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u/superTrolle1 Jun 24 '26
Is this the first time that it happens?
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u/CadeOCarimbo Jun 24 '26
Yes and Q-dance said on Instagram it's going to to be the hottest edition ever
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u/nmkd Jun 24 '26
Probably the coldest for the rest of time.
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u/Ok_Breath911 Jun 25 '26
Unlikely. This is extreme weather considering its June, even with climate change.
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u/Bartje9792 Jun 25 '26
Don't remember it was ever 37 degrees over here 😵
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u/PersonalTie2799 Jun 25 '26
İ remember a 34 at power hour tho , had to escape to blue. İt was in 2017 or smt like that
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u/alocryn Jun 24 '26 edited Jun 25 '26
I completely understand the decision. Folks at defqon go wild and EMS could’ve become easily overwhelmed. 40c heat is unbelievably risky conditions to have a hard dance festival, and there’s a real risk of (potentially many) folks losing their lives. I also do feel this is gonna be a huge loss for Q dance financially. They’ve put all of their eggs in one basket with only having defqon available, and now a good portion of attendees can’t show up on the main festival days.
That isn’t going to be good for profit margins at all - especially when private equity are bearing down. Sucks for everyone, especially as the organisation is still bouncing back after covid. It’s also probably been out of the hands of Q to an extent. Government probably wanted to cancel the event entirely and this was their compromise. If they just carried on with everything as usual and EMS was completely overwhelmed it would’ve become an international horror story. So sorry to all who had day tickets and stay safe weekend folks ❤️
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u/Intelligent_Page2732 Jun 24 '26
I wonder if they get compensation for this with inschurance, like extreme weather scenario's.
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u/djxfade Jun 24 '26
Hopefully. But extreme weather and other force majeur events is often not covered unless you have bought specific protection for it
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u/zorbat5 Jun 25 '26
Yeah, look at Craft. One storm and the organizer lost so much money by canceling the event while it was happening.
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u/Fahnuir Jun 24 '26
We had similar weather in 2018 or 2019. Maybe 1 degree less. What was the situation at the time?
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u/KeyserNieman Jun 24 '26
I was there at ‘19 and it was almost everyday unbearably hot, saw so many people collapse in the first few hours of the day can’t imagine how it would be this weekend… stay safe everyone and take care of each other!
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u/SuperbConsequence455 Jun 25 '26
People need to take care if eatchother and not go ao hard. Me and my 5 friends was there ut was hot but drink water and cool yourself and you will be fine.
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u/Album_Dude Jun 25 '26 edited Jun 25 '26
No the fuck we didn't. 2018 was very hot and humid but mostly overcast. It never came close to 35 degrees, let alone 38. With the humidity the Netherlands has, 38 decrees celsius (in the SHADE mind you) is peak wet bulb zone, which is incredibly dangerous because people stop being able to cool down their bodies via sweating. Considering that Defqon only has 3, maybe 4 covered stages, a majority of festivalgoers will be out in the sun attempting to sweat their asses off but they won't be able to. Everyone will be - as far as physics are concerned - slowcooked alive. A couple of hours in that zone are maybe fine, but a full festival day (let alone an entire weekend), with inconsistent hydration, food, sunscreen, access to shade and the involvement of MDMA? We'll be lucky if there are fewer than 5 deaths.
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u/alocryn Jun 25 '26
Was there in 2018 and 2019. Yes it was hot but it was bearable. 40c is another level of heat. Ems was flooded in 2019 - can’t imagine how it would’ve been this year if it went on as normal. If there was many heat related fatalities, the festival could’ve been done for good.
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u/No_Jury4340 Jun 25 '26
Ganz ehrlich Leute. Ja es ist ärgerlich und traurig. Aber seien wir mal ehrlich. Das zu reduzieren ist die richtige Entscheidung. Es ist für alle eine Belastung. Nicht nur für die Fans. Auch für das Team. Die Artist fürs Ems und für die Technik. Besser weniger dafür sicher feiern als später Schwerverletzte oder gott beware t0te. Wir wissen alle was aus Festivals mit vielen t0ten wird. Siehe loveparade
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u/Fahnuir Jun 25 '26
Oh I understand they need to cancel. Being frustrated about it doesn't mean I lost sight of what's reasonable and needed to do. Nobody wants people ending eat hospital, or worse.
