Festivals Held In The Most Extreme Conditions

Some festivals just wouldn’t be the same were they held in different locations. In fact, the conditions are integral to the complete experience!

Be it the scorching desert sun, the subzero temperatures of winter or the ungodly amounts of rain at festivals, they all add character to the event and eventually the people who go through it. Here is a list of festivals that are held in some of the most insane settings that most people would never willing put themselves in.

1. Burning Man

Held in the middle of Black Rock Desert, the weather on the playa is often violent and unpredictable. Dust storms, high winds, freezing temperatures, rain, Burning Man has it all. Despite this thousands of people attend the event for a truly transformational experience.

2. Glastonbury

The rain at Glastonbury is the stuff of legends. Given that British weather is extremely unpredictable it may not always rain, but when it does, it pours. It doesn’t take long before the entire farm is one giant swampy mess with festival goers struggling to stay dry as they trudge through the mud. Despite all this, the rains have become so synonymous with the festival that people argue that a Glastonbury without rain is not a true experience at all.

3. Secret Solstice

The Secret Solstice festival is truly unique. They started off with hosting the first ever concert inside a glacier and then promptly upped themselves by organizing a small gig for 20 people inside a dormant volcano. Organizers of the event definitely know how to make the best of Iceland’s natural formations.

4. Igloofest

Even with temperatures dropping below -20 C , tens of thousands of people in Canada head to the Igloofest during the coldest period of winter. The snow, the chilly breeze or just the overall below freezing conditions are what make this festival so special as people dance to keep themselves warm.

5. Afrikaburn

To know the conditions at Afrikaburn, just read what the organisers have to say on their website :

“No water. No shops. No boerie rolls. No bar. No signal. Burns. Scorpions. Sculptures. Sunburn. Costume. Thorns. Music. Dehydration. Artworks. Razor-sharp stones. Theme camps. Scratches. Mutant vehicles. Bruises. Beauty. Exhaustion. Creativity. Blisters. Excitement. Rebar. Sharing. Explosions. Gifting. Punctures. Community. Storms. Wind that shreds tents. Dust devils that fling them into the distance. Floods. Wide open space. Hail. Joy.

110 kilometres on a rough dirt road in the Tankwa Karoo with no phone signal, no fuel stops and very few signs of humanity. Nights that can be freezing, days that can get up to 40 degrees in the shade. And. There. Is. No. Shade.”

6. Rock The Pistes

Rock The Pistes is held in Portes du Soleil, one of the world’s two largest ski areas linked by lifts and stretches between France and Switzerland. It is world’s only high altitude music festival and attracts over 25,000 people. Another cool thing, besides the weather, about the festival is the fact that none of the gig locations are known until an anonymous text message the night prior. This may lead into the festival goer performing tasks such as a ski marathon to find the secret spot.

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