What Ilosaarirock is the Finnish world festival of rock-, pop- and all other kinds of music. Ilosaarirock is one of the oldest festivals in Finland. When Usually it is held on the second weekend of July. Where Ilosaarirock is traditionally located in a small town to the West of the southern part of Finland - Joensuu. The way it goes The festival itself lasts two days - on Saturday and Sunday. The festival territory occupies a huge arena (apparently previously used for sporting events) on the outskirts of the city, near Jaahalli. The festival activities take place on 3 stages: the Main stage (Paalava), Radiomafia stage (Radiomafia-lava) and the Third stage (Kolmaslava). Besides on Friday, Saturday and Sunday at different Joensuu clubs (such as Metalliklubbi, Kerubi) and for extra money you can see small gigs of the bands that cannot claim open-air performances. Tickets Distributed via Tiketti & Lippupalvelu. Accommodation There are few hotels in Joensuu. For demanding clients there is Sokos (how come Finland without Sokos?). For less demanding ones - camping and a school on Koskikatu. This school is a grand place. For 4 euro per night you are allowed to sleep on one of tens mattresses right on the floor of sporting and assembly halls. How to get there Joensuu has both bus and railway stations. Thus, you can get there either by bus or by all kinds of Finnish trains. Railway timetable - www.vr.fi Bus timetable - www.matkahuolto.info There are no cut-rate train tickets for foreign students. As for buses, if you have ISIC you can buy a student card for 5,4ˆ on any bus station. Thus, you get a 50% discount for all bus trips inside Finland. Festival history Ilosaarirock dates back to 1971. Its informal name is Rocki. Nowadays it's one of the biggest annual musical events in Finland. Traditionally the festival is organized by volunteers and enthusiasts. The owners of the festival are Joensuu Pop Musicians. From 2002 on, the festival territory includes Linnunlahti beach. Useful links Ilosaarirock Official Site - www.ilosaarirock.fi Contacts Joensuun Popmuusikot ry PL 240 80101 Joensuu E-mail: pop@ilosaarirock.fi Telephone: +358 13 225 550 Joensuu Official Site - www.jns.fi |