- This event has passed.
Dour Festival is the biggest music event in the French speaking part of Belgium featuring eight stages and attracting a quarter of a million revellers. Held in July, this is one of Europe’s most eclectic music festivals where its unique and diverse line-up combines legendary icons with exciting new discoveries.
This year the Dour Festival (in English pronounced with “oo” as in “cool”) is spread over five days with over 250 bands and DJs dishing out their tunes and beats. Dour Festival, named after a nearby Belgian village, is famous for its alternative line-up with music styles ranging from dubstep, electro, RnB, reggae, indie, pop and rock to punk, metal, hardcore, house, techno, hip hop, rap and Drum ‘n Bass.
With this edition the Dour Festival is entering its 4th decennium which, together with the fact that it has always been sold out since 2005, indicates that it keeps on succeeding in attracting the most groundbreaking acts.
Dour Festival 2023 Line-up
This year’s festival will be wrapped up by Aphex Twin. You can find a full lineup here.
If you like Belgium festivals, don’t miss Gentse Feesten in Ghent, the Brussels Summer Festival and Pukkelpop in Hasselt.
Dour Festival stages
The eight festival stages are as diverse as its line-up of performers:
The Last Arena is the festival’s main stage – from hip hop and rock to reggae and electro, go there to see crowd pleasers.
De Balzaal is where top DJ talent play non-stop from 3pm to 3am to a cutting-edge lightshow turning earth into heaven for clubbers.
Boombox is where the best of soul and hip hop mix with RnB and Swing artists.
La Petite Maison Dans la Prairie, or The Little House on the Prairie, is for lovers of indie music to watch up-and-coming talent play next to established bands.
Dub Corner is dub culture’s home where dubplate lovers will not want to leave. It’s the festival’s smallest tent but bursting with charm and surprises.
Le Labo is where you head to if you want a more intimate and novel environment. From world music to pure rock, new trends and ideas are tested and experimented with here.
The Rockamour is a little oasis hidden by sea containers at the heart of the festival where public recordings take place and where you can roar techno classics during “Karaokéchorale”.
And Le Garage.
Durable Dour
Over the years, the Dour Festival has gathered a reputation for its strong ecological awareness, as well as its willingness and commitment to promote local talent.
The organisers have partnered with the local eco non-profit organisation 3D Asbl to move beyond the standard solutions to how to offset ecological impacts, focusing on sustainability, awareness and waste management as well as managing the social and local impacts.
Located now in the heart of a wind turbine park, Dour Festival is known for its genial ambience, as reflected in the diversity of its line-up, and was elected in 2010 as best medium-sized music festival at the European Festival Awards.
When is Dour Festival 2023
The festival will take place from 12 to 16 July.
Where is Dour Festival located
The festival is at Plaine de la Machine à Feu, in the municipality of Dour which is located in the French-speaking part of Belgium near the border with France.
How to get to Dour Festival
By far the best choice is by train. Click here to buy a ticket online. The nearest train station is Saint-Ghislain from where you can hop onto a free shuttle bus taking you to the festival grounds and the adjacent camping site.
If you want to go by car, the organisers encourage you to hire an eco-friendly electric car. They offer a privileged parking lot for electric cars where you can recharge your car with 100% solar powered energy.
You can also travel by coach from the UK, France, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Switzerland and within Belgium. Click here for more details.
If plane is your only alternative, there are three airports close to Dour: Brussels Airport (Zaventem) and Charleroi Airport in Belgium, and Lille Airport in France. All three have easy train connections to Saint-Ghislain train station.
Where to stay during the festival
The festival provides a range of camping options including regular camping, glamping and green camping, each offering access to people with reduced mobility. Click here for details.
Alternatively, use our booking portal which searches and compares multiple websites to find you the best accommodation in Belgium:
Click to search for hotels with AgodaMore further details including ticketing and all other practical information
Browse the music festival’s official website.
