Open'er Festival

Open'er has run since 2002, moving to Gdynia in 2003 and to the Kosakowo airfield outside it in 2006, and it is one of the biggest music festivals in Poland, running over four days in late June or early July. The airfield is a working military site the rest of the year, which is why the festival has flat open ground and hangars to work with. The programming is broad - headline international rock, pop, hip hop and electronic acts alongside Polish artists across several stages - and it has won European festival awards more than once. There is a campsite on the site, which is how most younger attendees stay, and shuttle buses run to the Tricity. Being on the coast, it can be hot and dusty or wet and cold within the same weekend, and the field turns to mud quickly. Tickets go on sale months ahead and the earliest tiers sell out.

History

The first edition was held as the Open Air Festival at Tor Stegny in Warsaw in 2002, with the Chemical Brothers on the main stage. It moved to Kościuszki Square in Gdynia for 2003-2005, where the last edition drew over 50,000 people, and since 2006 it has been held at Kosakowo airport; it won Best Major Festival at the European Festivals Awards in 2009, 2010, 2019 and 2024 (Wikipedia, Open'er Festival).

What's there

• A military airfield as a venue - flat ground and hangars, used for four days a year.
• Several stages - international headliners alongside Polish acts.
• An on-site campsite - where most of the crowd stays.
• A huge crowd - one of the biggest festival audiences in Poland.

When to go

Late June or early July. Several days.

Before you go

Tickets sell out months ahead. The site floods and turns to mud in rain. Camping facilities are basic for the numbers. Getting in and out at peak times takes hours. Line-ups are announced late.

Nearby

Gdynia and its modernist centre are a short ride south.

Key facts