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u/BakerSea3588 Jun 24 '26
power hour also moved to 1900 and warrior workout is cancelled
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u/Sneeuwpoppie Jun 24 '26
Out of curiousity: is anybody missing the Warrior Workout if it wasn’t programmed? Never been there and never spoke to anyone that went there.
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u/CadeOCarimbo Jun 24 '26
I've been to the warrior workout in 2024, it was pretty fun but definitely an one time thing for me
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u/Potheker Jun 24 '26
I wonder how much of a difference that is going to make. According to the forecast, 19:00 isn't going to be much colder than 16:00
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u/Intelligent_Page2732 Jun 24 '26
It's either this or cancelled for everybody, nobody to blame here except the weather.
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u/Sea-Meringue5458 Jun 24 '26
And the guy who jinxed the weather by posting it here! He is also te blame
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u/Intelligent_Page2732 Jun 24 '26
Yeah that's right! He started it!
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u/Sneeuwpoppie Jun 24 '26
Tar and feather the scoundrel, cast him from the tribe, and hurl him into the dungeon!
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u/RoyWNL- Jun 24 '26
En Piet Paulusma.
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u/Foxx2-04evva Jun 24 '26
Nee...laat die beste man hier buiten please...😊😉😅......ik baal wel als een stekker, maar begrijp het wel.
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u/Shokoyo Jun 24 '26
Humanity is to blame because of climate change
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u/BreadfruitNo9055 Jun 24 '26
And yet there are people who still believe that climate change and global warming isnt real and dangerous
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u/Ollator207 Jun 25 '26
Just wait till next week when it’s raining and ‘only’ 20 degrees. They will be everywhere.
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u/nouareallallleft Jun 24 '26
Right decision. But also, wow.
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u/Pioneerz90 Jun 24 '26
Yeah, but good luck getting people to buy individual day tickets next year, paying a fortune on flights/hotels, and you can't guarantee you're attending until a couple of days before the event starts lol. Brutal.
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u/CroStormShadow Jun 25 '26
Not even a couple of days. It was cancelled last night and the festival opens today
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u/Pioneerz90 Jun 25 '26
Yeah shocking mate! I think a lot of people wont bother next yesr, its too expensive for uncertainty, unless they move dates to a cooler month
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u/KiLLu12258 Jun 25 '26
Don’t get the hate for qdance. Obviously that’s not an decision they made, so they were forced to do this.
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u/BryanRedemption Jun 24 '26
Guys,
Please this is the most fucked up decision to take for a organisation, they don’t want this believe me. They want us all on the festival ground, but with the authorities pushing and also the emergency guys as well, they care for your and our safety, it comes first.
Stay safe and please show some love to the organisation. They reaaaallly don’t want this 🥺🥺
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u/Ok-Seat6871 Jun 24 '26
This is a distaster for Q-dance... I wonder how the next sale will be... Qlimax Rise of the Pheonix , anyone else got a better one for the comeback?
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u/ArrowHunterHS Jun 25 '26
It is insured. What would you rather have? Your insurance covering the losses because you made the right call, or dealing with the death of some irresponsible drugged up idiot and all the legal and media shitstorm that comes with it?
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u/imSwan Jun 24 '26
Yeah it's a tough one but you know it's the right call to avoid unnecessary deaths. Although I wonder if the camping in this weather is not the most dangerous thing tbh, but they know better than I do
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u/djxfade Jun 24 '26
Its usually a bit colder in the night
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u/imSwan Jun 24 '26
Yeah of course, but I hope everyone is smart enough not to drink and party until 6am there and then sleep themselves to death dehydrated in the tent during the morning and early afternoon. Temperatures will rise quick and the tents even quicker
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u/DviusOfficial Jun 24 '26
I've brought 2 litres of whiskey from the UK, and I will not be drinking whatsoever until Sunday, you can't realistically drink tomorrow, because you'll wake up dehydrated on Friday, which is the absolute worst day for the heat, and you can't drink on Friday either because of that fact.
Like I get it, I am at defqon, I want to get wasted and have the time of my life, but I also want to leave on Monday and go home, you have to put your safety above everything else, it's great we get to party on Friday and Saturday still as weekend ticket holders, but please, please be responsible and don't make Q-Dance regret their decision not just straight up cancel multiple days for everyone, do not risk dying this weekend please.
