B’estfest Goes Where Grass Is Greener

After missing 2010 because promoter Emagic felt an overcrowded Balkan market would make it hard to move tickets, B’estfest is returning on a greenfield site on the northern outskirts of Bucharest, Romania.

The shift from the 30,000-capacity Romexpo site near the centre of the Romanian capital, which gave the impression of a festival held on an industrial estate, is a major step toward achieving Emagic chief Laura Coroianu’s vision for the event.

“We started in the centre of Bucharest so that people would find it easy to get to and would fall in love with the festival,” she told Pollstar, pointing out that it was always the company’s ambition to create a new major outdoor for Romania.

She also said the country’s lack of festival heritage means it would have been difficult to start with a camping festival in the countryside.

Emagic’s new site is 10 hectares of land on the edge of Lake Pasarea, which means there’s ample space for a campsite and the potential for organising water sports. Coroianu says it’s a beautiful place for a festival.

The 25,000-capacity festival, which is only a 10-minute drive from Bucharest’s airport, also has space to grow as Emagic could have use of a further five hectares of adjoining land.

Last year another problem was the lack of sponsorship money available in Romania, but that appears less of a problem now. In the middle of March Emagic will hold a press conference in Bucharest to launch the return of B’estfest, which also detail the major companies prepared to put money into it.

B’estival is July 1-3 and the lineup will include Pendulum and Skunk Anansie.