OpenAir St.Gallen
Music and memories to last a lifetime
OpenAir St.Gallen has been a truly unique and inimitable fixture on the European festival scene since 1977. Every year, the line-up attracts a fashionable and loyal crowd to the nature reserve near the town in Sittertobel. The festival is known far beyond Switzerland’s borders and is famous for being extremely well organised and very popular with visitors and artists alike. OpenAir St.Gallen has been one of Switzerland’s leading festivals for more than four decades. It stays at the top by keeping in constant touch with its audience, directly incorporating and implementing their wishes and suggestions, wherever possible. The festival is set up as a small temporary town within an unspoilt landscape and aims to set the bar for festivals in terms of sustainability, eco-friendliness, transparency and communication. The OpenAir St.Gallen festival is built on a secure long-term foundation of transparency, solid planning and self-financing, as well as firm ties within the region – as demonstrated by its strong partnerships and supplier relationships.
From a small local event to the
world-famous OpenAir festival
The founder of the OpenAir Festival St.Gallen was Freddy «Gagi» Geiger, who organised discos and concerts as a hobby at the time. The main goal for Gagi and his team was to create a platform for Swiss bands and bands from the local area. They were captivated by the idea of a peaceful community experience in a beautiful area where members of the public could camp. The tent town was intended to provide opportunities for «in-depth discussions and getting to know each other».
The first OpenAir was held on the Ätschberg in Abtwil in 1977. There were 13 bands performing and the festival attracted 2'048 visitors. From 1981 onwards, the event was held in the unique setting of Sittertobel, under the new name OpenAir Festival St.Gallen. This was also the first year it broke the 10'000-visitor mark. Just two years later, in 1983, the number of festival visitors rocketed to 23'000. To mark the 10th anniversary in 1986, two events were added to make the festival extra-special: «Musig Uf De Gass» (a series of concerts featuring acts from Eastern Switzerland in the centre of St.Gallen) and the Friday-evening kick-off. The perfect weather and the perfect line-up combined to attract a record 29'500 visitors.
Stay in fantastic accommodation
Book comfortable accommodation
Don’t fancy camping in Sittertobel? Book a good night’s rest in comfortable accommodation so you will have plenty of energy to enjoy the music during the day.
