Visiting German Psychedelic Trance Festivals

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It is now well over ten years since the first psychedelic trance parties began in Germany in the early 1990s, originally inspired by returning travellers from Goa. The psychedelic trance open air festival scene in north Germany is now firmly established with a series of annual, dependable and well-attended parties.

 

Unlike the UK, where only a handful of relatively expensive festivals exist each year and devotees are philosophical about waiting a whole year for Glastonbury to come round again, northern Germany has a far wider choice of happenings during the summer months. From June through September there are sometimes as many as six open air parties of varying sizes every weekend across Germany. At the summer's peak in July and August there is at least one major event every weekend - the larger, and by now traditional, festivals attracting between 10 and 20 thousand and still going by the name of "party", each lasting 3 days or more. Entry to these major events costs around 30-40 euros which is only 20-25 pounds, less than a sixth the cost of a ticket to Glastonbury. Most festivals now also charge a deposit of 5 euros which is repaid for a filled rubbish sack.

 

Among the larger German "must go" events in July/August are: Full Moon, Voov Experience, Shiva Moon and Antaris Project. There are also numerous mid-sized events for 2-3,000 people at a variety of beauty spots in the countryside, such as: Psychedelic Circus, Tshitraka, Nation of Gondwana and Indian Spirit - each costing 10-25 euros for the weekend, as well as a host of smaller parties for several hundred people, these often giving free entry.

 

The atmosphere is remarkably free and relaxed at German festivals, a welcome change from the UK experience. The absence of searches at the entrance or a disturbing security presence will be a welcome relief for UK visitors. That's not to say the parties go unregulated: they are stringently licensed and properly organised with emergency provision by law. The fire-brigade at festivals are often unemployed enough to periodically satisfy the dancing masses craving for cooling water, when they spray the thirsty crowd from the roofs of their fire appliances - amidst great jubilation.

 

The clean and unspoiled natural surroundings will impress almost as much as the sound-system, lightshow and UV decoration. The main area for north German festivals being the stretch of unspoiled farmland, forestry and natural beauty between Hamburg and Berlin. Formerly this area was a part of East Germany with a low population density and most is under environmental protection. Open air it surely is, and for this reason it is not without trepidation that party organisers make expensive arrangements months in advance, for the weather gods are not always kind. There is usually some covered provision at festivals - with circus tents providing secondary sound systems - but the "fraggles", as the attendees are called, are there to celebrate their youth and life itself - and a shower or two has never been known to stop them.

 

The scene at a festival is a colourful one - not just because of the decoration, the people also dress in a variety of multi-coloured outfits. There is also a hippy market area in most parties, like an oriental bazaar, a cluster of covered stands, where you can kit yourself out with just such a colourful outfit. Here you can also buy trance music CDs, herbal remedies or sample the vegetarian catering amidst the perfume of burning incense sticks. Around the dance areas are chill-out tents where you can drink coffee or chai (spiced tea) and enjoy snacks at low tables on carpets. A lot of visitors erect their own tent in a field designated as the car park or spend time grilling sausages and spending time with friends under makeshift canopies around their cars.

 

Since most parties straddle the weekend it is possible to stay late at one festival and go early to the next. Helpers arriving early are usually welcomed and often given free entry to the party in return. Alternatively you can do some sight-seeing, camping or youth hosteling during the weekdays if you need a change (and a proper wash). At many festivals there is a swimming lake nearby and this can be used to cool off as well as to enjoy the feeling of swimming in natural and unchlorinated water. In Germany swimming is frequently done naked, so prepare yourself for a few shocks if you are unused to nudity.

 

On the whole, Germany presents few difficulties for the UK traveller. No visa is needed, the tap water is drinkable, the trains run on time, banks will accept your credit and debit cards, most Germans can speak English quite well and are usually keen to speak it with you. Irish travellers will find they don't even have to change their currency to euros. Despite what you might imagine after a diet of repeated war movies which only represent Germany of the past with prisoners of war attempting to escape, Germany is a modern, friendly and fun-loving place nowadays. In the north of Germany tolerance is practiced as a social virtue. If you are impressed by the social freedoms made famous by Amsterdam and Copenhagen, you will find Germany's free-thinking culture just as remarkable and comfortable.

 

Cheap flights can be booked from the UK to Germany (the best destinations being Hamburg or Berlin, since most festivals are usually somewhere between the two cities) and generally offer the cheapest options for flying midweek-to-midweek. Trains and coaches can also be used, or you can drive there by car through the channel tunnel and Belgium. Hitch-hiking is also feasible, it is easier to get lifts in Germany and Holland than in France, Italy and Spain and it is safe enough if sufficient care and common sense is employed when accepting lifts. If you are travelling from one festival to another then try to make contact with drivers at the party by asking in the carpark or standing at the exit. Another possibility is using the internet to make arrangements for lifts.

 

For general information about the psychedelic trance scene in Germany, all party dates and for arranging lifts on the internet see: Goabase