Lollapalooza

The Best Festival For… Alt-Rock

Lollapalooza 2016 via The Odyssey Online

The recipe for Lollapalooza is simple. Take three days in August and mix in the hottest names in alt-rock. Combine together in a park backed by the shimmering Chicago skyline, and you’ve got one of the best music festivals in the states. This year’s lineup includes The Killers, Muse, The xx, Blink-182 and Arcade Fire.

Burning Man

The Best Festival For...Hedonism

Mutant Vehicle at Burning Man via CNN

Radical artistic expression rules in the temporary city erected in the Nevada desert for Burning Man. Crazy statues and works of art populate the Burning Man community while performance art, speeches, cultural exchanges, and parties inspired by a theme take place over the course of a week. The event culminates in the burning of a large wooden effigy- the “burning man”- on the final night of the festival. It’s one of the most unique celebrations in the world.

Ultra Music Festival

The Best Festival For… Vibes

Ultra Music Festival via ultramusicfestival.com

Since 1999, the world’s elite DJs have congregated in Miami for three days of partying to EDM. If endlessly Instagram-able neon lights and dancing ‘til the sun comes up sounds like a good time to you, Ultra’s got your back.

New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival

The Best Festival For…Overall Experience

Trombone Shorty via Glide Magazine

The New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival is everything great about New Orleans packed into a two-weekend movable feast. The festival racks up amazing musical acts- and even if jazz isn’t your thing, you can catch artists like Lorde and Maroon 5. As you wander between stages to see your favorite acts, check out artwork and handicrafts from hundreds of nationally renowned artisans. And be sure to sample lots of tasty New Orleans specialties from festival vendors, including crawfish étouffée and jambalaya. Ten out of ten for memorability, New Orleans.

Boston Calling Music Festival

The Best Festival For…University Students

Boston Calling via The Voice of Downtown Boston

Boston is not only a great town for music- it’s a classic college town. University students flock to Boston Calling, a new music festival that gathers attendees in front of Harvard Stadium for acts like Weezer, The 1975, Chance the Rapper, and Bon Iver. People in the crowd wave banners from their universities while they rock out. And the after-parties are crazy in the way only university students can manage.

Coachella

The Best Festival For...Celeb Spotting

Vanessa Hudgens, Jaden Smith, Gigi Hadid, and Jared Leto at Coachella via Celebuzz

Coachella is one of the most famous festivals in the world, and people come from all over to soak up the sun and hear the music- including famous people! Celebs show up in force to see and be seen. If you want to catch a glimpse of Kendall Jenner or Jared Leto, Coachella might just be the place to do it.

Sasquatch! Music Festival

The Best Festival For...Eclectic Music

Sasquatch! 2015 via Billboard

Your taste in music is diverse, and you want the lineup of a music festival to reflect that. Well, look no further than Sasquatch! Music Festival. Set in the picturesque Gorge Amphitheatre in Washington, a balanced lineup is what this festival is all about. This year, they’ve got hip hop (Frank Ocean and Chance the Rapper), indie pop (The Strumbellas), soul (Charles Bradley), and rock (Car Seat Headrest), and much more genre representation. Who says you can’t have it all?

Outside Lands Music and Arts Festival

The Best Festival For...Hippies

Outside Lands Attendees via Showbams

Join the modern flower children in beautiful Golden Gate Park in San Francisco for a music festival geared toward the green movement. Watch Gorillaz, Queens of the Stone Age, Fleet Foxes, and Young the Giant perform on solar powered stages as you sip from your refillable water bottle and enjoy workshops about organic farming.

Bonnaroo Music Festival

The Best Festival For...Intergenerational Jams

Bonnaroo via GOZ

It only makes sense that a music festival based off of Woodstock would have a variety of acts from several generations of rock and hip hop. Wu Tang Clan, Paul McCartney, and U2 have played the same festival asJay Z, The Black Keys, and Arctic Monkeys. If you have an appreciation for the music of decades gone by and today’s tunes, head to Manchester, Tennessee for the time of your life.

Austin City Limits

The Best Festival For...The Coolest Crowd

Twenty One Pilots at Austin City Limits 2015 via Austin 360

The popular TV show Austin City Limits leaps from the screen to the stage with performances in front of one of the most chill festival crowds in the world. The unpretentious coolness of Austin manifests in the festival, with attendees ready to have a good time without worrying about how hip they look. Past lineups, based on the wide variety of acts the TV show has hosted, have included The National, Drake, and Coldplay. Refreshing attitudes and great music- what more could you want?