Festival season is nearly upon us. As the semester draws to a close, and you’re stuck inside studying while the days get longer, we figured you needed a light at the end of the tunnel.
There’s something special about Christmas and New Years in the Southern Hemisphere. While we don’t have a white Christmas, there’s still plenty of powder. That being said – make sure you test your drugs.
Disclaimer: Last year was super fucking rainy, and everyone heard about it. We don’t know what the weather will bring this year, so take the opinions we’ve collected for this article (and the Internet’s opinions) with a grain of salt. If you like an artist, like the vibe, want a holiday with your mates, or want to take your dad to see some DnB for his birthday – fucking do it!
We also want to acknowledge the independent music festivals that have faded away. Splore, One Love, The Others Way and Bay Dreams are among those cancelled or shut down, and others are on the way. Independent festivals like Twisted Frequency are under financial stress to keep going, and the only way to save them is to get fucked and go dance. You know what to do.
NORTH AUCKLAND
HIDDEN VALLEY ($$$)
LENGTH: 1 day
DATE: Sunday 27th Dec 3PM - 11PM.
COST: $210
2026 LINEUP HIGHLIGHTS: Dimension, Armand Van Helden, Skin on Skin, Oppidan, Riordan
LOCATION: Matakana
A one day festival just north of Tāmaki Makaurau in Matakana, Hidden Valley was all anyone could talk about in 2025. Their 10th anniversary boasted a stacked line-up which catapulted them to the top of many people’s lists of desirable festivals. Artists like Wilkinson, K Motionz, Kettama, Chris Stussy and Silva Bumpa topped the headlines. However, the day didn't pan out as many punters expected – with bus drama and disorganisation being only the start of their problems.
A previous attendee noted the event’s “awful organisation” with another stating that they wouldn’t return, as the “price was too high for the organisation to be super shit.” Despite this, one attendee reckoned “it was lit” because they were “fucked up and had heaps of random friends there” even though it was super rainy (as was the theme for NY in 2025). We hope Hidden Valley has since learnt a bit about festival planning, and that asking $210 for a one day event won’t be daylight robbery if they get their shit together.
We would also note that the lineup this year isn’t much to obsess over. There’s a lot of DnB and artists with one widely recognisable song. However, it’s a good one day summer line up for euphoric vibes. Committed festival-goers often combine Hidden Valley with Northern Bass (read below) as they are very close together in timing and location, and everyone loves a bender. Make sure you account for transport delays and congestion.
NORTHERN BASS ($$$)
LENGTH: 2 days (camping)
DATE: Dec 30th - Dec 31st
COST: $209.90 (GA presale) - $309.90 (third release) + 2 day camping pass ($79.90)
2026 LINEUP HIGHLIGHTS: Andy C and Tonn Piper, Culture Shock, Lee Matthews, Songer, The Upbeats (insane DNB – will tear your ears off), A Little Sound, S.P.Y., Rova, and JME (for those who like UK drill)
LOCATION: Kaiwaka/Mangawhai
Northern Bass is a two day camping festival north of Auckland, in Kaiwaka. They celebrate their 15th anniversary this year. Overall, this festival has a lot of DnB – think bush doof on drugs. It definitely caters to 18-25 year olds. The festival is known for booking big international and local names in the drum and bass, electronic, jungle and hip-hop scene.
There’s only two stages at NB – which can be a good thing or a bad thing – depending on how geared you are. One attendee said the two stages made finding friends super easy and it wasn’t too crowded, but another said “the music is so shit like I’m not a DnB fan.” They added that the smaller stage had good techno music, but the mainstage was “shit asf hardcore DnB and you can’t groove to it and it just all sounds the same and I just went to bed bc I ceebs the music and I was fucked up too.” Basically, if you don’t like DnB, steer clear from Northern Bass.
However, another person we spoke to said it was a super cool vibe, with a perfect amount of people and the buses were organised. Given that so many of the other big names have been shamed due to terrible shuttle organisation, having organised transport instantly catapults this festival’s reputation up the ranks.
MATAKANARAMA ($)
LENGTH: 3 days (camping)
DATE: Dec 29th - Dec 31st
COST: 3 Day Pass at $309 + Camping Pass $79
2026 LINEUP HIGHLIGHTS: Park RD, Troy Kingi, Dunedin’s OWN Cruze Control!
LOCATION: Matakana
Matakanarama is actually hosted in Leigh on the Matakana Coast. The festival is 15 minutes out of the Matakana village itself. Matakanarama is a grassroots festival that grew from an exclusive flat party, with 350 people camping on the grass for three days in 2024. Nowadays, it’s a super cute festival with 1500 attendees and hosting some solid and widely known acts for 2026. If you want to be exclusive and different with an aesthetic friendgroup, this is the place for you. Just don’t forget your digicam!
