Festivals 2025!

It's a new year and that means we have festival season firmly in our sights!

If you're like me and asked Father Christmas for Festival tickets for Christmas what did you ask for?

As a veteran festival goer of... Well too many years quite frankly!

Here's my roundup of the best alternative festivals that we have coming up in the UK this year!

Starting out with a festival super close to my own heart as it's the first UK camping festival I ever did. Bloodstock Open Air!

Based in Catton Hall Derbyshire and hailing from the humble beginnings of an indoor festival run by an incredible family team. It has rapidly become a staple in many a metal heads diary!

This year brings huge international headliners of Trivium, Machine Head and Gojira as well as a unreal roster of other bands over the weekend!

They keep their beer prices low, and being in mid August it's (usually!) lovely weather across the weekend with a very family friendly crowd!

Bloodstock tickets

Next up in mid July, the brainchild of two of the team behind 2 promoters one pod... Is 2000 Trees! A festival I have always been told I need to go to, but didn't actually make it until last year!

I was definitely missing out! A smaller festival with a capacity of 15,000 over the weekend. But what it lacks in size it makes up for in line up!

This year sees headline slots from Kneecap and Paris on the Thursday, Taking back Sunday and Coheed & Cambria on the Friday and Alexisonfire on the Saturday!

This festival is just absolutely beautiful! The line up is curated, the site includes a stage in a forest (which is where I caught Spanish Love Songs doing an acoustic set last year!) and they cater for all food and drinks!

Another very family friendly festival which I am excited to visit again!

2000 Trees tickets

Third up and traditionally the first festival of the season for me every single year! Slam Dunk! This festival is only one day, but it still packs an absolute punch!

The team behind this run it one day after the next over two different sites. I always attend the South, and have done since the days of it being at Hatfield University!

The line up never ceases to amaze me each year for this festival. My only quibble being that I love the entire line up, so end up running from stage to stage!

This year sees A Day to Remember headlining the main stage!

Don't forget, the festival has also gone across Europe if you fancy making a little holiday out of it!

Slam Dunk tickets

A local hero of a festival for those of us down on the South coast which has made a very welcome comeback in the last few years is Takedown!

This was originally in Southampton and Salisbury, and after an 8 year hiatus it came back! Much to the excitement of people who attended the first time round as well as music fans who would have been too young the first time round!

The festival takes over the whole of the Portsmouth Guildhall site and is over 2 days this year! With Ferocious Dog and Kris Barras Band headlining the Friday and the Elvis fronted powerhouse Elvana headlining the Saturday in April!

Takedown tickets

Finally on the speedy little round up of my favourite alternative festivals coming up this year... Download Festival!

Unlike, a vast majority of people. I was never a regular Download attendee! My first Download festival was in fact last year! I got a beautiful introduction to the world of Drownload/Brownload!

Castle Donnington a site that means so much to so many people, bands and punters alike!

A festival which is absolutely huge crowd wise, and brings in some of the biggest names in the alternative scene every single year! This year they have Green Day, Sleep Token and Korn headlining!

A legendary festival that I am looking forward to going back to this year and hopefully exploring the site more with better weather!

Download tickets

Which festivals are you heading to this year? Have I missed any that I need to go and explore?! Let me know!