FestPop’s Winter Music Festival Guide

Katherine Bennett

6 years ago

Winter Music Festival Guide

Simplifying music festival discovery and travel is FestPop’s mission. Each music festival has unique attributes whether its the atmosphere, lineup, or the community. We recognize everyone’s preferences and welcome music festival fans from across the globe to discover new festivals. This winter offers some of the biggest international festivals of the year. These festivals include new and returning adventures for festival-goers to add to their long lists of festivals they need to attend. You may want to add some of these festival’s to your winter bucket list if you want to get out of the cold.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Clubs

Baba Beach Club

Phuket, Thailand

This Thailand club is the perfect winter getaway for all music lovers. Baba Beach Club is a private 5 star luxury hotel with a cool spa, beach activities, tropical design and lots of lush green vegetation. It’s decadent, hip and unpretentious. Despite the focus on luxury, it also knows how to throw a party. Nicole Moudaber together with BE-AT.tv, D’Julz, Be Svendon, Maxxi Soundsystem, Shaded and Yokoo are a few of the names to have played on the newly fitted Funktion One sound system. It is the most powerful in Asia which boasts tens of speakers and sub units to make sure every beat is delivered in high definition clarity. Ibiza club brand Circo Loco will be throwing their first ever South East Asian gig at the venue in January which will be a very special occasion for the country and those travelling in Thailand over the winter period.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

December

808 Festival

Bangkok, Thailand
December 8th – 9th

808 Festival returns in 2018, set to be another essential event at Live Park in Bangkok, Thailand. This year the world famous A State of Trance brand returns to the region for the first time in a few years. Armin van Buuren heads up proceedings on day one of the festival with NWYR and Vini Vici, with global dance start Skrillex lining up on day two. He returns from a hiatus for his only sow in South East Asia. Thailand first timers REZZ, Troyboi and Whethan will be joining the lineup as well.

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

HiJinx

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
December 28th – 29th

There’s no arguing there’s an abundance of new festivals each and every year. One you definitely don’t want to miss out on though is Hijinx. This brand new festival has a lineup that’s stacked from top to bottom that’ll get you rickity, rickity, wrecked!

It’s a statement for any first year festival as they have Bassnectar, ODESZA, Big Gigantic, GRiZ, RL Grime, Illenium, Ganja White Knight, Flatbush Zombies, Denzel Curry, Whipped Cream, XIE, Dorfex Bos and Kaivon across the two-night event.

The first year festival will be the Northeast’s largest indoor music festival taking place in Philadelphia’s Pennsylvania Convention center and has a stacked lineup that will have any electronic & hip-hop fan excited.

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

SnowGlobe Music Festival

South Lake Tahoe, CA
December 29th – 31st

The 2018 edition of SnowGlobe features one of their most exciting lineups to date. News has broke that the Music Television Network became the majority sponsor of SnowGlobe Music Festival. The founder Chad Donnelly and his team will continue organizing and overseeing the event, but this year MTV has final say on all decisions. SnowGlobe Music Festival may have a new partner with MTV, but we do not think they will lose their sense of identity.

The hope is that the traditions and atmosphere of SnowGlobe will be maintained. Since the festival began nearly seven years ago in 2011 they have created their own Winter Wonderland. An out of this world concert experience.

Chad Donnelly and his team are convinced that MTV will help with the longevity and future production costs. The future of the festival depends on how well these two groups communicate their needs and beliefs with each other.

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Decadence Arizona

December 30th – 31st
Phoenix, Arizona

Hitting the Rawhide Convention Center in Chandler, AZ, this December 30 – 31, Decadence Arizona is gearing up for two nights filled with some of the biggest names in dance music. With such a massive and diverse lineup, attendees are sure to get their fill of all their favorite genres; you can rage the night away to the wild bass music of Skrillex and Rezz while also getting lost in the feels of Above & Beyond and shuffling to the dope beats of the tech house masters Solardo.

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Lost Paradise

Glenworth Valley (near Sydney), Australia
December 28th, 2018 – January 1st, 2019

Lost Paradise, the mind-blowing immersive festival experience held over New Year’s in the enchanted hinterland of Glenworth Valley, has announced its thrilling music line-up for 2018. PNAU, Bicep (live), KiNK (live) and Peggy Gou will join the likes of Bob Moses, SG Lewis and Willaris. K for four epic days of music. There will also be wellness, food, art and cultural experiences, feeding the soul through revelry, connection and discovery.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

January

Epizode Festival

Phu Quoc, Vietnam
December 28th, 2018 – January 8th, 2019

Returning once more for its third time, EPIZODE festival will be bringing it’s game-changing musical and cinematic experience, where you are the central character. It will take place on the island of Phu Quoc in Vietnam. This year’s festival will play host to Apollonia, Mr. G (live), tINI, Sammy Dee, Dewalta, Red Axes, Fumiya Tanaka, and more.

