Festivals

Five fabulously-designed, wildly different music stages. Riverside dips hanging off brightly-coloured floaties. Swarms of friendly, glitter-clad revellers.

These are just a few parts of Bazique 2025 that I loved. Located on the sandy banks of the remote Buffalo Drift venue around an hour and a half’s drive from Cape Town, this March I spent three days and two nights at the quirky music and arts festival. 

I boogied away day and night to a curated selection of local and international DJs in my best sparkly party outfits. And it’s fair to say I had a damn good time.

After being sent a few videos of previous Bazique festivals by a friend, it didn’t take me long to commit. A special, boho-esque blend of electronic music, art, and immersive experiences, I knew that Bazique would be my vibe, and I was right. Here’s my experience of Bazique Festival 2025.

A funky wonderland of art and expression

While Bazique boasted a stellar line-up of DJs, you shouldn’t just go to the festival for the music alone. In fact, to be quite honest, I didn’t recognise any of the line-up before grabbing my ticket (I sure do now!).

Bazique has plenty to offer between all that dancing under the hot African sun, from acro yoga sessions to burlesque shows hosted at the circus tent to on-the-move silent discos. One highlight of mine was the beautiful, sustainability-focused art installation of mushrooms created from plastic that glowed brilliantly in the dark among the trees. We took many slow night-time strolls over the weekend just to pass them.

Of course, Bazique’s Berg River is a core feature of the festival. Make sure to add a flamboyant floaty or two to your packing list to lounge upon on the river. 

The Berg River flows right past the main stage so you can even listen to great tunes as you chill. Complete with a golden sand beach, temperatures soared to over 35 degrees Celsius on Saturday, and the water was a much-needed sanctuary.

Oh, and then there’s the food and shopping. If you didn’t have time to prep for the festival spirit, there were plenty of outfit and accessory choices at Bazique. We browsed the cute, hippy stalls and boutiques, selling everything from handmade fans to cool down in the heat to sequin bodysuits that shimmer as you sway.

There were plenty of options on the food front, from vegan Indian food to meaty burgers. I was certainly pleased to have access to a choice of yummy dishes to fuel my body between sets. 

High-energy sets from up-and-coming DJs

There were five stages at Bazique, but we spent most of our time flitting between the main River Stage and the indoor, shaded Tropical Roast. You couldn’t go wrong with the main stage; it was intricate, grand, and resembling a beautiful Asian temple – except it was pumping out killer tunes all weekend long.

I loved dancing barefoot on the sand at the River Stage during the day, the warm sun heating my skin. And at night, the multi-coloured lanterns above us glowed luminously, and the crowd adopted a fantastic, animalistic style of dancing that seemed to be performed in unison. 

Some DJ highlights included high-energy sets from Oliver Koletzki and Frida Darko on the River Stage, both from Germany. When Frida spun the “It feels so good” remix by Matt Sassari, HUGEL, and Sonique on Saturday night, the adrenaline flowing through my system may very well have peaked.

At the Tropical Roast, we loved many local DJs, including The Head Gardener and Gaston Blurry, who kept us groovin’ for hours and hours on Friday night. And on Saturday, we took retreat from the heat and relaxed on a net hammock found at the Tropical Roast, getting up to bounce around every time a great tune was played (which was pretty often). I adored the laid-back, disco vibe of the stage; it reminded me of Cabo Beach Club in Cape Town, one of my favourite music venues. 

And I can’t fail to mention the very special Bridges For Music Stage, which spotlighted locally produced music and art. Bridges for Music is an organisation that runs an academy in the Langa township near Cape Town for talented young people from economically challenged backgrounds.

The verdict: Worth the hype

My verdict? Bazique 2025 was absolutely worth the hype. 

As someone who’s attended some of the biggest festivals in the world (which can be incredible, too, in different ways), I loved the intimacy of a small festival. I adored the novelty of casually bumping into friends across the weekend, knowing we’d probably see them again at a different stage in an hour or two. I discovered new South African DJs I probably otherwise wouldn’t have heard about, at least not for a while.

The attendees and staff were incredibly friendly, the toilets were always clean, and there was always plenty of room to dance if you craved some breathing space away from the stages. 

As a Brit visiting South Africa for the second time, I’ve completely fallen in love with the country. 

Festivals like these are some of the reasons why. I’ll be back, Bazique.

Check out more of our festival reviews here.