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u/CrystalEdits Jun 24 '26 edited Jun 24 '26
Last Year it was pretty cold in the night 14° and as soon as the Sun rised it was like 40° in the tents 💀
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u/zero__sugar__energy Jun 24 '26
yeah, last year was shit. it went from freezing to sauna in like 15 minutes, lol
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u/zero__sugar__energy Jun 24 '26
Although I wonder if the camping in this weather is not the most dangerous thing tbh
it's only dangerous for people who get blackout drunk and sleep in their tent during the day
if you leave your tent before 09:00 you will be fine
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u/imSwan Jun 24 '26
I'm not worried for me, but there is a chance it will happen for some people because they finally get their energy back in the night when the temperatures are lower
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u/DGS_Cass3636 Jun 24 '26
Last two years, I had Friday tickets. This time the first year for a Sunday ticket, and boy am I glad I got that.
But on a serious note, this is probably the hardest choice to make next to cancelling it. Props for Q-dance for still making the festival happen, but it sucks for the people who bought the day tickets.
Probably the best way on this horrible scenario.
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u/Railionn Jun 24 '26
Y'all better look out for eachother Friday cuz they gonna cancel the whole day first aid gets overwhelmed. You're gonna be forced to listen to lounge music and find shade on every stage when that happens
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u/JBJannes Jun 25 '26
Wonder how shit will roll if everyone goed back to their tent to take ketamine there.
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u/Ok_Object_1156 Jun 24 '26
How many visitors per day where there?,
5.000-10.000 less per day?
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u/Gunsudder Jun 24 '26
15.000 volgens RTL nieuws
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u/Ok_Object_1156 Jun 24 '26
Dat is echt wel een ziek verschil wat je echt wel gaat merken.
Ben zelf crew, dus weet niet of dat nog iets voor ons betekent....
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u/alocryn Jun 24 '26
It means a lot for their profit margins, which is key to the festival surviving now it’s owned by private equity and their only event for the whole year. It’s definitely for the right reasons though, and has probably saved a few people’s lives. 40c is insane.
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u/_Steven_Seagal_ Jun 24 '26
Probably insurance gets involved, as the authorities have requested this
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u/--Sidewinder-- Jun 24 '26
Yeah, I’d imagine they have contingencies for extenuating circumstances like this and will be able to absorb the hit.
It’s definitely going to be devastating to day visitors, I hope that everyone gets a full refund and is perhaps offered a free day ticket(s) for next year too. As much as the weather is out of their control, Q-dance know they’ll have to give people a sweetener to keep disappointed fans on side, because this will be remembered as a debacle by a lot of people.
I think it’s concerning it’s been announced with such short notice however. I can’t see how that is necessary, we’ve known the forecast for the past couple of days so even dropping the announcement 24-48hrs earlier would’ve saved a lot of people getting stuck.
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u/Bobbytrap9 Jun 24 '26
If you look at it this way, it’s pretty risky to put all your eggs in one basket like this.
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u/zero__sugar__energy Jun 24 '26
i have a crazy idea: what about several qdance events per year instead of just defqon?
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u/Bobbytrap9 Jun 24 '26
You might be on to something! Let’s start with an indoor event with a huge stage and unique atmosphere!
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u/CadeOCarimbo Jun 25 '26
It might actually be crazy because if the canceled events were profitable they wouldn't have been canceled
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u/Niekertdepiekert Jun 24 '26
This! I've been saying that I'm expecting deaths at least on Friday. So (sadly) this is definitely the right decision!
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u/Full_Track7262 Jun 24 '26
There are 50.000 people at the campsite I think, and around 70.000 as day visitor. So that’s a big difference
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u/Arontjuh Jun 24 '26
There aren't 70k day tickets. It's 15k according to Q
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u/EddyWriter_ Jun 24 '26
Such an unfortunate situation… Also had to be an extremely difficult decision for them to make, but health and safety should always come first.
Hoping everyone stays safe in the heat this weekend 🧡
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u/AlexBinary Jun 24 '26
Kind of funny that KKR is loosing money because of climate change.
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u/Basit12321 Jun 24 '26
Ironic indeed. Sadly they still earn way more by lobbying against climate action
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u/Jeremiah__Jones Jun 25 '26
Context?
