The festival season is nearly upon us and it’s time to take a look at the biggest and best of the music festivals that will be held across the UK this summer. With some big events missing in 2012, this summer is set to see a return to form with some fantastic festivals on the cards, which will attract huge crowds come rain or shine.
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1Glastonbury
The mother of all music festivals returns in 2013 after a break last year, and it’s back in style with a Saturday night headlining act of none other than the Rolling Stones. Tickets for Glastonbury sold out months ago, so if you are going along to Worthy Farm from June 26th to 30th this year then count yourself lucky. Other headlining acts include Primal Scream, The Arctic Monkeys and Mumford & Sons.
2Isle of Wight Festival
Other than Glastonbury, few UK festivals have quite the same legendary status as the Isle of Wight Festival. Although in 2013 there will be fewer than the supposed 600,000 visitors who went along in 1970 to see Jimi Hendrix and The Who, it remains one of the biggest of the summer festivals. The headliners this year include Bon Jovi, The Killers and the Stone Roses, and it is taking place from June 13th to 16th.
3V Festival
The V Festival will take place in two different locations – Weston Park in South Staffordshire, and Hylands Park in Chelmsford – over the weekend of August 17th and 18th. The headline act this year is Beyoncé, with the Stereophonics, Kings of Leon and Basement Jaxx all making appearances. It’s always a cracking event, and this year won’t be any different.
4Reading & Leeds Festival
These two festivals are held in completely different locations but feature the same acts. It boasts the distinction of being the oldest festival in the world for popular music, and this year will feature an eclectic mix over the weekend of August 23rd and 25th, including Eminem, Biffy Clyde and Green Day.
5RockNess
RockNess may not be the biggest festival, but when it comes to the setting it takes the crown. Located on the banks of the famous Loch Ness at Clune Farm, the festival gets bigger every year and always attracts big headlining acts. This year it will be held from June 7th to 9th, with Basement Jaxx and Madness headlining.
6T in the Park
Scotland’s other major music festival will be featuring The Killers, Mumford & Sons and Snoop Dogg this year at Strathclyde Country Park from July 12th to 14th. It will be the 20th anniversary of the festival, and 80,000 people are expected to flock to the event.
7Bestival
This unique and diverse festival is always popular, and this year it will be especially so with the headliner being none other than Sir Elton John. Taking place at Robin Hill County Park on the Isle of Wight from September 5th to 8th, this festival takes place later in the season, so if you’ve been to one of the earlier festivals you might just have recovered in time to check this out as well. Snoop Dogg and Franz Ferdinand will also be performing.
8Creamfields
Creamfields is the biggest festival for dance music, and this year The Prodigy will be headlining. The festival will be held at Daresbury in Cheshire from August 23rd to 25th over the Bank Holiday weekend, and other confirmed acts include Paul Van Dyk, Avicii and Tiësto.
9Download
For Metal fans there is only one festival, and this is it. Over the past 10 years it has built up its reputation as the biggest and best event of the year, attracting some huge names. This year it will be held at Donnington Park from June 14th to 16th, and if you go along you will be able to see Iron Maiden and Slipknot in action.
10Latitude
Latitude is slightly different from the other festivals on the list, featuring a whole array of acts rather than just music. Bloc Party and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs are the big-name acts, but there will also be art, poetry, literature, theatre and dance thrown into the mix. So if you fancy something different, head on down to Henham Park in Suffolk from July 18th to 21st.
Enjoy the Festivals in 2013
Fancy visiting one of these festivals during the year? Or perhaps some of the other smaller festivals that are held all over the country? Then why not rent a car with National and arrange your own tour of the UK to see the very best on offer in 2013. The UK is lucky to have such a huge range of festivals to choose from, so try to head along to at least one this year and get into the festival spirit.