What is Europe 's best music festival ? If images of Glastonbury 's muddy fields or the swaying crowds at Spain 's Benicassim come to mind , you 're wrong . The winner of the top prize at the last European Festival Awards was EXIT , a vibrant celebration of music tucked away in a corner of the old continent better known for historical turmoil than progressive techno beats -- Serbia . Hosted in a medieval fortress in Novi Sad , the country 's second city , EXIT Festival 's roster reads like a who 's who of popular music . International stars like The Prodigy have raved about its wild side , and Duran Duran 's bassist John Taylor called playing at Exit a career high . Last month , EXIT made more headlines after being named again as one of the nominees for this year 's Best Major European Festival Award -- more than 1.2 million people voted from over 30 countries , and the winner will be announced at a ceremony on January 14 . But what has grown into a major international event with more than 2.5 million visitors from 60 countries since its inception in 2000 , originally started as a student movement against Yugoslavia 's then president Slobodan Milosevic . His decade-long rule had seen the country embroiled in a bloody war and left isolated and impoverished . Youth in revolt . `` The main purpose of EXIT in 2000 was to unite and motivate young people to take part in the democratic processes that were going on , and to basically overthrow the Milosevic regime , '' says Dusan Kovacevic , EXIT 's co-founder and general manager . Heralded by a group of young activists like Kovacevic , who was 22 at the time , the inaugural festival lasted throughout the summer , with concerts , movie screenings and exhibitions . `` Basically , young people communicate mostly through music and culture , '' says Kovacevic , `` and if you want to spread a very important social message , you need to communicate through that language . So , it was the best way to approach my generation and to animate them and explain what was happening to Serbia at that time , '' he adds . Even the festival 's name had a strong social undertone , shortened from `` Exit out of ten years of madness '' referring to the Milosevic years . After his government was overthrown , Kovacevic and his colleagues started approaching international artists to try to revive the country 's cosmopolitan spirit . `` EXIT 2001 had such an amazing energy because after a decade of darkness we put on the first international festival of that scale in the country , '' he says . `` We did n't have very big names , but it was huge news that international artists were coming to Serbia . Everyone who came said they felt something different than concerts they usually play -- they said this was their best concert this year , many of them said it was the best concert of their life , '' adds Kovacevic . Mainstream success . Word spread on the global music circuit , and even more famous artists started coming to EXIT , bringing with them journalists and , gradually , foreign visitors . Apart from giving the country , which was then still haunted by a decade of war and sanctions , an image overhaul , the festival brought tangible benefits to the local economy . According to the Serbian government , Exit contributed more than $ 125 million to the country through tourism , and its PR value was estimated to be $ 87 million per year . In spite of its commercial success , a strong social message remains ingrained in the festival 's ethos . After the Balkans region was hit by devastating floods last May , EXIT rallied to raise $ 175,000 for victims with a party hosted by Grammy Award winning artist Jamiroquai at its spin-off Sea Dance event in Montenegro . As for next year 's edition , which will take place from July 9 to July 12 ( with tickets going on sale Friday ) , EXIT organizers are planning a return to the festival 's roots : `` We want to evolve from a music festival to festival of creativity -- invite people from different creative industries to come because we feel that the experience of the festival is supposed to be bigger than just music , '' says Kovacevic . `` Of course , music would be the main draw , but when people come to festivals they want to celebrate life , '' he adds .
Serbia 's EXIT festival has been named Europe 's best music festival . It started as a student protest against the Milosevic regime . It soon developed into a major event hosting famous international artists . Over 2.5 million people from 60 countries have visited Exit since 2000 .