The vibe is described as “authentic” and “community-centric” by punters, with the organisers emphasising how it is a place for people to be themselves with like-minded people. There are house games organised at the festival, where you are randomly placed in one of three teams. This promotes an environment where it is easy to meet other festival-goers and accentuate the authentic ‘we are all friends’ energy of the event.
The event has only two stages: the Main Stage and the Kawakawa Stage. This makes for an intimate feel, different from bigger mainstream festivals. The Main Stage hosts the larger acts out in the open on the hill, whereas the Kawakawa Stage is smaller, nestled in a clearing amongst the trees of the venue. The music is described as “groovier and more underground” than other popular NY festivals. However, this year the line up boasts some fairly well known names such as Park Rd and Cruze Control – a band who hail from our very own Ōtepoti.
AUM ($$$$)
LENGTH: 3 days (camping)
DATE: 30 Dec - 2 Jan
COST: $450 (including camping!)
2026 LINEUP HIGHLIGHTS: Ocean Alley, Mallrat
LOCATION: Leightons Farm, Parakai, Auckland.
AUM stands for Authentic Unified Movement, and it first began in 2014. It’s kind of like the super environmentally conscious indie younger sister of Burning Man. The performing artists are just one part of this festival – they have a visual art roster showcasing the work of over 30 artists, and interactive exhibits that attendees join in to create. Importantly, AUM is BYO, so you can bring whatever booze you want without paying ridiculous prices for a tiny vodka soda. However, they have a strict ban on glass: keep your beer bottles and wine coolers at home.
AUM has four stages, all of which seem pretty special. According to the organisers, “music is sacred”, and “Our dance-floors are our church.” With that in mind, their main stage (White Stag) sports a different musical theme each night as part of its psychedelic art showcase, has a massive mandala canopy, and is a space where shoes are optional. The Kānuka Stage plays house and techno, the Hub Stage is for live music and performance, and The Hill Stage plays DnB, bass, psytrance and psy-tech. That’s the ‘bush doof’ part of the festival, and has a tree-lined amphitheater.
This is also a family friendly festival up until 10pm, in which the event organisers ask parents to have their children away from the stages. Under 18s also have to be accompanied by a parent or legal guardian for the entire festival, so you probably can’t bring your younger sibling along. AUM is also a completely waste free event, being known as one of the cleanest events in Aotearoa.
GISBORNE
RHYTHM AND VINES ($$$$)
LENGTH: 1 day pre-party festival (for campers) + 3 days main festival (CAMP)
DATE: Dec 28th - Dec 31st
COST: $359 + booking fees (festival pass only) OR $179 + booking fees (single day). While some of the camps are currently sold out, they range from setting you back $480 to $539. We’d recommend the Rhythm Camp, which costs $539.
LOCATION: Tairāwhiti, Waiohika Estate
2026 LINEUP HIGHLIGHTS: John Summit (debatable), KI/KI, Netsky, Friction, Luude, Mall Grab, Dave Dobbin, 1991, A Little Sound, Rova, Sachi (O-Week throwback), Two Faced, Sin & Brook, Osmosis Jones, Corella, Te Wehi and Hori Shaw
Rhythm and Vines is one of the most talked about festivals of the year. Camping kicks the event off on the 28th, and it doesn’t stop until the 1st. Out of those that we talked to about the event, people reckoned the safety and music was on the better side of average, and that you had a pretty good chance of smuggling drugs in. However, attendees said camping was a real let down – but this is likely due to the absolute mud pit it was last year.
We asked those who attended how they would describe RnV if it was a drug, genre of music and a piece of clothing. This totally showed the range of people this festival attracts. One person thought RnV could be summed up by “crack laced coke mixed with ket, bad and boring DnB, wife beaters and gumboots”, whereas another person says “flowery mini skirt and dlow pop!” It’s giving ballerina girlfriend and eshay farmer boyfriend.
When asked if they’d go again, attendees had a range of opinions. Some would refuse to return “because I’d feel unc,” and “too old now”. Another said that they were “convinced that RnV exists only to provide a playground for smug uptight Aucklanders where they can slum it out before driving home in the Hilux daddy paid for”. Another person, who will be going for the fifth year in a row, says they’d absolutely go again: “Nothing beats the I l Love You Bro Hill. Being the first place to see the sun of the New Year is pretty unbeatable.”
