A week-end to never forget. Two days of unbelievable success.
Salsa magazine "Que Pasa"
Hoogstraten is a resounding name in the world of the Caribbean music.
Newspaper "De Stem" in Holland
Hoogstraten, where a rich past and a sparkling present are going hand in hand. Especially the last part of this V.V.V. slogan has a particular meaning after a week-end of Caribbean Festival. Sparkling in fact is an understatement. Overwhelming and even ecstatic should give a more realistic approach.
Newspaper "De Morgen"
The Caribbean Festival explodes. About 40.000 salsa fans got wild with Alfredo Gutierrez and Tabou Combo. It was a real invasion of Hoogstraten. This rush for the Caribbean Festival caused a such a huge traffic jam that police forces had to intervene to inform the arriving drivers, that only they who possessed pre-sold tickets could enter the festival grounds
Newspaper "Gazet van Antwerpen"
The two-days summer festival of Hoogstraten is the absolute climax of a whole salsa year. Imagine the scenes of a 30.000 exited man and women dancing and sweating. I was short of eyes, ears and other parts of the body to assimilate the whole scene.
Playboy October '97
‘For ten years already, I'm visiting this festival’, Ian told. ‘Every year it is a huge party for me. This atmosphere here, you don't find it anywhere else’.
Newspaper "Het Laatste Nieuws"
They who love salsa and merengue should do the same as the exhausted dancing visitor from Cologne I met on Sunday night in Hoogstraten : mark in red in your agenda the second weekend of August and make already the reservation for the Caribbean Festival of next year.
Newspaper "De Standaart"
The unique thing of the Caribbean Festival is the great mixture of the visitors. Indeed it is the public with the most variety of age, color and race of all the Belgian festivals. Moreover it is a festival as well for feasters and dancers, as for pure music-adepts. You can assist, not only to enjoy the overnight party, but also to enjoy the music itself, as only the most famous quality-bands are invited to perform.
Zjakki Willems, producer of Radio 1 in the newspaper "De Hoogstraatse Maand"
A strong high pressure area dominates the European weather-chart
Weatherreport of the 9th of August
The Caribbees invades Belgium
magazine EL SOL August/September '96
Whithout any contest, the festival pulls up itself with flying colours, far above all others, refuting in a definite way the allegation that "non-occidental" music should be stagnant. The festival enjoyed during two evenings the 32.000 visitor with the very best music of the big Caribbean cities.
music magazine OOR Netherlands nr 17 - 24/08/96
The Caribbean Festival was overcrowded. For its 14th edition, before 32.000 visitors, the festival once again, has proven to be the most social summer-happening rarely seen such an amusement and cheerfulness.
newspaper DE STANDAARD 12/08/96
Overwhelming
Javier Vasquez, singer of Grupo Niche
The Caribbean Festival? The most pleasant guarantee for one year of cheerfulness
readersforum in the newspaper DE MORGEN 16/08/96
Waw man, this was the best show of my entire life
Bassplayer Richard Mark from the Andy Palacio Band
Going wild, all together with about 30.000 spectators, that was what happend in Hoogstraten merengue wins from Salsa in Hoogstraten
newspaper GAZET VAN ANTWERPEN 12/08/96
Incredible
Yanila Varela, daughter of the absent Jario Varela, Grupo Niche
A record of visitors only a perfect organization could canalize such a crowd without the smallest nuisance as to the atmosphere
newspaper HET LAASTE NIEUWS 12/08/96
Exception made of the Caribbean Festival, none of the big festivals growed any more this year
newspaper DE STANDAARD 26/08/96
The best festival in the world
Dorita Aguirre, bassplayer of Anacaona
The Caribbean Festival is the biggest event of Caribbean music in Europe.
Teletext BRTN-TV 13/8/95
The public was a witness of at least five brilliant concerts and slake at the virtuosity of tens of fantastic musicians... we can conclude that the Caribbean Festival ranks to second best in the circuit of pleasure.
the newspaper "De Morgen" 14/8/95
The Caribbean Festival beats a record. For the about 30.000 spectators who visited Hoogstraten this weekend, it was an unforgettable happening... till far beyond our national borders the festival is wellknown.
the newsaper "Gazet van Antwerpen" 14/8/95
... new record of visitors... during two long nights, young and old danced till dawn salsa, merengue, cumbia, rumba... a festival where the Dutch still can learn a lot. Grandi-Joe-so!
Dutch music magazine "Oor" 26/8/95
A very important trump of the Caribbean Festival is that they dared to specialize. It is not at all a varied hotchpotch of every sort and kind, but a festival concen-trating entirely to the caribbean music, which is still rich enough by its own timbre.
monthly magazine "Elga" august '95
