All About Electric Picnic Festival

Stradbally, Ireland

Open air

XXL – 50k+

Electronic, Rock

$$$

Live Music

+3 Days

Electric Picnic Festival is Ireland’s mega-gathering for music lovers, art aficionados and festival-goers who want something else from their live experience.

With a soft spot for all things alternative, the Irish festival hosts everything from dance music and indie acts to rock performances and pop stars. The music event received several awards throughout the years, all nodding at Electric Picnic’s curated lineups and vibrant ethos.

Here’s everything you need to know about Electric Picnic festival. 

Electric Picnic Festival hosted some legendary names

Loyal to no music genre but committed to bringing out the best of each, Electric Picnic is a big gun in the live events calendar. Previous lineups prove the festival is anything but shy in hosting A-list artists.

Alt-pop star Lana Del Ray and soul artists like Sam Smith and Hozier have rocked Electric Picnic’s stages in the past. But the fest doesn’t stop at commercial artists.

Rock band The Chemical Brothers, electronic trio Massive Attack, and new wave group Duran Duran are some of the distinguished names who headlined in the past.

The event has been compared to Glastonbury

Electric Picnic has left a remarkable impression on the festival industry worldwide and has earned its place among leading events. With its restless commitment to bringing what’s new and next in the industry, Electric Picnic has been compared to major-league events, despite its humble beginnings.

In an interview, Festival Republic’s managing director Melvin Benn claimed that Electric Picnic is “Ireland’s version of Glastonbury” and “a great inspiration to Latitude too.”

Electric Picnic keeps you entertained beyond the music

With 27 stages, craft workshops, woodland raves and cooking demos, bored is one thing you won’t be at Electric Picnic. Beyond the must-see music acts, attendees can take a proper time out at the festival’s wellness oasis.

Called The Consciousness Village, the area is a tranquil sanctuary where festival-goers can sing, dance, meditate and awaken their bodies through yoga. When you’re done with the wellness session, head to Freetown, a retro-futuristic village brimming with secret bars.

Cook-offs by Michelin Star chefs such as Ross Lewis and Derry Clarke are part of the picture for foodies. As an arts and culture event, Electric Picnic features more activities than your schedule can handle – so be wise, do you research, and pre-plan your journey.

It might not be a 24-hour fest, but it’s not far from it

We have some good news for those of you who want to get the most out of their festival experience. Electric Picnic is all about non-stop music.

The festival site is home to two areas – the Late Night Arena and the Main Arena.

Throughout the festival, the Late Night Arena remains open till 4 AM, while the Main Arena closes at midnight on Friday and Sunday, and at 2 AM on Saturday.

The festival is an award winner

Throughout the years, Electric Picnic has succeeded in standing out in a sea of festivals. With top-tier musicians every year and an all-inclusive approach to festival experiences, Electric Picnic received the Best Lineup Award at the Irish Festival Awards in 2011.

Just like a champion, the alternative festival didn’t stop there. It also won the Best Medium-Sized European Festival award at the European Festival Awards.

Electric Picnic has its very own documentary

After a two-year hiatus, Electric Picnic returned with a documentary called A Piece of the Picnic, which premiered in March, 2022. A Piece of the Picnic features a look back at the COVID-19 years, when the festival had to press the pause button.

Through the documentary, the music event wanted to remind music lovers about Picnic’s free-spirited revelry.

The documentary was a collage of footage gathered from festival organisers and artists. Its main purpose was to “give audiences a flavor of some of the most-loved elements of Ireland’s largest gathering of music and arts.”