Dreambeach Music Festival 2026 - 31st July and 1 August 2026
Contemporary music and dance festivals in Andalucia
In 2026, Dreambeach will celebrate its 12th edition at a new location. It has been renamed Dreambeach Costa del Sol and shortened from three to two music days. The reason for the move is unclear, given that the organisers and the national, regional and local administrations supported the 2024/5 festivals and jointly reported its great success with an per edition economic impact of €12 million.
The new name, Dreambeach Costa del Sol, suggests sponsorship by the Málaga Tourist Board. Perhaps the Almeria Town Hall and/or the Regional government were actually believing the residents of Retamar had a valid objection and pointed the organisors in the direction of the Costa del Sol. All the organisors will say is that the Costa del Sol offers a 'new format', and to prove it they have deleted all historic social media posts. Many found the 2025 headliners strange, with electronic music critic Ben Cater of CULTR succinctly describing them as "questionable choices like Steve Aoki and Will Smith that felt more like celebrity bookings than legitimate electronic music curation". The new location is the Velez-Malaga feria ground (near El Ingenio shopping centre) and only 2.6km from the beach.
Dreambeach Background
Dreambeach was the effective successor to Creamfields Andalucía, which was held in Playa Villaricos (Cuevas del Almanzora, Almería) from 2004 to 2007. It then experimented with less remote locations, such as El Ejido (2008 and 2009) and Jerez (2010 and 2011), before stopping. New organisers saw the opportunity to restart with a clever variation of the name, 'Dreambeach', to take place in the true home of dance festivals in Andalucia — a return to the remote Playa Villaricos. Although it was more difficult to travel to, Dreambeach built a solid reputation there from 2012 to 2023. In 2024, it came as a surprise when a new location near Almería City and Airport was announced. The move to the La Toya, Retamar location in 2024 was controversial and opposed by Retamar residents, although Dreambeach had the support of the city council in Almería, who conveniently suspended local noise regulations for the weekend. Dreambeach returned to Retamar in 2025.
The Retemar site 2024/5
The Retamar, Almeria festival site for 2024 and 2025 was controversial. At Retamar, local residents formed a pressure group called 'No al Dreambeach en El Toyo' (No to Dreambeach in El Toyo), generating much media coverage as they expressed their strong opposition to the site. More>
Previous Editions - Full lineup and After Festival Videos and dates.
2025 - the 11th edition ran for 3/4 days from Thursday 7th to Sunday 10th August 2025. See Lineup
2024 - the 10th edition ran for 3/4 days from Thursday 1st to Sunday 4th August 2024. See Lineup
2023 - the 9th edition runs for 5 days from 9th to 13th August 2023. See Lineup
2022 - the 8th edition ran at last for 5 days from 13th to 17th July 2022. See Lineup
This earlier date was due to a new event 'Dreambeach Puerto de Santa Maria' a one day event on the this town on the Cadiz coast.
2021 - the 8th edition was due to run for 5 days from 4th to 8th August 2021. However this had to be cancelled and a smaller one day event was held in Granada city on 30th October 2021. See Lineup
2020 - the 8th edition was cancelled due to the Coronavirus pandemic. See proposed Lineup
2019 - the 7th edition ran for 5 days 7th to 11th August 2019. See Lineup
2018 - the 6th edition ran for 5 days 8th to 12th August 2018. See Lineup
2017 - the 5th edition ran for 5 days 10th to 15th August 2017. See Lineup
2016 - the 4th edition ran for 3 days 11th to 13th August 2016. See Lineup
2015 - the 3rd edition ran for 2 days on 7th and 8th August 2015. See Lineup
2014 - the 2nd edition ran for 2 days on 8th and 9th August 2014. See Lineup
2013 - the 1st edition of Deambeach ran for 2 days on 9th and 10th August 2013. See Lineup
2011 - Creamfields Andalucia, was held at the Jerez Moto GP circuit in 2011
2010 - Creamfields Andalucia, was held at the Jerez Moto GP circuit in 2010
2009 - Creamfields Andalucia, was held at El Ejido in 2009
2008 - Creamfields Andalucia, was held at El Ejido in 2008
2007 Creamfields Andalucia 2007 was held at Playa Villaricos from 2004 to 2007. Report by Stacy Prenderville from the last Creamfields Andalucia held in Villaricos in 2007
2004 to 2007 - Creamfields Andalucia, was held at Playa Villaricos location from 2004 to 2007.
Location
Recinto ferial (Summer Fair Ground), Avenida del Rey Juan Carlos I, 48, Vélez-Málaga