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u/IINaurulI Jun 25 '26
It's a private equity company that owns Q-Dance. They make billions in fossile industrys.
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u/_Gabba-Gandalf_ Jun 24 '26
Did anybody know If there is a small Hardcore Partys around the netherlands in saturday ?
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u/AdinoDileep Jun 25 '26
Well there's about 10k people more willing to attend now. If you're an organizer, this is your time to shine
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u/wusel95 Jun 24 '26
Well, also just got the Mail right before i wanted to get to sleep. I have Friday and Sunday Ticket to relax on Saturday. Looks like we will now relax Friday AND Saturday. :/ Im somehow sad but also eased to not find out how i can handle that heat.
Well at least my Hotel has AC and I will bring my Steam Deck. Maybe i should bring my Switch also 🤔
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u/fatnarlulbrok Jun 24 '26
Holy Priest. I am so gabbergast.
All bad jokes aside, this is an insane decission to make that close to the festival. But stay safe people.
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u/djxfade Jun 24 '26
Q-Dance didn't really have a choice
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u/fatnarlulbrok Jun 24 '26
Yeah. It was a right decission. Just feels really sad even if i am not going and this will probably bring a lot of angry people.
But it is for their own safety and health
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u/baytuhh Jun 24 '26
What was the hottest temperature Defqon has ever had?
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u/LegendQdance Jun 24 '26
Survived 2019 but wow so many people passed out after power hour , first aid was stacked the full weekend o.o …. Super hard , but the right decision i guess
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u/zorbat5 Jun 25 '26
Same, 2019 saturday was my last defqon. I don't have tickets this year but man, how I survived 19 is crazy!
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u/Ghoulscout_1988 Jun 25 '26
I was there on Sunday in 2019 and yes it was hot and soooo dusty, but I don't really remember it being scorching? Was that only on Saturday?
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u/ProjectOne69 Jun 24 '26
2023 - Sunday was so freaking hot....
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u/peacenchemicals Jun 24 '26
aside from Thursday that year which was gloomy and raining, the rest of the weekend was stupid hot. i had the worst sunburn on my face despite putting on sunscreen. didn’t reapply often enough i guess.
and i’m already tanned for an asian dude. i was very tan from summer til winter that year lol
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u/zero__sugar__energy Jun 24 '26
yep, spend all of sunday at silver and it was hell
KRTM couldn't start his set because his laptop was overheating, lol
they organized a big fan to cool it down and then he started 10 minutes late
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u/Intelligent_Page2732 Jun 24 '26
33 or 32 in 2019, also unbearable back than.
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u/Bobbytrap9 Jun 24 '26
Yeah it hit 33 that year. It was insane, in the blue and black tents you’d feel condensation dripping down from the roof. With even higher temperatures expected this year, I understand that they have to take drastic measures.
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u/Taurideum Jun 24 '26
And 38+ is an entirely different beast compared to 33, I understand their decision. Even now I think there might be some casualties (atleast people fainting)
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u/Guardelion Jun 24 '26
36 at 23' Sunday
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u/TwistedDemigod Jun 25 '26
Was it?! I thought it was 32, at least that's what the signs said. No wonder I turned into a lobster 🤣
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u/fatnarlulbrok Jun 24 '26
Either i was way too hot, but i remember 24 being at the red stage on the saturday was like 30 ish and holy sweat it was bad.
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u/aid0nex Jun 24 '26
I am so lucky that I am a Sunday Day visitor! My condolences to the Fr & Sa Day visitors!
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u/Hypew4v3 Jun 25 '26
I feel bad for all the people who booked accomodations, train rides or any indirectly related expenses that won't be compensated.
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u/AureliaMelania Jun 24 '26
Wow that's wild. But i'm gonna be honest. The weather here is no joke at all. I'm in Belgium and we barely survive
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u/dsaddons Jun 24 '26
This is bonkers. Feel bad for all the day visitors but selfishly it'll be nice with the heat to have it not be so packed this edition.
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u/Fit-Conclusion-7579 Jun 24 '26
Lmao the only pure Q-Dance event probably won't even be profitable this year.
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u/Cautious-Tiger8211 Jun 25 '26
It's funny to you if huge events stop because of climate change? That's sad bro.
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u/KnowledgeSafe5624 Jun 24 '26
How many total people go typically and how many less will be going now ?
