Rhythm and Alps Is Back to Close Out 2023 with BENEE, Peking Duk and Ocean Alley

It's one of New Zealand's most southern festivals, and it's back for 2023, with Rhythm and Alps returning for a three-day end-of-year celebration with BENEE, Peking Duk and Ocean Alley — just to name a few.

The festival — not to be confused with its Gisborne iteration Rhythm and Vines — takes place in the picturesque Cardrona Valley from Friday, December 29–Monday, January 1. The valley sits between Queenstown and Wānaka, providing a range of accommodation options for your New Years blowout.

There's something for every type of music lover in the Rhythm and Alps lineup, with drum and bass DJs Sigma kicking off the festival on Friday, December 29. Joining Sigma on opening day are Australian duo Peking Duk, as well as Wānaka locals Ortega and no.r.f.o.

As New Year's Eve draws closer, New Zealand's national treasure BENEE will take the stage, alongside other Kiwi artists like Kaylee Bell — who opened for Ed Sheeran while he was in Auckland in February — and Fat Freddy's Drop (because you can't have a New Zealand summer festival without them).

SYNTHONY will play punters into 2024, with the group's orchestra sure to start the year full of good vibes. SYNTHONY isn't like any traditional orchestra you've heard before, using classical instruments and singers to recreate bangers as well as performing its own hits.

Rhythm and Alps has also revealed who'll be closing out the festival, cementing its lineup for the 13th year of celebration. Melbourne-based DJ Airwolf Paradise, known for his huge 2022 record 'Don't Hurt Me Baby' will be joined by fellow Melburnian Torren Foot on the main stage following SYNTHONY's New Year's Eve performance. The pair are attempting to pull an all-nighter, aiming to keep punters dancing until the sun comes up.

More than 10,000 people are expected to flock to the area for the festival, with an estimated 6000 camping onsite. There's a range of camping options, depending on whether you want luxury or the authentic festival camping experience. From glamping to your basic pitch-it-yourself tent, there's something to suit everyone's levels of comfort.

RHYTHM AND ALPS 2023 LINEUP:

1 Drop Nation
33BELOW
Airwolf Paradise B2B Torren Foote
Alice Agnes
Aunty El
Azifm
Azure
Beccie B
BENEE
Bicep (DJ Set)
Bontempo
Boombox Djs
Calibre
Channel Tres
Communicate
DJ Snakelegs
Disrupta
Emilie
Fat Freddys Drop
Fleeced
Fubr
Hellcat Speed Racer
Home Brew
Imanu
Kaydn Webster
Kaylee Bell
Kravis
Loefah
Lucy
Mono Era
My Baby
Nice Girl
No Cigar
no.r.f.o
Ocean Alley
Ortega
Paige Julia
Patella
Peking Duk
Ross from Friends (DJ set)
Sachi
Sam Wave
Scheme
Séarlait
Sigma (DJ set)
Suune
SYNTHONY
The Norwesters
Tikka B2B Trivial
Yams
Yung Singh

Rhythm and Alps is taking place Friday, December 29–Monday, January 1 in the Robrosa Station, 1653 Cardrona Valley Road, Wānaka. Tickets for the festival and for camping additions are available to buy from the festival's website.