Ten breathtaking festival locations
Dance music with a view
9 Gottwood
Gottwood Anglesey, Wales
Gottwood is the independent Welsh festival nestled in the woods by the Welsh coastline, hidden away by a lake on the private Carreglwyd Estate in Anglesey. The area won the accolade of Lonely Planet's 'Greatest Region on Earth 2012', and the setting is a world away from the corporate sponsorship of many UK festivals. Attendees can immerse themselves in the raves that take place across a combination of seven indoor and outdoor stages, or get away from it all in one of the most ambient surrounds of the British countryside. It also boasts sunsets and sunrises that are something of legend.
Capacity at the event is kept to just 5,000 to ensure the festival feels intimate and the site as environmentally sustainable as possible. With all seven stages made from materials found on site, one of Gottwood's cofounders has since been signed up to consult on the green credentials of Secret Garden Party and Festival No. 6. Those founders self describe the festival as a "mystical little party hidden in the middle of the woods", but that only goes a short way to capturing the magic of the Gottwood experience.
Gotwood takes place in mid June
10 Magnetic Fields, Rajasthan
Magnetic Fields Rajasthan, India
Magentic Fields is set in a 17 th Century palace that is now used as the decadent Alsisar Mahal hotel in Rajasthan, India. The venue is a series of elaborately paved courtyards, lush gardens and luxury pools which the festival use as the backdrop to their elaborate stage set-ups.
From secret parties on rooftops soundtracked by artists from the vibrant Indian underground, through stargazing workshops and sunset kite flying, the festival is a culturally immersive experience amidst the Rajasthani desert.
Last year, acid house originator Charanjit Singh played – before passing away at the age of 75 in July – alongside the likes of Robert Koch and Shiva Soundsystem. Attendees can also opt to either stay in a palace suite, or the Bedouin Tent Village, home only to luxury tents. No repeat of a weekend spent in the dodgy £20 two-man pop up you forever regret buying here.
Magnetic Fields takes place in mid December