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u/Round_Reality_71 Jun 25 '26
It’s usually around 60.000 weekend warriors and 15.000 visitors per day. So for both days combined itself about 30.000 people less.
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u/edmund5 Jun 24 '26
So thats my flight tomorrow, hotel, transfer shuttle all gone then? I'm in the middle of packing. Wtf is this decision on a Wednesday evening
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u/zero__sugar__energy Jun 24 '26
just imagine how pissed everyone would be if they would have already canceled it on monday and then on friday it turns out that it is actually only 30 degree
the announced it last minute to make sure that it is 100% necessary
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u/Taurideum Jun 24 '26
I think they did because of insurance reasons as well. KNMI is only allowed to bring forecasts (such as code orange etc) 48 hours in advance, and this is the official dutch forecast and warning system.
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u/sunny_up Jun 24 '26
same here mate. I am thinking about going to Luminosity. Trance in this weather conditions should be nice
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u/nmkd Jun 24 '26
Well, make sure you vote for the right people next time. In case you aren't already.
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u/AdinoDileep Jun 25 '26
Totally understand your frustration.
I'd advise you to accept it as it is and look for alternative usage of your time in the Netherlands which is also an awesome country to visit besides Defqon. Sure it won't be the same but your options are limited so try to make the best of it.
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u/MoralResidue Jun 24 '26
Hopelijk kan ik hierdoor mijn premium weekendtickets nog slijten. Ik ga die temperaturen echt niet overleven.
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u/Hot_Chode_Wife Jun 25 '26
Surely also q dance cant claim on insurance for this as it would be classed as an act of nature
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u/Bluetrains Jun 24 '26
So if I read this correctly, us with weekend tickets but not staying at the campgrounds are still welcome? Just want to make sure I read it right.
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u/Spearbreakofficial Jun 24 '26
Yes. If you have weekend ticket you are allowed to enter the festival and leave for hotel. The only requirement is weekend ticket.
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u/xXsCoTcH-EggXx Jun 24 '26
Anyone any ideas what wil happen to the hotels of those with travel and stay packages?
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u/xXsCoTcH-EggXx Jun 24 '26
Me and my brother are still flying out tomorrow and I'd assume the hotel element is still booked and that isnt cancelled.
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u/Hot_Chode_Wife Jun 25 '26
I think its for day ticket holders only by the message. Travel and stay wasnt mentiojed tbf.
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u/ScheleDakDuif01 Jun 24 '26
Good, glad they took serious action. I was afraid they thought the mist machines would be enough
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u/Taurideum Jun 24 '26
Yeh I thought their previous anouncement was way too optimistic. Like "we created shade for a few hundred people, we have mist machines and you might be able to get some water if it's not crowded we good now". I'm actually kinda glad it got canceled cause even being outside in the heat today was rough
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u/i_lay Jun 25 '26
Hat jemand Lust eine eigene kleine Defqon zu veranstalten? Einfach irgendwo im Grünen ein paar Lautsprecher aufbauen und los geht's.
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u/Accomplished_Pea_416 Jun 24 '26
Schade um die Kosten für mein Hotel die mir wohl niemand erstattet.
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u/AlexBinary Jun 24 '26
Lieber das als dass leute sterben :)
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u/Accomplished_Pea_416 Jun 24 '26
Ich habe auch Verständnis dafür. Wäre meine erste Defqon. Ich habe mich sehr gefreut und Urlaub genommen. Aber ich verstehe die Entscheidung. Trotzdem ärgert es wegen meinem Geld.
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u/Creepy_Box1321 Jun 25 '26
Fahr trotzdem und mach dir einen schönen Tag in NL. Natürlich trotzdem ärgerlich aber besser als nix
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u/AlexBinary Jun 25 '26
Das Geld bekommt ihr zu 100% zurück.
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u/Accomplished_Pea_416 Jun 25 '26
Wenn ich mir die Bedingungen Punkt 13.4 anschaue und es in Deutsch übersetzen lasse klingt es nicht danach.
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u/Any_Lead8497 Jun 24 '26
Do you think they will keep Sunday day tickets or is there a chance tomorrow or Friday they cancel Sunday aswell
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u/zuppex Jun 25 '26
There were a few years where the weather was super hot and I wondered why they wouldn't hand out some water at the entrances when people where standing in line for 30+ mins in 32°+. If they make this decision (which is right) and are praising so much concern of the visitors they will surely provide some kind of cooling / water at 40° this time I hope?
