CRUÏLLA: THE BARCELONA MUSIC FESTIVAL WITH SOMETHING FOR EVERYONE

carrersbcn February 19, 2019 1 Comment

Back in 2008, Barcelona received the Cruïlla Music Festival, which had previously been held in Mataró as a cycle of concerts, with open arms. It offered itself up as the music festival “without borders.” With each edition that came and went, it kept reinventing itself, striving to be different than other festivals.

The word cruïlla in Catalan means “crossing” or “crossroads,” so the idea with this festival is to offer up a variety of different styles of music without prejudice. In this way, it’s more than a crossroads: it’s a meeting point.

Photo Credit: Isabel Troya

It has become Barcelona’s most popular summer music festival, offering up international, national and local artists from an eclectic mix of music genres: Ska, pop, hip-hop, reggae, folk, rock, world music, electronic, etc. But its popularity isn’t only due to the line-up. It’s also because of the festival’s drive to be innovative and different.

For one, it made the public its focal point. On top of giving festival attendees a voice in terms of line-up suggestions and commentaries about festival services, Cruïlla has made the decision to not surpass 25,000 spectators per day. This is because the festival organizers want to make it a comfortable and pleasant experience for everyone; who enjoys waiting up to an hour to either use the bathroom or buy food and drinks? Cruïlla wants to make sure you spend more time enjoying music and less waiting in line.

James at Cruïlla 2016 – Photo Credit: Isabel Troya

Of the many features that make Cruïlla unique, festival attendees will find:

Free WiFi service across the festival ground
Demonstrations of Catalan culture and tradition such as castellers (human towers)
An NGO presence, including Oxfam and Amnesty International
Plenty of food trucks and beverage stands
A large relaxation area
Game and contest areas
Clothing, beauty and health stands
Bathrooms aplenty which are kept clean
Artists painting the day’s performers, something that has become a staple at Cruïlla
100% biodegradable plastic cups
A café and bookshop available!

Payment at the festival is made simple as well. The Cruïlla wristbands are actually smart bracelets. These allow for cashless payment for everything on sale on the festival grounds. You can add money to it from online or using the festival’s app, and, if you don’t spend everything by the end of the festival, the money is returned to you.

CRUÏLLA 2019 INFORMATION

When: Thursday, July 4 through Saturday, July 6

Where: Parc del Fòrum

Cost: Depends on what you want!

3-Day Pass: 110€ (+ fee)
2-Day Pass, for July 5-6: 100€ (+fee)
Day Pass for July 4: 20€ (+ fee)
Day Pass for July 5: 60€ (+ fee)
Day Pass for July 6: 60€ (+ fee)

Artist Line-Up: Kylie Minogue, Foals, Bastille, Zaz, Vetusta Morla, Years & Years, Garbage, Love of Lesbian, Dorian, Natos y Waor, Ayax y Prok, Michael Kiwanuka, Berri Txarrak, Gang of Youths, Tiken Jah Fakoly, Xoel Lopez, Lildami, and DJ Amable

For more information about the festival, click here for the official website.

To buy tickets, click here.