These acts will join the likes of Ricardo Villalobos, Nina Kraviz, Seth Troxler, Zip and Sonja Moonear for a series of day and night parties on painstakingly designed stages in a Vietnamese island paradise. Epizode’s tropical scenery makes it a festival site like no other, boasting white sandy beaches, lush jungle landscape and a myriad of enchanting art installations.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Esto Es Tulum

Tulum, Mexico
December 28th, 2018 – January 26th, 2019

The majestic Esto Es Tulum takes place in the ancient and beautiful Tulum, Mexico. Tulum is a beautiful mix of ancient Mayan cultures, with rich colors and textures, beautiful green-blue sea, warm sand beaches and hot sun guaranteed. It boasts thousands of luxury hotel rooms in the local area, all a few steps from the Caribbean sea. Stage designs are sympathetic to the local area with drift wood, woven basket and lush greenery. They all decorate each area with mesmeric lights and sound. As well as this, you can expect world class art and gastronomy next to the forward thinking soundtrack and 7000 like-minded people all partying in paradise. This is a place to free your mind with a crowd free from prejudice and all gathered together for one unstoppable experience.

Also known as Ibiza legends, CircoLoco will open and close the event. Joining these legends will be featured stars such as Seth Troxler, Damian Lazarus, Rampa vs &Me, Job Jobse, Blond:Ish, Gerd Janson, and Andrea Oliva. The Martinez Brothers will be playing an extended 12-hour set. Other bands performing include Sasha, Mathias Tanzmann, Luciano & Friends, ANTS, and more.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Holy Ship!

Miami, Florida
January 5th – 12th

It is the biggest boat party of the year! With DJ’s performing practically around the clock, it’s hard to imagine doing much more. Yet the MSC Poesia, constructed in 2008, is a world-class cruise ship equipped with modern amenities perfectly suited for interacting with your ship mates. With so many cool people and amazing DJ’s who are all on vacation together, the possibilities are endless. Whether you want face-crunching bass, hipster-approved house, funkadelic genre-bending or cinematic future bass, acts from 12th Planet to The Black Madonna, GRiZ and Jai Wolf got you covered.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

February

5 Senses Thailand

Koh Phangan, Thailand
February 14th – 19th

5 Senses Thailand created an amazing first edition for its first installment on the paradise island of Koh Phangan. The festival will take place on its white sand beaches, clear waters, and tropical flora covering the surrounding hills. Soothe your soul and move your feet while surrounded by the beautiful sights, sounds, and smells that only Thailand can offer. Providing the carefully considered soundtrack will be international headliners Behrouz, Francesca Lombardo, Thomas Schumacher, Einmusik, Supernova and Graham Gold. In addition, real stars from the underground such as Davide, Dirrty Dishes, Mikah, Axel Haube, Sense of Sun, Fake Shamans, Silky Thunder, Konrad Ritter and Salvo Salvatore and a specially selected team of 14 residents, with many more world class headliners to be announced over the upcoming months.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Envision Festival

Costa Rica
February 28th – March 3rd

Envision is a 4 day well-being and music festival held on a beach on Costa Rica’s Pacific coast with the rain-forest as a dramatic backdrop. There’s a big focus on yoga: classes run all day in two ‘yoga temples’, with top teachers from around the world. Music – across four stages – will be provided by local and international live acts and DJs. There are pre- and post- festival tour options available too, to explore this beautiful, lush country. Phase 1 lineup for the festival includes eclectic music from across the world with performances confirmed from: Lee Burridge, Bedouin, John Acquaviva, GRIZ, Sabo, Tycho, Nicola Cruz, Trevor Hall & many more.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

March

Ame Laroc Festival

Brazil
March 2nd – 4th

The new AME Club opened in Brazil and it is already joining forces with their sister club Laroc for a 3 day festival over Carnival period. The fresh 2,500 capacity club which will be situated next to main Laroc venue on the outskirts of Sao Paolo with custom designed main stage. Both of these fantastic spaces will be in use for the Carnival Festival with DJ Snake, Seth Troxler, Alan Walker, Camelphat, Hot Since 82, Diplo, Dubfire all bring a big mix of techno, house, progressive and electro styles with out of this world production all adding to what will be three hugely memorable days.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

SXM Festival

St. Martin, The Caribbean
March 13th – 17th

SXM Festival, beyond the location, is the production and aesthetic mastery created by over 50 international artists and designers which creates this truly immersive experience. Every detail is drenched in an artful and calculated approach, offering a look and feel positioned where history (much of the decor is inspired by the indigenous Caribbean people, The Tainos), technology, and nature meet. Set amongst the iconic shores and picturesque jungles of St Martin, SXM Festival will return, featuring a wide-reaching array of world-class talent from across the global house and techno community.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

FestPop Staff Writer, Katherine Bennett