When I first heard of EXIT Festival, I’ll admit I was very intrigued but also a bit concerned by its location. Serbia isn’t the first festival destination that springs to mind and it was not so long ago that the country was in a state of war. However I soon did my research into the festival to find that the whole idea behind Exit was originally to rebel against their dictatorship and help shed the nation’s reputation. I also found how highly it had been received in the past years. I soon came around to the idea and last year (in its 9th year) I decided, along with some friends, to make the big trip.

The festival has done really well since its first one in 2000, which was more of a 100 day event held at the university of Novi Sad. The festival was first conceived by 3 university students and through their hard work and determination they have turned Novi Sad into a Mecca for music fans across Europe. In 2007 at the UK festival awards EXIT was voted as the Best European Festival and just goes to show that this festival should be on the lists of the more adventurous festival-goers this summer.

Now in its 10th year, EXIT organisers will be looking to top their success of the last couple of years and this year’s lineup is juicier than ever. With British favorites Arctic Monkeys and Lily Allen announced just for the first day, and with ticket process at only £72, it leaves me wondering why many people seem to choose the more expensive and duller English festivals. Other notable act playing this year include Moby, Kraftwerk, The Prodigy and to top it all off an appearance from Madness. And with crowds expected of over 200,000, this years EXIT has the makings of something very special indeed.

The festivals location is also something to write home about. Set in an Austro-Hungarian fortress along the banks of the famous Danube River. Even the campsite, located just five minutes walk from the fortress has its own stage and beach on the river. Novi Sad is the perfect location for EXIT; it’s rough, ready and very vibrant.

I think the big draw for many British festival-goers is the cheapness of the festival. With tickets and campsite being so cheap and the cost of a beer topping 80p it’s easy to see why so many take the long trip. Although getting there may put some people off, I see the trip as more of a weeklong holiday of traveling and immense partying. The easiest and cheapest way of getting there is to fly to Budapest, Hungary and then get the EXIT train, as it has been nicknamed, down to Novi Sad. The train journey is around 6 hours but there’s a fantastic atmosphere on board as everyone has made the same journey as you. It’s a great opportunity to make some friends and learn from the veteran EXIT goers.

EXIT is unlike any British festival I’ve been to. Its so much more pumped, it’s a constant 4 day extreme test on your body to see if you can handle the 96-hour party. The festival offers a very eclectic mish mash of dance, drum ‘n’ bass, Gypsy punk, eastern European ska and many more styles on over 30 stages to keep you going throughout the night and into the late hours of the morning. The stages are packed in tight but amazingly unaffected by each other due to the acoustics of the fortress. It’s quite amazing walking around the fortress soaking up the atmosphere; you get the feeling of something really special happening.

I think a really special part of the festival is the mix of cultures, music genres and styles. Everyone is so excited by this festival when they go and repeatedly go back for more every year. Once you’ve tried it you’ll never see a festival in the same way again.

Tickets are still available for the festival via etickets and there are a number of ways to get there so I urge you all to be considering this festival this year and you’ll not be let down. More information and full line ups are available from the official website found here.

Words > Robbie Stevens
Photos > Exit Photo Team