The Best Music Festivals to Visit in Catalonia in the Summer

Sónar needs no introductions. It’s a world famous music festival specialising in electronic music, creativity and technology. It has two programmes – one for the day and one for the night. The day performances take places at the Fira Montjuïc, while the night ones take place at the Fira Gran Via L’Hospitalet, just outside of Barcelona. This year, Sónar will be held from June 14-16, 2018. Headliners for this year include Gorillaz, DJ Harvey and Thom Yorke.

Primavera Sound, translates as ‘Spring Sound’, and is the other of Barcelona’s great music festivals. This year’s event will take place from May 30th to June 3rd. Previous year’s acts have included Arcade Fire, Queens of the Stone Age and Portishead, while this year you can catch the likes of Animal Collective, Beach House, Black Lips and Iceage.

One of our favourites, Vida Festival is held in the lovely beach town of Vilanova i Geltru, just south of Barcelona. By day you can laze by the beach and by night you can party away in the forest. It’s a small and quirky festival with lights and art installations in amongst the trees, hay bales to sit on and unusual stages such as a wooden row boat. This year’s event will take place from the 28th of June to July 1st. There are a few big name acts here, alongside a range of both local and international up-and-coming talent. This year’s lineup includes Franz Ferdinand, St. Vincent and Curtis Harding.

The Festival Jardins de Pedralbes takes place in the gardens of the Palace of Pedralbes in the northwest corner of the city of Barcelona. It takes place throughout the months of June and July and comprises a number of different concerts of different styles. Artists who will be performing this year include Tom Jones, Jessie J, Elvis Costello and The Imposters and Emeli Sandé, among other local acts.

The Cap Roig Festival takes place in the small coastal village of Cap de Roig on the Costa Brava. It may be small, but it attracts some big name acts. This year’s festival will be held from July 13th to August 22nd, 2018 with various concerts taking place on different days. It attracts both Spanish and international talent, and this year’s acts will include Sting and Shaggy, Bryan Ferry, Texas and Damien Rice.

The Festival Castell de Peralada is held in the grounds of a magnificent Castle of Peralada, located just northwest of Figueres. This year will be the 32nd edition of the festival and will be a tribute to one of the festival’s founders – Carmen Mateu de Suqué. This festival is not your typical music festival, and features everything from classic music and pop to dance performances. The programme includes a great lineup of everyone from Santana and Cool & The Gang to former French First Lady Carla Bruni and Mozart’s The Magic Flute. It will be held between July 5th to August 17th 2018.

Canet Rock is a rock festival held in the coastal town of Canet de Mar – around a one hour 20 minute bus or train journey from Barcelona. This year’s edition will be held on July 7th and will feature mostly Spanish rock acts such as Txarango, Macaco and Zoo.

The Festival Cruïlla is another of Barcelona’s music festivals. It hosts an eclectic array of both Spanish and international artists, and this year will take place from 12th to 14th of July, 2018. It takes place at the large Park del Fòrum and is attended by a wide range of people – they even encourage families with small children. The lineup this year includes Jack White, Prophets of Rage and Seasick Steve, among others.