2005 should see the first mass exodus of Irish people to Budapest’s Sziget festival as Hot Press have teamed up with GoHop.ie to provide the opportunity to fly direct from Dublin to the Hungarian capital compete with a 7 day ticket for the festival with camping on site! The week when all of Hungary lets its hair down sees around 500,000 attend the enormous spectacle – all within 15 minutes of the historic centre of Budapest.

Sziget is situated on an island in the Danube towards the north of the city (sort of like The Phoenix Park surrounded by water!) and is almost an oasis of mayhem in the Hungarian capital. It’s a simple as this – the island is ONLY for those going to the festival; the only rules on it are to respect your fellow attendees.

The festival has entirely free camping (nearly 50,000 people inhabit the island over the 7 days!!!!) meaning that it genuinely becomes a community for the duration. It’s no surprise to find Tai Chi lessons happening alongside Bungee jumping – 5 a side football beside cocktail parties!

Starting on the 10th August the festival has NO shortage of headliners including Franz Ferdinand, Morcheeba, The Hives and many, many more but it’s not about the household names, it’s about the 50 different stages to lose oneself in – everything from an almost monolithic dance arena, to the “Radio Roma” (traditional Roman Gypsy dancing) along to the Magic Mirror mentioned elsewhere – there’s just no shortage of fun to be had.

That line-up in full;

Franz Ferdinand
Underworld
Morcheeba
The Hives
Natalie Imbruglia
Brand New Heavies
Mando Diao
Roots Manuva
The Wailers
Ce’Cile & T.O.K.
Good Charlotte
The Toy Dolls
Sean Paul
The Game
Juliette And The Licks

So that’s it – Sziget

The Sziget Festival takes place 10-17 August in Budapest, Hungary. Tickets including Flights, Camping and a 7 day pass to the festival itself are available from GoHop.ie for €349. Visit the website or phone (01) 2412389 for more details.