Jump to content

eyebrain

Members
  • Posts

    228
  • Joined

  • Last visited

  • Days Won

    1

Posts posted by eyebrain

  1. 4 minutes ago, billybigballs said:

    QOTSA are doing 8,9,10 August at festivals. Can't imagine them doing four nights in a row, ruling out 7 and 11 August which means, if they did come, they'd be the final act on the final day. That's normally when Sziget has a 'wow' act and, much as I like them, I wouldn't place them in that category.

    QOTSA would sub-headline. 

  2. https://www.iq-mag.net/2023/08/sziget-ceo-new-improved-festival/?mc_cid=6bd1a529ed&mc_eid=2974fc969c

    Some interesting stuff from there, cause it's behind paywall for some:

    The fan experience at the festival was a major focus for the Sziget team, with major investments and improvements in decoration, catering, sustainability and amenities.

    “Since the beginning, Sziget has been constantly improving and developing, with innovations in different areas every year,” explains Kádár. “However, last year, after a two-year interruption, we were happy that we managed to survive the difficulties which were overwhelming for many, and which were attacking us on several fronts. This year, however, we were back on the road to progress.

    “The entire look and feel of the festival was a huge step forward, the new toilet blocks, the food courts, the decoration, the art all over the place made a great change to the experience of our visitors not to mention the spectacular venues like the TicketSwap Colosseum, the Samsung Party Arena, the Cirque du Sziget, which looked all really amazing.”

    One of Sziget’s biggest considerations when designing the 2023 edition was the country’s monster inflation rate, which has lingered around 20% –  the highest in Europe.

    “The inflation rate is a huge problem for the entire country, especially the food inflation rate which was almost 50% throughout the last 12 months,” notes Kádár. “However, with the weaker Forint this inflation is not as high in Euro terms. The only impact we see for our customers is higher food prices on the festival but this price level is still lower than Western-European or UK prices.”

    In response to the food inflation rate, each vendor in Sziget’s new food court was required to offer at least one so-called “budget food” with a maximum price of €6.50.

    Catering was also the subject of increased sustainability, with a key aim to offer food prepared with a smaller carbon footprint.

    Organisers launched a campaign among caterers that resulted in 80% of those partners offering at least two vegetarian main courses, and over 40% of partners not offering any red meat at all. The campaign also aimed to increase the proportion of Hungarian food used by caterers. A set of seven sustainability criteria was also introduced, of which at least two criteria must be met by all caterers.

    And here's my favorite:

    In addition, on a trial basis, a special carbon offsetting scheme was launched for those arriving at the festival by plane, and only electric or human-powered vehicles were used on the festival site.

    There were definitely not only electric vehicles driving around the site. 😄

    • Like 1
  3. 6 hours ago, kristofm said:

     

    The negative ones were probably… Well, at Amyl and the Sniffers I could barely hear the music, everything was super noisy, even the bass seemed “high”, that kinda ruined it for me, although based on what I’ve read it could be that I was just standing in the wrong place. Next time I’ll walk around in that tent so maybe I can find better spots for my ears.

    I had issues with FreeDome as well, as long as I was standing closer to the stage it was good, otherwise really bad. Then i started checking... I don't think they had speaker delay towers on at any show... really odd...

     

    6 hours ago, kristofm said:

    Also, yeah, 10 years agó Csónakház was great, where you can buy cheaper beer. Used to be an even better kept secret than the toilet party! But now it's crowded all the time. Do you know what were their prices this year for beer?

     

    Cheapest beer was 900 HUF, Dreher was 1100 HUF. XL Spritzer was around 1700 HUF if I remember correctly. 

  4. Not even sure where to start from.. so much things I want to say.

    It was my 8th Sziget and for the first time I am back home without having the famous “Sziget cough”. During last two days you could occasionally feel the dust, but it was clear they had put a lot of work into trying to keep it minimal. Arriving at the festival it was all very green. There was, again, loads of different solutions for ground moistening. What was new and really helped were trucks that drove around main streets pouring water on it. They helped against those annoying scooters pulling dust up.

    We’ve been coming early for years now with moving-in ticket. I just want to point out that I think paying 65€ just to come a day / two days earlier while there’s nothing else to do than get drunk is unreasonably expensive. I wonder what is Sziget’s approach to this? Do they WANT people to come or actually is this a counter-measure? Who knows..

    As mentioned in earlier post we stumbled on the build-up of secret party, which was cool. It meant we were first to enter when it opened, got to enjoy it in empty glory without anybody knowing. And we got hats saying we were there! I had a little chat with guys running it. Turns out they are some Belgian dudes who just pitched it to Sziget years ago, this time they were invited back. They are just friends, DJs playing are themselves. Very fun guys! Of course at one point it got so popular that they asked Sziget if they could get security at the door. Not so secret anymore.

