Tired of the bucket list? How about the Rock-it List … following a trail that takes you to your favourite rock and pop legends as they keep on keepin’ on in magnificent surroundings in Europe?
Since COVID restrictions have been lifted around the globe, music-related travel has become one of the fastest growing sectors in tourism. Which makes sense, given the huge amount of indoor and outdoor festivals that cater to every possible niche interest.
But what if, like us at Mild Rover, you don’t fancy trudging through muddy fields in the middle of nowhere or navigating the slippy terracing of a soulless enormodome trying to cross off an intimidating amount of bands on your ‘must see’ list?
You’d rather experience that one ‘never to be seen again’ artist in extraordinary, atmospheric surroundings (that just happens to be in an amazing city with plenty to do before and afterwards), then we have a few suggestions for this European summer that’ll make these gigs truly a once in a lifetime experience.
Duran Duran – Circus Maximus, Rome
It seems very fitting that the standard bearers of British pop’s New Romantic movement should choose this historic site of Roman decadence and spectacle as the backdrop for the Italian leg of their 2025 world tour.
As this is the Circus Maximus (or Circo Massimo, pictured above), the Roman chariot-racing stadium dating back to the 6th century BC. Extra style points for flouncing up to the VIP section in a toga and demanding a chaise longue at the side of the stage, while bellowing along to Rio (in latin).
- Date: Sunday, June 15, 2025
- Tickets: Available via TicketOne
- Venue Map: Circus Maximus Map
- Nearby 4-Star Hotels:
Iron Maiden – Malahide Castle, Dublin
When all is said and done, heavy metal’s galloping guitars and thundering drums can transport you only so far into its netherworld of fantasy and lore when you’re being berated for taking a wrong turn at the catering stalls by a bloke in a high-viz jacket inside a giant aluminium shed in an industrial estate in some anonymous mid-sized European town.
So how about acres of rolling greens in the grounds of a 12th-century castle on the outskirts of Dublin? As any die-hard fan will tell you, Iron Maiden rarely skimp on their stage productions, but this backdrop will make for something special, nonetheless.
- Date: Wednesday, June 25, 2025
- Tickets: Available via Ticketmaster Ireland
- Venue Map: Malahide Castle Map
- Nearby 4-Star Hotels:
Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band – San Siro Stadium, Milan
Yes, despite what we said earlier, this IS a stadium, but as stadiums go, it’s a pretty special one – not only is it the home of both AC and Inter Milan (and the history that goes with that), it is something of an architectural marvel in itself.
The spiral columns, when filled with spectators leaving or arriving, give the impression of becoming moving walkways, turning the entire structure into a living sculpture. Plus, you’ll get to witness El Jefe (as we call him in this house) at his most driven and vital in many a year. It might even be on the news!
Editor’s note: Mild Rover honcho JimmyT rates Bruce at the Lyceum Theatre in Edinburgh in 1980 as the best rock gig ever in the history of the world.
- Date: Monday, June 30, 2025
- Tickets: Available via Live Nation Italy
- Venue Map: San Siro Stadium Map
- Nearby 4-Star Hotels:
Neil Young – Waldbühne, Berlin
A decades-old artistic institution that combines pastoral charm with a kind of rough-hewn, steely pragmatism – but enough about Neil Young. The Waldbühne is an open-air amphitheater built in 1936 for the Berlin Olympics, and is renowned for its excellent acoustics and scenic forest setting.
It plays hosts to the Berlin Philharmonic every year (see above) and rock and pop concerts are always a special occasion. ‘Rockin’ in the Free World’ will be particularly poignant if Young rolls it out for this gig, given the location.
- Date: Thursday, July 3, 2025
- Tickets: Available via Eventim
- Venue Map: Waldbühne Map
- Nearby 4-Star Hotels:
Stevie Wonder – Hyde Park, London
As well as being something of an oasis of calm in the middle of one of the busiest cities in the world, Hyde Park in Central London has played host to some of the most famous concerts in rock history (The Rolling Stones in 1969, which attracted up to half-a million people, for example), so kudos to Westminster Council for making it a staple of London’s summer cultural calendar.
While some of the artists at the BST (British Summer Time) concert series are more along the lines of the ‘youngsters stampeding to the front for the best view’ variety (Olivia Rodrigo, Sabrina Carpenter), this is definitely a gig to spread out your picnic blanket on the grass and let Stevie Wonder weave his magic across the warm evening air (one hopes!)
- Date: Saturday, July 12, 2025
- Tickets: Available via BST Hyde Park
- Venue Map: Hyde Park Map
- Nearby 4-Star Hotels:
