Lost Paradise

Sydney, Australia
December 28 - January 1

Sitting about an hour north of Sydney, Lost Paradise is a four-day festival in the verdant green wilderness of the Glenworth Valley (Darkinjung country). This year's seventh edition will feature mostly local acts spread across five stages, each with its own singular vibe. Take Lost Disco, the festival's own pyramid stage, where you'll find DJ sets from the likes of Carl Cox, Jayda G, Saoirse and C.FRIM. Every year, the festival invites "Paradisians" into its kaleidoscopic alternate reality, guided by community-driven principles of inclusion, self-expression and care. At Shambhala Fields, for example, don't miss the array of workshops and talks, including a cultural programme orchestrated by First Nation Australians.

RA Pick: Get down early and catch Berlin-based duo DJ Heartstring spin their Eurodance productions at the opening party.

Sun Cycle

Melbourne, Australia
January 1

The fifth edition of Melbourne's Sun Cycle will return to Australia's first concrete velodrome, Coburg Velodrome, built back in 1979. The festival has a strong focus on accessibility, championing diverse talent locally and from further afield, and delivering an event that combines soul, jazz, hip-hop and more with great food, striking production and the work of local artists. Resident Advisor will host the Body Heat stage, featuring sets from the likes of Maara, Objekt and Moktar back-to-back DJ Plead. The wider festival (the other stages are called Inner Orbit and Simmer Down) will welcome performances from Jayda G, Overmono, Zakia and more.

RA Pick: Erika de Casier's silky vocals should sound delicious in the sunshine.

Trotamundo

Santa Elena, Ecuador
January 4 - January 8

Ecuador's Santa Elena Peninsula is a known surfing hotspot, with a laid-back vibe during the day and a lively night-time culture. Along the peninsula, the tropical seaside village of Montañita will host the debut Trotamundo Festival, a collaborative event run by promoters including Miami's Un_Mute and local venue Lost Beach. The programming will be spread over four days and several nearby spaces, with Binh, tINI, DJ Koolt, Sugar Free and numerous other names in the house and minimal world soundtracking the beach sessions.

RA Pick: Perlon affiliate Maayan Nidam always bends minds with her spectral records.

Nest Fest

Hawkes Bay, New Zealand
January 5 - January 6

Founded in 2019, Nest Fest returns to Hawkes Bay for another edition of its vibrant music and arts festival, which will expand to two days for the first time. Out-of-towners can now camp amid the green surrounds of the Tōmoana Showgrounds, which boasts indoor and outdoor stages, market stalls, organic produce and various live art and wellness workshops. Contributing seven figures annually to the local economy, the festival prioritises sustainability, with an emphasis on local vendors and minimal environmental impact. This year's programme boasts a range of local and international acts, including 33 Below, Marcellus Pittman and HALF QUEEN.

RA Pick: Be sure to catch underground queer DJ ATARANGI, who promises to whip up a storm of ballroom, hard drum, Jersey club and more.

Wolfkop Weekender

Cape Town, South Africa
January 18 - January 22

A 2,000-capacity event in the Citrusdal Valley, Wolfkop Weekender is one of the South African festival circuit's best-kept secrets. Taking place at an idyllic riverside location, the four-day event's tenth anniversary will look to the future while paying homage to the past. Lineup-wise, this year combines a handful of big names–from Canadian composer Frivolous to downtempo don and Burial collaborator Charles Webster–with more than 40 talented local acts.

RA Pick: Look no further than Maeve cofounder The Drifter for emotive dance floor atmospheres.

Closer Music Festival

Paris, France
January 19 - January 21

Paris's Lafayette Anticipations is a venue with a constantly changing layout. Designed by Rem Koolhaas, the former industrial building features movable flooring that allows for 49 different configurations. Its ever-changing space means a visitor's visual and sonic perspective is also in constant flux-the perfect backdrop for a festival like Closer. This three-day gathering celebrates experimentalism and intimacy through live performances, audiovisual installations and cross-genre collaborations that seek to initiate new shifts in thinking and understanding. From Osheyack's hybrid club music to Marina Herlop's immersive blend of piano, electronics and vocals, this year's edition should be a deeply cerebral affair.

RA Pick: Touching on punk, metal, avant-jazz and deconstructed club, Ziúr's live show features composer Abdullah Miniawy, vocalist Elvin Brandhi and video artist Sander Houtkruijer.

NACHTIVILLE

Schleswig-Holstein, Germany
January 19 - January 22

January in the northern hemisphere doesn't traditionally scream festival season. But enter NACHTIVILLE. From the crew who brought us Nachtdigital, the festival takes places at Weissenhäuser Strand, a family-friendly holiday park located on Germany's Baltic coast. After a raucous 2023 edition, NACHTIVILLE returns with familiar favourites in 2024 such as Job Jobse, Gerd Janson and AGY3NA, alongside newcomers like Acidfinky, Interplanetary Criminal, Polygonia and Roses OD. Across five stages, from the big-room energy of THE HALL to the cosiness of the wooden hut CHALET, NACHTIVILLE has all bases covered.

RA Pick: Settle into the intimate confines of THE VIEW and take in the finest vistas of Weinhessenhaüser Strand, soundtracked by Job Jobse, Gabrielle Kwarteng and more.

CTM

Berlin, Germany
January 26 - February 4

CTM is synonymous with boundary-pushing sonic adventurism. The ten-day festival, which takes place across a handful of notable Berlin venues, including Berghain, is celebrating 25 years in 2024 and it promises to do so in typically invigorating fashion. Performances from Kali Malone, Kampire and Rabih Beaini are among the many highlights. There will also be a focus on sustainability, with attendees given the opportunity to check out Oceanic Refractions, an immersive art installation featuring testimonies of Papua New Guinean elders in the wake of global ecocide.

RA Pick: HiTech are bubbling up right now. Catch a rare European performance from the Detroit ghettotech trio.

BEATFOREST

Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand
January 27

With 2023 going down as the hottest year on record, there's more urgency than ever for industries and individuals to reduce carbon emissions. BEATFOREST, a new festival taking place near Thailand's biggest national park, takes that challenge very seriously. Set on empty land, it invites attendees to plant trees in the hope of transforming the area into a lush forest. Scoring this environmental effort will be the likes of club favourite JASSS, Herrensauna resident CEM, Bangkok veteran Marmosets and Macro label boss Stefan Goldmann, who are expected to play deep, hypnotic sets to set the mood.

RA Pick: Sunju Hargun, one of the best purveyors of mystical techno in the Asia-Pacific region, is known for heady sets that explore the darkest corners of dub, ambient and minimal.

TRANUARY

Manchester, United Kingdom
January 27

Now in its second year, "by trans for trans" day festival TRANUARY comes to Manchester's Soup for another round of community-focussed performance and collaboration. 2024's daytime programme boasts a beatscaping session with DJ Loveable, a dance class led by Shanika Sunrise and a lino printing workshop hosted by Cleo. At night, don't miss Bread and Poses' All Trans+ Cabaret Revue, plus DJs Dobbs, Kim Lana and Ifeoluwa. With a strong community ethos, TRANUARY prioritises creating a safer space for attendees to share resources and forge new connections within the trans community.

RA Pick: London-based DJ THEMPRESS has been turning heads in the last couple of years with a party-starting, genre-fluid sound.

Find our full festival listings for January here

Correction, December 29th: A previous version of this article said the capacity of Wolfkop Weekender was 600. It's actually 2,000.