    I’d say generally food was great, like.. 7 places out of 10 delivered. It did feel like there was a lot of options, but still.. after 3-4 days you’re gonna struggle finding anything new and interesting. You don’t want to eat bread all day. Thanks kristofm for recommendations here, Smokey monkeys was just AMAZING. Pricing of food felt too high for Hungary. It was cheaper to eat at Glastonbury. You can feel that it really affected people and it is definitely going to drive some people away from the festival. I can’t see them forcing lower prices, but they have to figure something out. That 2500HUF deal did not work out as they wanted, these options were a joke. 

    Now comes something I can’t believe I’m saying. They way they did toilets this year is probably the best I’ve seen at any festival ever. It was cleaned regularly, meaning you almost always got a cleanish toilet seat. There was paper. There were enough toilets for crowds. Urinals were amazing as they did not feel nasty due to a bit of privacy and there was a place to put your drink. Past years if something broke at the toilet complex, it usually was broken until the end. This year it was clear everything was being fixed as quick as possible. We stayed at Sziget Ville, there was not a single time I waited for showers or toilets. There was cleaning 24/7. Showers did miss basic necessities like a place to put your things to.. 

    Sziget Ville was not crowded anymore due to regular tents not being allowed in. Perfect location, close to everything. We had a private DJ-area as well.. which literally nobody cared about. But i absolutely recommend it. 

    Everybody seems to know about the bar with much cheaper prices now. We’ve been drinking there for years, but crowds have gone too big this year, not worth the wait in queue 😞 Did not wait more than few minutes at any other bar through-out the festival, even at main stage during headliners.

    Don’t know about Billie Eilish, but Billie Eyelash and rest of the Magic Mirror Queenz show girls were amazing. Magic Mirror once again managed to book an amazing program. , Magic Drag Brunch was great as well. Stand-up comedy was hit-and-miss but Ria Lina was one of the best stand-ups i’ve seen for years.

    Most of circus and theatre we saw was good. I love Traveling Funfair, I hope they never get rid of it! ArtZone is great entertainment during the day, there is actually so much casual stuff to do. I did not have any music to see at DropYard, but for the second year in a row, all star dance battle was the thing to witness. The sun killed me tho. I have to give shoutout to living statues as well, although I think last years were a bit more stunning. 🙂

    And I still have not gotten to music yet. Everybody else discusses it anyway. 🙂 M83 was my top favorite. I had chills and girls with us were literally crying. Great stuff. They need to figure out something with Europe Stage, current way of booking is just not attractive enough for audiences. I do understand a need for mission-projects like this or Global Village, but there is something missing, not sure what it is.

    Anyway, I really think there are only two large-scale festivals in Europe that manage to put together such an in-depth program. Glastonbury and Sziget. Sziget is huge, but a great small alternative to Glastonbury. We do compare Sziget here to a lot of festivals regarding music line-ups, which I do agree with - they are not always competitive enough with regular arena-type festivals. But that’s the thing - Sziget is not a regular arena festival. It’s a completely different experience. I do feel like a lot of visitors are missing out cause they're not putting much effort into finding out what's going on.

    Sziget is for people who go for overall festival experience. And they nailed it this year.

    • Like 3
    • Thanks 2
    • Upvote 2
  5. f**kin hell we were walking around site and drunkenly,  randomly stumbled on the build-up of the secret party…. I think it’s not fair to anyone if i spoil anything but guys it’s 100% happening!! Good luck and i grasp what this post is going to do to people… 😄 

    if you’ve been to previous ones years ago there is a bit of logic… i made a pic of building so later after the festival i can confirm i wasn’t talking sh*t 😄 

    • Like 1
  6. 1 hour ago, Akujin said:

    And let me be controversial for a sec... They taste much better than beer 😄

    Yeah i agee - and for some reason they don’t make me want to pee as much as beer does. 
    It’s surprisingly unknown drink elsewhere. 

  7. 22 minutes ago, Akujin said:

    Wine Spritz is at a decent price. I drink two XL size and I'm fked so...

    Yeah, our group has mostly sticked to wine spritz past few festivals. You're f**ked very quickly, it's cheap, and you'll keep yourself hydrated. Can't go wrong with this combo! 

    • Upvote 1
  8. 22 hours ago, Tom Lobo said:

    Does anyone know, how many week tickets they sold for 2023?

     

    I don't think there's any available info on this, but their 2022 sponsor evaluation stated that 57% of people came with daily tickets, 25% with 6-day tickets and 11% with 3-day tickets. Rest are student and VIP tickets. If I remember correctly, daily capacity of the festival was around 95 000 (?). That means there's roughly 23 750 weekend tickets available. How many of them are sold, no idea. 

  9. 22 hours ago, clarkete said:

    Errr...so you knew it was open?

