Festival & event · Novi Sad, Serbia

Exit

Exit occupies an eighteenth-century fortress above the Danube, and no festival on earth has a better venue: stages tucked into moats, tunnels and ramparts, with the Dance Arena running until well past sunrise — the 6am fortress views are the festival's true headliner.

Best forGroups of friends · Nightlife · Budget travellers
In October19°C · 7 rainy days
Ideal stayFour festival nights plus a day either side
Approx. flying time~12h 50m from Los Angeles

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Takes place in Exit, Novi Sad, Serbia — nearest airport Belgrade (BEG), about 63km away.

CurrencyRSDSerbian dinar
LanguageSerbian
Local time18:191h ahead of the UK
PlugsType C / FBring an adapter
Drive on theRightOpposite to the UK
Dialling code+381

The festival

Exit runs across four nights each July inside Petrovaradin Fortress, a vast Habsburg-era complex of ramparts, moats and tunnels on a bluff above the Danube. Around twenty stages are wedged into the brickwork, so moving between them means climbing stairways and ducking through gateways rather than crossing a field. The Dance Arena, sunk into a moat, runs until the sun comes up over the river.

Novi Sad itself is a calm, low-rise city with a pedestrian centre and a Habsburg feel, and staying in a flat or hotel there beats the campsite if you value sleep and a shower. Belgrade is around ninety minutes away by road and easily justifies two extra nights. July heat sits in the thirties, so the daylight hours are for shade, the river and doing nothing at all.

Ideal stay: Four festival nights plus a day either side
The vibe: Fortress walls, sunrise, unapologetic hedonism

From our guides

It began as a student protest in 2000 and keeps a political soul. Stay in Novi Sad's old town rather than camping, and budget a day for Belgrade.

Featured in Ten festival trips worth building a holiday around

Make a trip of it

Petrovaradin Fortress

The eighteenth-century citadel that hosts the whole thing, with a clock tower whose hands are famously reversed. Walk the ramparts in daylight, before the dark rearranges your sense of the place.
Dance Arena at dawn

The main electronic stage sits in a moat and finishes after sunrise. Climbing out into full daylight with the Danube below is the moment people come back for.
The Danube from the walls

Sightlines from the upper bastions take in the river, the bridges and the flat Vojvodina plain beyond. A useful breather between sets.
Novi Sad old town

Dunavska and Zmaj Jovina streets, Liberty Square and the pale neo-Gothic church make up a compact centre of cafés and ice cream, ten minutes below the fortress.
Strand river beach

A long sandy beach on the Danube where the city recovers during the day. Shade, swimming and grilled food, which is all anyone needs by Saturday.
A day in Belgrade

The capital lies about eighty kilometres downriver, with the Kalemegdan fortress, the cobbles of Skadarlija and a nightlife culture entirely its own.

Getting there

Fly to
Belgrade (BEG)

Nearest airport to Exit, about 63km away as the crow flies.
Then
To Novi Sad

About an hour by car or coach from Belgrade (BEG), north west up the motorway to Novi Sad.
On the ground
Getting around

The Petrovaradin fortress stands across the Danube from the old town, a half hour walk over the bridge or a short taxi ride, with festival shuttles running through the night.

Public transport: Frequent coaches and trains link Belgrade and Novi Sad, and city buses cover Novi Sad itself.

Flights

Los Angeles Exit, Novi Sad, Serbia

Flying from

Fly from anywhere — search 4,000+ airports worldwide.

Roughly 12h 50m in the air from Los Angeles (LAX), estimated from the distance — check for a direct route. Pick a month to see every available flight with live prices.

Check dates and prices

Pick your departure date, then your return.

Search flights

Flight times are estimates; prices open on Google Flights.

When to go

Daytime highs run from about 7°C in January to 31°C in July. Wettest in May, with rain on about 12 days.

The year at a glance — pick a month for detail

October19° · rain 7 daysMild with the odd shower.

Monthly figures averaged from daily records for 2020–2024 at this location (ERA5 reanalysis).

Where to base yourself

Apartments dominate, with a handful of hotels and hostels in the centre and the festival campsite by the river. No resorts and few large hotels.

Best base overall
Novi Sad old town

Around Trg Slobode and Dunavska, walking distance across the bridge to the fortress and full of bars and bakeries. Rooms are limited and priced up for festival week.
Find stays in Novi Sad old town
Closest to the sights
Petrovaradin

The fortress side of the Danube, so you walk up to the gates rather than crossing with the crowd at 6am. Fewer places to eat, and the climb is steep.
Find stays in Petrovaradin
Best value
Liman

Student blocks south of the centre with cheap apartments and a fifteen-minute walk in. Plain concrete streets, and quiet once term ends.
Find stays in Liman
Best for nightlife
Belgrade

An hour and a bit away, with the river clubs and a much larger supply of rooms. Late-night transport back to Novi Sad is the obvious catch.
Find stays in Belgrade

Worth knowing before you book: Exit week apartments are taken by spring at multiplied rates, often with four-night minimums, and the campsite ticket is bought separately from the festival pass.

Search everything else in Novi Sad by budget. These are indicative budget bands in GBP per night for two people, not live quotes or guarantees of hotel type. Check your dates, guests, taxes and final price on Booking.com.

Or see everything in Novi Sad

Good to know

Timing: The festival runs over four nights in July. Gates open in the evening and nothing important happens before dark, so use the days for sleep and the river.
Book ahead: Novi Sad has limited accommodation for the numbers involved and the good flats go months in advance. Sort beds before tickets if you can.
Pack this: Closed shoes with grip. The fortress is cobbles, stone stairs and steep ramps, and it is a long walk between stages in the dark.
Cash or card: Serbia uses the dinar and cards are widely accepted, though kiosks and taxis prefer cash. Festival bars usually run on a top-up card system.
Getting there: Belgrade's airport is the main gateway, with a road transfer of about an hour. Trains between Belgrade and Novi Sad are fast and cheap.