Why Wonderfruit is the Asian Coachella

As Coachella is known worldwide as one of the world's best festivals, it's fair to think that there is nothing out there that could match it. Enter Wonderfruit. Taking place in Pattaya, Wonderfruit has become one of Thailand's largest festivals. Known as sin city, Pattaya's reputation clouds many of the beautiful aspects of the city, such as its long sandy beaches, lush hills and creeks, and the blazing sun, creating a vibrant and diverse city that's perfect for Wonderfruit.

Having been dubbed Asia's Coachella already, here are just some of the reasons why.

Their ethos

"We encourage, develop and innovate creative solutions for sustainable living and bringing together a global community to celebrate them. We use our platform to catalyse and make a meaningful positive impact."

Like Coachella, Wonderfruit is about celebrating music, art and community. The festival is built on six pillars: art and architecture, wellness, farm to feast, music, family, and talks and workshops. Each pillar helps create an inclusive environment, and both Coachella and Wonderfruit are proof that decadence and hedonism can go hand in hand with social responsibility. 

Eco-friendly 

As music festivals were once only judged on their lineups, now they are judged on the whole festival experience. With a new breed of festivals, led by the likes of Coachella and Burning Man having emerged in recent years, sustainable living is now every bit important as the music and activities.

Like the other eco-friendly festivals, Wonderfruit has taken precautions in order to reduce their amount of waste and carbon emissions, first and foremost with the no plastic rule. Similar to most festivals nowadays, plastic is a big no-no, meaning Wonderfruit have gone a step further and created almost all disposable products out of natural bio-degradable materials. For example, all food is served on areca nut palm leaf plates and glasses made from bagasse. 

Constantly pushing the limits with new and innovative ideas, like the cryptocurrency 'tree coins', where for each drink bought on the app a tree gets planted, they have even gone as far as building all the stages, tents and stalls out of natural resources. 

Mesmerising stage designs and art installations

For any festival the main stage is the focal point for the whole festival. Coachella has its iconic self named main stage and Wonderfruit hve their Living Stage. Climb, dance and pose on the immersive structures all made by cutting-edge techniques that eliminated the need for nuts and bolts. 

Visual artists, sculptors, architects and fashion designers from Thailand and beyond will pepper the Wonderfruit landscape with plenty of eye candy.

The diverse lineup

Having grown rapidly since its inaugural edition back in 2012, Wonderfruit welcomes a huge lineup each year, made up of homegrown talent as well as international superstars. Showcasing a blend of genres previous lineups have included De La Soul, Roots Manuva, José González, Yeasayer, Richie Hawtin, Gui Boratto and more.

With Wonderfruit being an all-day, all-night affair, you are able to catch stunning sunrise and sunset sessions as well as unforgettable midnight raves tucked away in the woods.

Open your mind with talks and workshops

As mentioned earlier, festivals can offer so much more than music. Now an intellectual portal, festival-goers can indulge in thought provoking debates and insightful discussions, while also sharing ideas with like-minded people.

Wonderfruit shares the same principles as many eco-friendly festivals, and if you're not a thinker then there are plenty of creative workshops to get involved in. Put your hands to work at the arts and crafts tent, learn how to tie-dye, up-cycle toys, paint portraits or build your own festival gear.

Farm to feast

As many may already know, food can go either way at a festival and paying £9 for a miserable burger just wont cut it. Wonderfruit has upped the ante on their food as well as staying true to their principle of a sustainable lifestyle. That means all food served will be harvested on site, and you are even able to pick your own veg for your meal. 

Ensuring all this fresh produce doesn't go to waste, top chefs will be working their magic at the Theatre of Feasts for a communal dining experience like no other. Even the alcohol is top notch with bespoke signature cocktails.

It's kid friendly 

Not only are children allowed, Wonderfruit encourages it. In fact there is a whole camp dedicated to them. Kids under twelve go free and there is an array of activities to keep the whole family entertained, and by saying the whole family that means the whole family – dog included, with special doggy tickets available. 

Wonderfruit takes place on the 12-16th December at The Fields at Siam Country Club, Pattaya, Thailand. Book tickets and packages here.