Tomorrowland raises the bar for Glastonbury festival

When I first got offered Tomorrowland tickets, I really didnt know what I was getting involved in. Ive been to Glastonbury, Ive been to South by South West and many more festivals around the world, but Id never come across Tomorrowland, and now I have no idea how its escaped me for so long.

Upon arrival the mood seemed to change as we approached this Brussels-based festival, we hastily applied gemstone face stickers as sequins and elaborate headdresses formed the uniform that we clearly werent aware of. Not going to lie, I was apprehensive of attending an EDM festival in 36 degree heat, what was making me sweat more was the bus sign flashing 38 degrees at midday. Would I survive? I was getting visions of passing out like on Sun, Sea and Suspicious Parents and someone having to call my emergency contact, which was already making me panic out of embarrassment.

I have a confession, Im not even a fan of EDM. Truth be told, I love new experiences and I was intrigued to try out a music festival with a sublime food offering. So how could I resist B-EAT Las Vegas at Tomorrowland? I cant turn down food, thats for sure.

As we crept into the village of Boom, it felt like we were entering the Hunger Games. Were we being made sacrifices? Seemingly empty buildings suspended Tomorrowland flags from their windows, while empty streets showed no signs of life. Where was everyone? And why were there loads of containers around? Nervously a few of us – new to the Tomorrowland experience -glanced at each other.

It soon became clear, as the iconic Ferris Wheel loomed overhead marking the way, that wherever we were going, it was about to be a lot of fun, despite the heat – which saw us sweat from places we didnt know existed.

Vegas chefs flew in to host their experiences (Picture: Mike Will)

Tomorrowland quickly exported us into a world we couldnt have dreamed existed – and Im not even hyping it up unnecessarily – I go to festivals all of the time (its my job), so expected this to be fairly decent – with its partnership with Las Vegas, a dead giveaway. But never could I imagine to this scale.

The showmanship took the festival to a whole different stratosphere, the only way I can describe this dreamland is to compare it to a Thorpe Park experience meets Disneyland for adults.

Forget Coachella, every festival Instagram shot youve ever wanted will be here. Complete with Ferris Wheel, swimming pools and jacuzzis where they feed you free yummy bites and give you bikinis and swim shorts to use – a totally different vibe from wellie-sucking puddles Im used to in the UK. This is where I want the party to be at every day.

The sensory experience was magnificent as the elaborate settings made British stages look measly in comparison. Acrobatic performers and dancers mingled in the crowds and acted as hype men and women for the performers throughout the whole day, keeping you entertained and locked into the world of Tomorrowland for the duration – carrying you on a cloud of euphoria.

While the music isnt my preference, the endless beats, entertainment and good vibes added to the whole experience and Ive since downloaded tracks to take me back to the fun while I stare out of my office window. Who knew I was a secret EDM fan?

And guess what? I cant even complain about the food.

With culinary delights around the festival, I was able to attend an hour immersive food experience with B-EAT. Chefs including Masaharu Morimoto, Christophe De Lellis, Bruno Riou, Sean Griffin, Nicholas Sharpe and Lee Bennett were all in attendance for different sessions with also involved high-energy sets from world class DJs – ready to get you pumped.

Chef Lee led the charge for my group in one of the most insane club experiences in the middle of the day as the champagne flowed. Gone were the generic noodle pile that youre used to shovelling down – or the pizza slice with dough so thick youd confuse it with a baguette. At the B-EAT session, there were delights such as parma ham and melon and crab ravioli in the four-course taster menu.

The tasty bites kept you full all day, making sure you didnt need a mountain of cheesy chips within a few hours, and the champagne definitely made you feel boujee – just like the toilets – where they gave you sprays of deodorant on your way out to keep you fresh in the heat. As its cashless there was no scrambling for a couple of quid, you use your band and its pearls (Tomorrowlands own currency) to pay your fare around the mini-city.

I clocked up a fairly impressive 15km on both days I was at the festival, trying to soak up every glimpse (and drop of alcohol). Most of those steps came on an epic walk back to our coach that dropped us back to our hotel. That was a good 30 minutes, but organisers have paid attention to the finer details – marking this festival above others – with entertainment guiding you home with not only atmospheric music, but statues and fire dancers to keep your mind off the long walk as well as bottles of water (marathon-style) to keep you hydrated.

Yes, Glastonbury is rumoured to have the likes Diana Ross and Madonna rumoured to be headlining next year – Tomorrowland had Lost Frequencies, Sigala, David Guetta as some of the DJs taking over the main stage, which with its incredible design blew the iconic Pyramid stage out of the water.

How could you not be mesmerised? Glastonbury, take note.