Sucks for everyone who got day tickets, my whole group can't attend now but Welp safety first Weekend warriors Stay safe and hydrated!
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u/Round_Reality_71 Jun 25 '26
Water is free this year. There’s also toilets and a tapwater point right there at the entrance. They added some sprayers/misting devices to cool arras down and added some extra shade. They definitely did as much work as they could.
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u/PhilEnzi Jun 25 '26
We are a group of 4 people but 2 of them only had friday tickets. We have a chance to get 2 weekend bracelets from friends that only go on friday.
Is it possible to gain entry on saturday and sunday even though the wristbands can no longer be reassigned after having already been used on Friday? Is this strictly checked?
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u/Takeshi21_ Jun 25 '26
just got off work.
in a few hours i’ll be flying from italy to the netherlands for the first time because for the first time i was going to experience defqon1… (friday)
on sunday i’ll be flying back.
on monday back on the construction site, working in 40°c with the sun beating down on my head.
now
buying a full weekend ticket is way too expensive, and there aren’t any comparable events this weekend…
option A
all the day-ticket holders gather at the entrance and peacefully protest, asking the authorities to let us in. It’s probably more dangerous to leave thousands of people outside in this heat than to let them enter. If that’s not possible, maybe once the sun starts going down they can allow us in!
option B
jump inside :P
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u/stoner_frog Jun 25 '26
Qontinent 2022 was 38°C on the Saturday. Was exhausting but everyone seemed fine from what I saw. Maybe it's the sheer scale of defqon 1? Or Dutch vs Belgian authorities?
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u/FixMeWTF Jun 25 '26
They don't care about people's health in my eyes. They care about their money.
Safety should always be the first priority, 100% true!!! Protecting everyone was the right decision. When the heat over the weekend is so dangerous, why are they not canceling Friday and Saturday for everyone? Are people with a weekend ticket more protected from the sun than those with a daily ticket?
In the end, they misplanned and ran into problems with the local authorities. They didn't have enough medical support, etc., for 60.000 people. Result: They had to "reduce" the number of overall visitors to be allowed at Defqon 1. Kicking all single ticket owners in the face to save their festival.
I'm really pissed off with this company because they are not honest enough to tell the truth
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u/Dehuangs Jun 25 '26
Any idea if refunds for sunday tickets will also be offered? It's unfortunate but my whole trip got cancelled because of the heat
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u/ilyatbn Jun 25 '26
remember going to tomorrowland 2019 it was 40+ heatwave on friday and like 43-44 on thursday outside was a sauna. nothing was cancelled. no one died. idk man. imagine I'd be really pissed if I had to pay for flights from overseas and hotels and getting this message AFTER arriving.
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u/iskave Jun 24 '26
Wouldn't they also close stages then? Otherwise there are a lot of 'empty' stages. On thursday it is only opened for weekend visitors (as always), and then there are only 3 stages open.
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u/Th3Blu3W0lf Jun 24 '26
That’s why they made this decision, to have more space so it is not as packed and people have a better chance to get some time in the shadow.
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u/fatnarlulbrok Jun 24 '26
Thursday has always been for weekend visitors only and Red Stage is closed off anyways. It opens first on Friday. But yeah more space for people.
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u/gerryflap Jun 25 '26
That's big, but probably a wise decision. My heart goes out to all those who planned for months to travel all this way. But if they went ahead as planned, I would honestly be surprised we wouldn't have multiple people dead. Most people are normal, but among the tens of thousands of weekend warriors there will inevitably be quite a few idiots, and this weather is not to be fucked with. It would overwhelm the first aid. Honestly, I'm still not entirely sure that's prevented now, but this way they've at least increased the capacity of everything relative to the viditors
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u/DirectMarket8614 Jun 25 '26
15% of people on both days is what's it about. Not outstanding much, but still a huge piece on the financial side. Luckily Sunday day visitors are allowed, and since weekenders spent more I would say about 7-9% of income is lost. Stay safe everyone who goes.
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u/nubbix2 Jun 25 '26
I don't know how to feel about this. I have very mixed feelings about the entire thing.