If you wanna be a beezy or a breather, RnV is your training ground before moving onto Castle Street. This is the final year RnV will be held in Gisborne, moving to an undisclosed location next year. If you’ve always wanted to go, now’s probably the time.
TAURANGA
FAMOUS LAST WORDS
LENGTH: 1 day
Date: 31st Dec
Cost: $149.00 (GA)
2026 LINEUP HIGHLIGHTS: Peking Duck, S.P.Y. with more TBC
Location: Mount Maunganui, Mercury Baypark Arena.
Famous Last Words is the biggest New Year festival in the Bay of Plenty area, with four stages and many well known international artists. Beginning in 2021, the festival picked up speed by focusing on electronic music. Expect garage, DnB and house music.
This year they celebrate their 5th anniversary, and hint at a stacked lineup still to come. They’ve also got four stages for the first time, adding an outdoor stage for sunset viewing. This is definitely a much smaller festival than the others, which is why it’s so impressive they’ve managed to snag Peking Duk. If you haven’t seen them before, you should definitely go. Peking Duk is only playing at Famous Last Words this summer.
COROMANDEL
Coro Classic ($$)
LENGTH: 1 Day
DATE: Jan 3rd
COST: $199.90 for final release
2026 LINEUP HIGHLIGHTS: Culture Shock, Clean Bandit, Corella, Daily J, Flight Facilities, Delta Heavy, Marlins Dreaming, Savage, Park Rd
LOCATION: Matarangi, Coromandel Peninsula.
Coro Classic is the iconic summer beach festival! This one kicks off on the 3rd of January, and has like super beachy vibes (we think – we couldn’t find too much information on them).
When describing the festival, one attendee summed it up as “LSD, dance funk, and cool sun glasses”, and talked about dancing in the sun, which is a massive highlight considering the rain last year. It’s important to note this is not a NYE festival – if you have to work over NY, see if you can get a day or two of leave after the mad minimum wage rush to pay a visit.
WĀNAKA
RHYTHM AND ALPS ($$$)
LENGTH: 2 days (camping)
DATE: Dec 30th - Dec 31st
COST: $350 (general admission). Camping passes start at $70.
2026 LINEUP HIGHLIGHTS: Fat Freddy’s Drop, Dimension, Lee Mvtthews, No Cigar (Dunedin) Wax Mustang, and Flowidus (Dunedin)
LOCATION: Cardrona Valley, Robrosa Station.
R&A is based just out of Wānaka in Cardrona Valley. The festival was originally hosted in a paddock in Terrace Downs in 2011 and 2012, but by 2013 it had shifted to Cardies. It’s been slowly gaining popularity due to its conspicuous lack of mud compared to its North Island counterpart. Most attendees we spoke to would go again, noting that it's cheaper than RnV, and easy to sneak stuff in. One camper mentions they got a free VIP camping upgrade for arriving early, with others saying that they loved the camping – apart from at night time. People recommend bringing a warm jacket or a hoodie as it’s super cold, apart from one brave soul who described the festival uniform as “mini skirts and farmer shirts.”
R&A has four stages – the Alpine Arena, Jeff, the Log Cabin, and the Red Bull Eclipse Stage. Alpine Arena is the main stage, where all the headliners play. Jeff is the Doof Cave, and “dark, sweaty and hypnotic… only the brave go all night.” The Log Cabin is, well, a log cabin. It’s described as small, steamy and pure chaos. The Red Bull Eclipse Stage is an all nighter stage, and doesn’t stop until sunrise.
The defining feature of this festival is the Southern Alps. It’s incredibly beautiful, and as the organisers state “sunrise turns the peaks pink, the night sky glitters with stars, and the air feels as crisp as the beats rolling through the stages.” This is a nice change of theme (mountain festival core!) and pretty special to Aotearoa.
COBB VALLEY
TWISTED FREQUENCY ($$$$)
LENGTH: 5 days (camping)
DATE: Dec 30th - Jan 3rd
COST: $455 (Early Bird Quiet Camping) – $530 (Final Call Main Site)
2026 LINEUP HIGHLIGHTS: Om Unit, Grouch, Paige Julia, Isaac Chambers & Dub Princess.
LOCATION: Upper Tākaka, Golden Bay.
Twisted Frequency takes the cake for being the longest standing NYE festival in Aotearoa. Based in Golden Bay, it has 24/7 music across multiple stages and is a “holistic experience” – as anyone who has ever tried psychedelics will tell you. The kind of music Twisted is known for is psytrance and “psychedelic prog techno”, as one past attendee described to us (#whatdatmean). However, the festival points to a “twisting of the frequencies” being their whole thing. Living up to their name, Twisted Frequency hosts groups and artists “spanning the widest range of electronica”, with folk, metal, dubstep, rock, techno and all types of “weird and wonderful music.”
