European festivals enjoying summer in the sun

Croatia holiday favourites like Garden Festival and the ever-popular Soundwave extravaganza are set to enjoy a summer in the sun this year.

With Glastonbury taking a year off while the likes of Sonisphere have already opted against joining the party in 2012, you would be forgiven for thinking this summer's festival calendar may be looking a little bare.

However, this assumption could not be further from the truth, because the reality is that while the venues may have changed, the sentiment remains the same: the summer music festival scene is better than ever.

Much of this sentiment rests on the continued emergence of regions like Croatia as a hub of fun times and fine tunes come the warm months of June, July and August.

This summer is likely to prove no different, with an impressive array of diverse acts from musical legends or up-and-comers right through to the more leftfield options.

A Croatia holiday this year, for instance, could see you enjoy diverse acts including De La Soul, Franz Ferdinand and even Red Dwarf's very own Craig Charles.

Speaking to the Guardian newspaper, Gareth Cooper, the original founder of another European favourite Snowbombing festival explained the appeal of these exciting new European festivals.

"Festivals in Europe aren't competing on a level playing field, as they're paying less for talent," he explained.

And as Mr Cooper explains, having to pay less for acts means knock-on savings for anyone heading to the Balkans.

"This means ticket prices are cheaper, and budget airlines still offer cheapish flights," he said.

"If you live in Newcastle, it's probably cheaper to fly to some of these European festivals than it is to get a train to Glastonbury."

Jet2Holidays announced earlier this year that it was set to begin offering low-cost flights from Newcastle to Dubrovnik – a popular location for a spot of Croatia sailing and the ideal point from which to travel to one of the many festivals on offer this summer.