Boothstock 2026: Rotterdam's Forest Gets Loud Again

Rotterdam already knows how to throw a party. But every summer, Kralingse Bos does something that park benches and joggers were simply not designed for. It turns into Boothstock. Trees for days, house music louder than your landlord allows, and a crowd that came to dance.

This year's edition runs 13:00 to 23:00 on June 13 and the lineup is not here to play it safe. Well. It is here to play. But you know what we mean.

The Name You've Been Waiting Twenty Years to See Back Here

Let's get straight to it. Armand Van Helden returns to Rotterdam this summer, his first appearance here in over two decades. Two. Decades. That ain't a comeback. That is a ressurection. The man who gave us You Don't Know Me and just wrote the textbook on filter house is standing in a Dutch forest and pressing play. This is the booking that makes people text their friends to cancel whatever they have planned.

The Stage That Will Not Let You Leave

On the main stage, Prunk and Hot Since 82 go back to back, with Michel de Hey and Jamback doing the same. Two b2bs on the same bill. Both are the kind of sets where you look at your phone and realize three hours passed and you missed dinner and you don't care even at all.

Hot Since 82, whose Knee Deep In Sound label defined a sound for a generation, alongside Prunk, who has been one of the most reliable names in Dutch house for years. That pairing alone is worth the ticket. The fact that Michel de Hey and Jamback are doing it right after is almost rude.

Also on that same stage: Benny Rodrigues. Rotterdam's own. He has been a cornerstone of the Dutch house and techno scene for over two decades, the kind of DJ who plays for the room and somehow the room always goes feral. His sets move between deep, driving house and harder techno without ever losing the thread. If you wander over during his slot you are not leaving.

Seven Stages, All of Them Doing Something Dangerous

Across seven stages, Boothstock brings together house, techno, urban and everything in between. This isn't a one-trick festival. The range is real.

The Dance and Techno stage goes deep with 999999999, Dion, Cynthia Spiering, Otta, Tjade, and Morgan Seatree handling the harder stuff. 999999999 live is a full sensory event. If you have never seen them, prepare for your brain to briefly leave your body.

The Bumperstage becomes its own dancefloor with Philou Louzolo, Yulia Niko, and Cincity. Yulia Niko has been on a serious run and Philou Louzolo is the kind of selector who makes you want to buy records you cannot afford.

Mr. Belt and Wezol bring back their Cuckoos Nest concept, which if you know, you know. And if you don't, well you about to.

The Beach Situation

DJ Irwan is moving to the beach with a lineup including Freddy Moreira and more for the hip hop and R&B heads. This is a smart move. The forest has the main stages, the beach has the vibes. You will end up at both and you will have no regrets.

The Part Where the Forest Takes Over

Kralingse Bos is Rotterdam's biggest and most loved park. On any normal June Saturday it's cyclists and picnics. On this particulary Saturday it's 10 hours of electronic music with proper sound and a crowd that actually knows what it came for. The festival builds from dancefloor daytime energy into deeper sounds as the evening moves in, and the whole thing stays in motion from open to close.

Tickets are €63.50. Group tickers already sold out in advance last year, so read that carefully and get to buying the remaining tickets ASAP.

The afterpary with Mono happens right after the last set drops. The forest ends. The party doesn't.