There’s graffiti and mural artists who work through all hours, and the festival is known for embracing the circus arts. Expect fire and flow, especially from the Twisted Cabaret. There’s daily yoga sessions and keynote speakers, banana boogie dance workshops, addresses from tangata whenua, political figures and conservation experts. As one attendee said: “get your tits out, smoke a joint, sit back, and enjoy being at a festival without any breathas!”
As we haven’t been to the festival ourselves, one attendee wrote in to tell us what to expect, which we have included in full in the following paragraph because it was awesome.
“Twisted is the BEST bang for your buck - tickets are around the same price as R&A but the festy goes for FIVE WHOLE DAYS with FOUR WHOLE NIGHTS OF EPIC TUNES. Insane underground DJs, incredible bands. Imagine lying on the grass, hearing the trickle of the awa, the trees are breathing around you as rainbows ripple across the sky and incredible guitar pours out across the valley. Fucking stunning. Imagine. Being. In. A. Crowd and you have ROOM to DANCE. NOBODY IS PUSHING. EVERYONE IS POLITE. THERE IS NO GLASS. people KNOW their limits. Then you wake up, jam a swim in the beautiful clean river, maybe hit the sauna, go to a talk or a workshop, do some yoga, learn to pole dance or juggle, or just lax out and listen to sick as bands all day long.
CHRISTCHURCH
LAKES FESTIVAL ($$$)
Length: 1 day
Date: Dec 28th
Cost: $199.00
2026 LINEUP HIGHLIGHTS: Netsky, Mall Grab, Armand Van Helden, Oppidan, Ladi6, Lens, Sin & Brook, Rova, XClub
LOCATION: Hagley Park, Christchurch.
Lakes Festival kicks off for the sixth time in Hagley Park, and is the place to go for electronic music. Lakes is great because it’s at Hagley Park, which is super central to Christchurch. It means you can skip all the worry or being in the middle of nowhere with no service and no way to get home. However, it’s definitely on the pricier side for a one day event.
This year, they’ve managed to contract Armand Van Helden – you’ll know him. He sings You Don’t Know Me, Bonkers with Dizzee Rascal, and Barbra Streisand. Other headliners include Netsky and Mall Grab. In case you live under a rock, Netsky is huge on the DnB scene, playing at Coachella and collabing with Lil Wayne and David Guetta.
Last year, Lakes Festival debuted the Racket Club – a hidden rave cave of underground electronic music. All around the festival, the organisers had hidden special cards marked with an X, ready for the attendees to find. These were the only way to gain access into the secret stage, and it’s looking pretty likely the Racket Club will be returning for 2026.
ROLLING MEADOWS ($$)
LENGTH: 3 days (camping)
DATE: Dec 29th - Dec 31st
COST: 3 day passes range from $339.99 (presale) – $379.99 (second release) + $39.99 Camping Pass.
2026 LINEUP HIGHLIGHTS: Example, Clean Bandit, Andy C, Culture Shock, The Exponents, Friction, 1991, Alison Wonderland.
LOCATION: On the edge of Bottle Lake Forest in Christchurch
Rolling Meadows is a relatively young festival, first debuting in 2021. This year, there’s a stacked lineup, which is pretty impressive given how new on the scene it is. Rolling Meadows is notable for hosting the Duckbrewe Skateboarding Competition. Duckbrewe Brand erects a massive ramp, hosting competition heats, practice sessions and free skate events. Organisers explain that the crossover is super cool because they’ll have skaters perform in the event, then DJ the neighbouring stage, such as UK skater Dogger at Duckbrewe 4. They say “the skate crowd is part of the festival crowd. The music is part of the culture. Neither feels bolted on.” Keep an eye on their website for how to enter, and make sure you check the terms and conditions of Rolling Meadows to make sure you can bring your skateboard in.
Rolling Meadows has also got two amusement rides inside the festival grounds, which is fucking awesome. However, one past attendee told us that you should be a bit careful, with the one ride going for “what felt like an hour of spinning round up and down full speed, while drunk, people vomiting off the ride into the queues…awful idea.”
Something to keep in mind is that if you’re super drunk or super geared, a thrill ride looks like a good idea – but it’s definitely not. It’s one of those things that you should try at the start of the night, not the end. That being said, we’d definitely recommend Rolling Meadows over some of the bigger names. The lineup is great and the skateboard competition looks mean.
