Alcatraz Metal and Hard Rock Festival in Kortrijk, Belgium has quickly grown out to become one of the biggest festivals for the lovers of heavy music in the country. We heard people say more than once that they are going to Alcatraz now yearly instead of Graspop because of the nicer atmosphere where it feels like coming home every time. Since its humble beginnings as a 1 stage, 1-day, indoor festival, it has grown out to become an impressive 3-day festival with 4 stages and over 100 bands to choose from over your stay.
CONTENTS:
- LOCATION
- FESTIVAL AREA
- FOOD & DRINKS
- PAYMENT METHOD
- CAMPSITE
- SANITARY FACILITIES
- CHARGING POINTS & LOCKERS
- WASTE / RECYCLING
- LINEUP ALCATRAZ 2024
- ALCATRAZ PRE-PARTY
LOCATION
Sport Campus Lange Munte
Bad Godesberglaan 22
8500 Kortrijk
Belgium
FESTIVAL AREA
The festival grounds are located in Kortrijk on the fields of a sport center on the edge of the city, and you’ll find 4 stages:
- Prison Stage: the open air main stage of the festival where you’ll find the biggest bands with the biggest shows.
- Swamp Stage: a marquee/tent stage where you’ll mainly find many more extreme metal acts with a darker vibe (death metal, black metal, thrash metal, deathcore,…), fitting the name of the stage perfectly.
- Helldorado Stage: a marquee/tent stage where you’ll find a mix of different subgenres. Fans of Heavy, Stoner, Goth, Punkrock, … should keep an eye (ear?) out for this stage.
- La Morgue Stage: a smaller marquee/tent stage where you’ll find a nice combination of local Belgian talents and international bands that call for a club atmosphere where there’s no security barrier and all the ingredients for some really intense shows.
Aside from that, there are plenty of food places, bars and other activities to be found spread all over the area, so there is never a dull moment.
One extra bigger construction that has a specific title is the El Presidio where you’ll be welcome for some Belgian special beers and partying to the tunes played by the DJs scheduled there.
FOOD & DRINKS
As of 2023, Alcatraz started to publish all drink & food options for every single bar / food point, including the prices. This whole list can be found on their official website: https://alcatraz.be/en/food-and-drinks
PAYMENT METHOD
Food and drinks are bought by coins you need to purchase either in advance or at the festival site. We’d recommend you to already get a healthy amount of them in advance, since you’ll get a discounted pricing through pre-sales (€3,10 per coin). Once you need to get them at the festival itself, they’ll get more expensive.
CAMPSITE
Alcatraz has several nearby camping options ranging from the basic “Alcatraz Graveyard” camping, camper camping and motor camping, all the way to more luxury “glamping” options like the Eagle Plaza, 2-person “B-and-bee” units to even a truck to sleep in (yes, you read that right).
The main campsite ticket will cost you €21. There are also some extras available like getting cold beer (only on Thursday!), breakfast packages and buffet, or the purchase of a friends area to have a guaranteed shared camping space for the group of metalheads you’re going to Alcatraz with (excluding the basic camping tickets, which you still need to get). Check all the available options out still here.
If you don’t necessarily care for staying close to the atmosphere and want a bit more luxury, there is still good news for you: the city center of Kortrijk is relatively close to the festival area, so getting yourself a hotel room or something similar is definitely a valid option.
Breakfast
Breakfast can be bought at the campsite (Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday) for €32 (€8/day) in presale and in that case includes 2 Danish pastries, 1 yoghurt, 1 piece of fruit, 1 juice or chocolate milk and 2 coffees.
On Friday, Saturday and Sunday you can also enjoy a breakfast buffet for €39 (€13/day) in presale, that includes: chocolate pastry, croissant, sandwiches, bread, cheese, ham, butter, yoghurt, fruit salad, fruit juice or chocolate milk, eggs and bacon and 2 coffees.
SANITARY FACILITIES & WATER
There are free sanitary facilities (toilets, running water, showers) present on / next to the campsite.
MOBILE PHONE CHARGING POINT(S) & LOCKERS
At the campsite there are outlets available to recharge your mobile phone. There are also lockers available.
Give thieves no chance. Leave valuables at home.
Do not leave valuables unattended in your tent. The organisation is not in any way responsible or liable for theft. If you do have valuables you want to take with you, please store them in the lockers. The lockers can be found next to the office.
WASTE / RECYCLING
Each camper will get 2 garbage bags, one for waste and one for recycling. Please use the bags and bring them upon leaving to the appropriate collection points. In the donation pit you can donate camping equipment.
Campers receive a coin for a cup of coffee or tea on the campsite when they bring in a full bag of sorted waste (PMD and residual waste). This is a special coin that is only valid at the campsite office. The rubbish bag can be brought to the container park of the campsite daily (from Friday till Monday) between 8h and 12h. The container park is located next to the large sanitary area of the campsite.
LINEUP OF ALCATRAZ 2024
BUT WAIT, THERE’S MORE: THE ALCATRAZ PRE-PARTY!
Thursday evening (so the evening before the festival really kicks off) there’s a pre-party on the festival field, more specifically in the Swamp (with gigs by cover bands), and in El Presidio (a party with DJ’s).
To get access to the pre-party, you need to either have a camping ticket/bracelet, or buy a separate ticket on the website (€6,2), for which you get a refund at the entrance, in the form of two drink/food tokens. (which results in free access).
As some people unnecessarily bought a pre-party ticket last edition(s), we repeat: If you got a camping ticket/bracelet: Don’t buy a pre-party ticket, as you already get free access to the pre-party on Thursday 😉
Afbeeldingen / artwork door Alcatraz Music.
