Features
German Lollapalooza Moves Again
When Lollapalooza Berlin takes place for the fourth time next year, Sept. 8-9, it will happen in the German capital’s Olympiapark.
SenInnSport / Rädel – Berlin Olympiapark
This year’s edition took place Sept. 9-10, on a horserace track in Hoppegarten, a 20-minute train ride outside central Berlin. Many visitors complained about poorly organized public transport.
Some 85,000 people attended the event, a new visitor record for organizers Hörstmann Unternehmensgruppe and promoter
After the first festival day, at one point, some 3,000 people crowded in front of the train station waiting for hours to get on a train into the city.
Around 30 people reportedly collapsed while waiting. According to multiple reports, no extra trains or shuttle buses had been organized to compensate for the mass exodus that traditionally happens after the last concert, which was Two Door Cinema Club on Saturday. There was no camping on site.
Things went more smoothly the next day, mainly because people left after Foo Fighters, deciding to skip
Others had come by car. Recognizing the infrastructural problems Hoppegarted poses as a festival site, promoters announced on Sept. 11 that next year’s edition would take place at Berlin’s Olympiapark.
Lollapalooza Berlin launched in 2015 at Berlin’s former airport Tempelhof.
The site was converted into a refugee shelter in 2016, which is why festival director Fruzsina Szép had to find a new location.
The 2016 edition took place at Berlin’s Treptower Park, a decision that was met with great resistance from residents and monument conservators who worried about festivalgoers damaging a war memorial on site.
Organizers were able to secure a one-time permit for the event, so it was clear that Lollapalooza had to move again in 2017.