4 Amsterdam Music Festivals To Catch Before Summer's Up

A visit to Amsterdam any time of year is a great city break full of cool counter-culture art galleries, hip bars and cafés, and some of the best underground music venues in the world. But if you really want to immerse yourself in the city’s hippest music scene this summer and autumn then take the Amsterdam airport shuttlestraight to the city centre and check out four of its most famous music festivals.

Electro Fun in the Forest at Dekmantel Festival

Based in the Amsterdamse Bos – a forested park area on the outskirts of the city – from 1-3 August, this year’s Dekmantel will be hosted at several other venues around the city as well. Celebrating all that is cutting edge in the electro and EDM scene, the main site of the festival is in the open air of the stunning parkland at Amsterdamse Bos, where for an additional charge you can camp for the duration of the event. Head into the city and enjoy further acts at a range of venues in the waterfront district: including the EYE Filmmuseum, the Tolhuistuin, and the Bimhuis.

Dance under the Stars at Dance Valley

Known affectionately as the ‘Woodstock of Dance’, the annual open-air Dance Valley festival celebrates all things Dance Music: from trance and electro to hard-core house. This year the three-day event kicks off on 12 August and is being held in the wild, greenery of Spaarnwoude, a parkland in the north-west of the city. Expect a wide range of international DJs as well as local acts for what is The Netherland’s oldest music festival.

Hipsters in the Heart of the City at Encore Festival

Held in the über-cool NDSM Werf (a former industrial dock area which has now been adopted by the coolest of alternative Amsterdammers as an exhibition/living/music venue space) the Encore Festival offers the very latest in R&B and hip hop. The one day event will be held on 25 August and will feature the likes of Colorful Soundsystem, Madbwoy, Claire Lyons, Nikky Adriana and Equalz.

Rave Hard at the AMF Amsterdam

Formerly known as the Amsterdam Music Festival, the AMF is one of the city’s biggest dance music events. Due to be held in the Amsterdam ArenA in October (the exact date has yet to be confirmed) this is a great way to prolong the summer festival season. The line-up hasn’t been announced but last year dance giants Don Diablo, David Guetta and CMC$ all appeared so expect some big names.

Getting There

With flights to the city offered by most of the budget airlines from airports across the UK, the hardest part of getting there is working out where to catch the Amsterdam airport shuttle when you land. Luckily you can avoid that stress by booking an Amsterdam airport shuttle with one of the many private transfer services before you set off. They will tell you exactly where to find your driver – and exactly how much it will cost – in advance so all you’ll need to do is pack your festival gear and turn up.

Lukas Johannes is a driver for Shuttle Direct, the number one provider of shared and private airport transfers all over Europe and northern Africa. If you’re looking for an affordable Amsterdam airport shuttle Lukas and his colleagues can make sure that you and your luggage get to and from the airport swiftly and safely.