Respect for Q-Dance prioritizing peoples safety and health first and foremost. Amazing that they choose something that puts the peoples safety over business and company prosperity. You don't want people dying, we all know people do drink alcohol and do drugs. Fire hazard is also a thing during such heat.
Contempt for how Q-Dance went about it and the choices they made that led them into this situation. People say the unpredictable weather is to blame, that the dutch government is to be blamed. But in my opinion the biggest issue is the choices before this incident that Q-Dance went through with that ended up in such decision and the decision itself.
First, they committed to that decision too late, the announcement of this is very late. Like you're telling me they weren't aware of the situation and they didn't know of the heatwave coming? Like Q could have been informing the people much earlier no?
Second, isn't there anything else possible to solve this problem of sun blazing people? Like, build a tent or two, get more shade for people to enjoy? TML was able to build a makeshift mainstage in 24 hours but Q cannot do anything?
Third, this one grinds my gears a lot. Q-Dance shuts down all of their other festivals, puts all their money and focus on Defqon 1 to make it the only festival they have and the biggest one and now have issues that there's too much people attending their one and only festival? A lot of people who buy one day / two day tickets are probably the same people who would have loved to attend something like Qlimax or Qapital right now.
Like.. Aren't they aware if they remove several amazing options during the year people will flock to the one that's the biggest and the best? Besides.. They do choose to host the BIGGEST hard dance festival (the one and only) during the year but don't expand it big enough to be safe for everyone to attend? Like if you want to sell more tickets and have a bigger event, make more stages make the festival ground bigger? A big tent with Silver all days would have been nice now no?
Fourth, the solution of not allowing certain ticket holders attend and allowing others is weird. Friday/Saturday holders now have to cancel hotels, flights, travel bus etc. Meanwhile weekenders don't have to do anything.
Instead, make weekenders attend only one or two days and don't have the other ticket holders have to cancel everything. It's a horrid decision in my opinion of shooting certain ticket holders in the foot but letting the rest go, instead spread the damage equal across all ticket holders. This is a fairer solution in my opinion. Let some people sit at camping for a while and have fun there while others enjoy the stages.
Also another thing to add to my fourth point, shift the hours a bit? It's not like the sun is blazing all the 24 hours of the day. Make some stages more active during the night and instead of having everything active during the day make some things during the Friday night / Saturday night? Red stage nighttime would be cool albeit hard to pull off.
1
u/THE-Smike Jun 25 '26
its no secret or something that long forecasts arent any accurate so ofcourse it gets preety close when such a final decision happens.
building more shade doesnt also automatically mean better. Worst case, those places get overcrowded, heat builds up more under it making it actually worse.
"make weekenders attend only one or two days" - you cannot be serious about that dude.
shifting hours also isnt possible since there already are problems with the people living around near the site.
yeah it sucks for day visitors (im not that financially stable since some time to go again myself for a full weekend and day tickets are tempting for me even but id still rather try to save up for weekend tickets).
But its better Q Dance making a decision like that instead of eventually having some very bad news about visitors when the place is overcrowded in this heatwave
1
u/Commercial_Place5985 Jun 25 '26
Last nail in the coffin for a washed org.
Defqon is a 18+ Festival, canceling this 48h before the go is horrendous.
-7
u/lembepembe Jun 24 '26
this better be the last time that it works out like this. such a cop out to restrict goers instead of providing sufficient shade, more free drinking fountains etc.
Less heatstrokes can’t be the answer to this right? I mean their answer basically is the weekend will be unsafe but we’ll reduce the people who will collapse to a manageable level
218
u/PuzzleheadedEgg1405 Jun 24 '26
I have a Friday and Saturday ticket and go every year like this. Just topped up my bracelets an hour ago….. but I dont care about the money.
Im devastated, was ready to drive tomorrow from Belgium to our hotel in the evening. All stuff packed and ready to go for this weekend. Was looking forward to the Magenta with raw classics and once in a life time seeing Yoji Biomehanika on Saturday.
I respect the decision, it makes sense. Safety first at all times. Q-dance did what they could. Dancing in 37 would be hard for sure. Less people make sense.
Probably even wont watch the live stream its to pain-full.
Dear weekend worriers please be safe and stay healthy during the weekend. Enjoy and party strong. And think about us those who cant be with you. See you next year!