Reviews / summer 2025
Review: Lake Paradiso – ‘A soulful summer escape’
Located just 20 minutes from Bristol, Nesta Valley Camping near the beautiful Chew Valley Lake is the setting for Lake Paradiso.
The new festival is organised by the team behind Valley Fest, who describe it as “Somerset’s soulful new summer escape”.
We arrived on Saturday and walked up a flag-filled hill to the main area, a hillside field with two stages, bars, a kids area and various food options. It’s a small site, but the festival necessities were all in place. Everywhere was filled with colourful decor, and the amazing view of the lake made for an absolutely beautiful setting.
What more do you need? Everything was nearby, with no major hikes to different stages; the vibe was chilled and relaxed. We headed to the bar and sat down on comfy sofas. I immediately felt at home.
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Time to check out the stages. It wasn’t very busy at 3pm when the music kicked off, although it got much busier later in the evening.
But there’s more to Lake Paradiso than the tunes. It isn’t just about who is on stage – the festival also offers relaxation with meditation, wood-fired saunas, hot tubs and a programme of yoga, movement and wellness designed to help festival goers reset and feel good, not just rave.
Souls recharged, we headed to the Moondance stage at the top of the field where some classic house staples were already being spun. Some people were already up and dancing and the vibe was relaxed and welcoming, with plenty of space for people of all ages to settle in or run around.
Another mooch around took us to the Temwa tent, where we learned about the great work of the Bristol-based charity who work with remote communities in northern Malawi.
On the way to the Sundown stage, we strolled down the hill and passed a group of drummers, stopping to clap and join in with the crowd.
Arriving, we caught Terri Walker singing some amazing live vocals over garage beats: “With a little bit of luck we can make it through the night”. She is a charismatic performer and her interaction with the small crowd created a fun atmosphere.
Across the weekend, Sundown had reliably strong acts, with a standout let’s-get-this-party-started DJ set from Trevor Nelson. His selection of 90s and 00s R&B and club anthems got the Radio 2 crowd dancing down the front as if their lives depended on it.
“This tune’s going out to all those born in the 70s”: On a Ragga Tip by SL2 got the crowd moving, which I happily joined in with.
In the headline slot local drum and bass guru Roni Size delivered Bristol breakbeat energy, with a mix of crowd-pleasing pop remixes and straight up rollers.
Best of all was fellow jungle veteran Jumpin Jack Frost who came onto a remix of the Superman theme before tearing into a near perfect ‘history’ set of drum ‘n’ bass classics.
As soon as Frost took over the decks the crowd, young and old, were joined together in the experience of a good old fashioned rave.
Sadly for me, the kids were getting tired so I reluctantly dragged myself to the car park, raved out but with a feeling of unity, happiness and relaxation washing over me as I made my way to the exit, my ears still ringing.
What a wonderful day – it really felt like an escape.
All images: Hannah Burrows
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