‘I’ve been here six times, it’s the best’: Tomorrowland welcomes 200,000 internationals to Boom

Belgium’s biggest summer festivals are opening today – Tomorrowland in Boom and Gentse Feesten in Ghent. The Tomorrowland dance festival will host some 400,000 people over its two weekends, while about one million people are expected to descend on Ghent during its festival’s 10-day run. While quite different, the festivals attract more people than any other summer music festivals in Belgium – or anywhere else in Europe.

Tomorrowland is one of the biggest music festivals in the world, featuring the most renowned electronic musicians. It is known for its extravagent decor and multiple fantastical worlds created at the De Schorre recreation domain in the town in Antwerp province. Half of the attendees come from outside of Belgium, with 200 nationalities present every year from all corners of the globe.

People began streaming into Tomorrowland yesterday to set up tents or check into the festival’s other accommodation. Some 38,000 people stay overnight at the festival, many of them arriving alone from around the world. They are never alone for long. “It’s perfect, I don’t need to come with somebody,” Tomasz Green from Poland told VRT. “I get together with other people at the campsite.”

There are more Americans this year than usual, with many of them having been to Tomorrowland multiple times. “I’ve been there six times – it’s the best!” Anthony Smit from Denver, Colorado, told VRT. “You meet so many people from so many different countries. There’s so much to experience. It’s amazing. Engulfing yourself in the culture, the music, the environment – just the joy, the love. That’s what makes Tomorrowland great.”

Tomorrowland even has its own travel program, with some 46,000 festival-goers coming in groups. There are party flights, party trains and programs that allow vistiors to discover Belgium or even five European cities before decending on Boom.