrills to get stuck into such as workshops like jewellery making, lavender pillow-making for kids, movement meditation with handpan music, and more. 

 

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So there are the best Budapest music festivals, and lots of killer ones in Hungary, too. Whether you’ve never been to Hungary or are, at this point, basically a local, the country has plenty to offer in the way of music festivals, food, and consistently pleasant weather, with summer temperatures floating around the 42-degrees mark. So you’re certain to have a ball. 

Looking for more cracking festivals across the UK and beyond? Use our festival finder to discover all the amazing fests this year.

 

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Check out our What's On Guide to discover even more rowdy raves and sweaty gigs taking place over the coming weeks and months. For festivals, lifestyle events and more, head on over to our Things To Do page or be inspired by the event selections on our Inspire Me page.

 

 

  

 

 Header image: Sziget Festival Official / Facebook.com