    As i was leaving with all my bags, yeah, as that’s where the exit was. 😞 but i couldn’t bother with all my stuff anymore. 

    doesn’t change the fact that the only sign they removed from tipi-side was breakfast on monday morning, all the rest were still there 😄 i’m guessing they at least intended to keep both open at one point. But oh well it’s such a random issue that i shouldn’t even be complaining about it in a forum. 
     

     

  10. The fact there was no hot water from like.. Friday? really pissed me off. Mainly because it felt like nothing was done to fix it. There should be some motivation to fix it for people who paid 1500 pounds.. i went to complain and their way of communicating it was trying to shift blame elsewhere as outsourced contractors have not done their job. If they could not fix it with 3 days that means it was not taken seriously enough..

    oh and coyote moon had signs “we are open on Monday to serve breakfast”. On Monday it was closed and the sign was taken off. 😄 

    I’m sounding too negative so have to confirm that otherwise great as always (had it for a second year in a row). As others have said the location, extra security,  generally cleaner toilets and showers(…) are well worth it. As not from UK i don’t have to carry my tent + can arrive later on Wednesday, making it much relaxed for international travel. 

  11. 8 minutes ago, billybigballs said:

    Does anyone know if the K Bridge will be decorated this year? Really missed it last year and we have some new people coming with us in 2023, it would be great for them to see. I'm sure someone, somewhere said it was to do with planning from Budapeat council. Just wondering, if this is the case, whether planning has been granted for the decs this year?

    Locals can confirm if that was the case but in the press release they said that K-Bridge has gotten some renovation and therefore they are hoping local municipality will now give permission to decorate it again. It was not fully confirmed at this point. 

    • Upvote 1
  12. 1 hour ago, Akujin said:

    Thanks! Although I will say that it is a bit insane to me that you have to pay extra just so that you can set up your tent a bit before the festival…

    I do agree… especially at this price. There’s nothing going on at the island and it costs the same as you’d pay for a concert ticket.. 

    we’ve ended up going to the city each year for final civilized dinner. 

  13. 54 minutes ago, Akujin said:

    Thanks! And do you know what it’s like to find a decent spot if you obly arrive on the official first day and not two days prior?

    Really hard to tell... top spots are definitely gone, but it shouldn't be TOO bad if you arrive first thing in the morning... It's a guess but I'd say campsite is filled about 65% before first day. 

    I'd advise to arrive day early just to get the atmosphere of the place and get everything settled. I find it too hectic myself to put my tent up and go see a band straight away. 

    • Upvote 1
  14. 11 hours ago, clarkete said:

    I've got a feeling that's a road, if so they won't let you walk it and you'd have to go through the site

    But I can't go through the site as I can't enter from Sticklinch, can I? 

    So i went deeper into my research with google earth and realised there's zootopia camping near the place. On their site https://zootopia.uk/info/ they describe getting from gate D to theirs like this: To walk from Gate D, turn left and walk through Orange Car Park 39 to Orange Car Park 40. As you enter Orange Car Park 40, turn immediately left onto Stickleball Lane. Turn left again and walk down Stickleball Lane for 200 metres. Zootopia will be on your right.

    That leads me to believe this path should be walkable: image.thumb.png.102cff1b32da63c1e0b021d6b30172aa.png

    Can anybody confirm that parking is not surrounded with fence!? 

  15. 2 hours ago, Akujin said:

    Do you guys think that the park camping is worth it?

    I’ve been going back and forth about it for weeks now.

    I’m not fussed about the extra security because I won’t be keeping much value in the tent when I’m not there.

    My only concern is that I want a nice quiet place and I am a bit worried that if I won’t get the early move in ticket than the nice free spots will be gone.

    Also the wifi is a nice addition.

    They also say you get free access to showers, is that not the case in the free camping areas? Or is it way to packed? Having to queue less would also be nice.

    Can't comment about the location and availability as I have not been to Park. But as I've been to many other campsites - wifi is only available at the entrance. Access to showers means there is a separate shower block in the campsite, meaning it is usually less crowded and cleaner than public ones, which is great. 

  16. 3 minutes ago, gooner1990 said:

    If they have space in their booking you can be added and get wristbanded at Sticklinch then just walk in with your tent etc and go where you like.

    They don’t 😞

  17. We were 6 of us there last year and i’d say you could even fit 8 there. 6 is the max to feel comfortable, to have some extra space for bags etc. 

    we didn’t try but you could bring people in during daytime if i remember correctly. You can not get extra people to sleep if that’s what you mean, unless there’s a tipi with less people and willing to give you their wristband. We are 5 this year so i might have one extra……..

    We did actually measure them knowing someone will ask but of course i can’t find it anymore. I did make a picture tho:

     

     

    62534E90-2CA7-4F92-B0B4-138C7BD9BDB2.jpeg

    966EC4C6-4A3F-4F4D-BB8B-A8CE15DE486E.jpeg

    E0300C22-9C44-447A-9E66-27B3B143FC10.jpeg

×
×
  • Create New...