Rock al Parque will celebrate three decades of history in 2026 with one of the broadest international line-ups in its recent editions. The festival will take place from October 10 to 12 at Parque Simón Bolívar in Bogotá, remaining faithful to one of the characteristics that has defined it since the 1990s: admission is free. More than 60 artists and bands will perform across the festival’s stages, combining major international names with Colombian acts and a large representation of Bogotá’s current independent scene.
The international programme reflects just how wide the musical territory covered by Rock al Parque has become. British alternative rock will be represented by Editors, while Mon Laferte returns as one of the biggest Latin American names on the bill. Chile will also contribute Los Bunkers, Gondwana, Los Tetas, Claudio Narea and metal band Decessus, while Argentina is represented by Rata Blanca, Ratones Paranoicos, Bandalos Chinos and a special appearance linked to the legacy of Serú Girán.
Heavy music has a particularly strong presence this year. American industrial metal pioneers Ministry join Finnish cello-metal veterans Apocalyptica and power metal institution Stratovarius, while the more extreme side of the programme includes Sweden’s Grave and Hellbutcher, Switzerland’s Burning Witches, and Triptykon featuring Hellhammer and Celtic Frost, bringing the history of Tom G. Warrior’s seminal extreme-metal projects to Bogotá. The United States also contributes Between the Buried and Me, Darkest Hour, End It and politically charged experimental rock group Algiers.
The festival’s stylistic reach extends well beyond metal. Japan’s Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra, returning after their 2018 appearance, will bring their explosive blend of ska, jazz and rock, while Venezuela’s Desorden Público adds another major Latin American ska name. Spain is represented by Alcalá Norte, Agua Bendita, Green Valley and Iseo & Dodosound, with the latter two reinforcing a reggae and dub strand that also includes Chilean veterans Gondwana.
Mexico also has a sizeable presence through Porter, División Minúscula, Las Fokin Biches and Niña Lobo, while Uruguay will be represented by punk-rock stalwarts Trotsky Vengarán. Other names such as Sistema de Entretenimiento and Chile’s Los Prisioneros-related appearance by Claudio Narea reinforce an anniversary programme designed not only around current artists but around bands and musicians connected to different chapters in the history of Latin American rock.
That sense of memory is central to the 2026 edition. Several artists have previous links with Rock al Parque: I.R.A. will make their fifth appearance, Medellín band Nadie their fourth, and Desorden Público will reach four editions, making them the Venezuelan group with the most appearances at the festival. Los Tetas were among the early Chilean visitors in 1996 and 1997, Los Bunkers played in 2007, División Minúscula in 2006 and Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra in 2018.
Colombia’s national representation includes Esteman, alongside Medellín punk and hardcore names I.R.A. and Nadie. Bogotá itself will have an even larger role through 26 district acts selected via public calls, maintaining Rock al Parque’s longstanding function as both an international festival and a platform for the city’s own scene.
Among those Bogotá artists are established local projects such as Perpetual Warfare, Skampida, Syracusæ, La Monky Band, El Punto Ska and Lucio Feuillet, together with Valore, Lo Mismo Decían de Juana, Narcocracia, No Dependiente, Vein, Lutter, Lika Nova, Laura Pérez, Ataque de Pánico, Mashkera, Solegnium, V For Volume, Alto Grado, Boca de Serpiente, Elsa Riveros, Pez Errante, Stayway, Casi, Brina Quoya and La Brigada RPF. Their inclusion gives the anniversary a snapshot of several generations of Bogotá rock, metal, punk and alternative music rather than turning the celebration solely into a retrospective.
The 30-year programme will also extend beyond the concerts at Parque Simón Bolívar. Under the banner “Rock al Parque: 30 años / Bogotá, ciudad Rock”, Idartes is preparing activities devoted to memory, education and the circulation of local music. These include Rock al Parque llega a tu barrio, which will take performances to different parts of the city, as well as travelling exhibitions in Bogotá’s public library network and an Archivo de Bogotá exhibition examining the festival’s social and cultural impact.
A Rock al Parque journalism forum and workshop will also be held on October 8 and 9 at Biblioteca Virgilio Barco, bringing together local and international participants to discuss how music journalism has documented the festival and the wider transformations of rock in Colombia and Latin America. The anniversary has additionally produced the book Rock al Parque: 30 años. Bogotá y las voces de la tras escena, by historian Tatiana Duplat, which reconstructs the festival through the experiences of technicians, producers, organisers and audiences.
Created in 1995, Rock al Parque grew from the need to provide Bogotá’s rock scene with proper spaces for live performance and eventually became one of the largest free outdoor music festivals in Latin America. Its 2026 edition reflects that evolution particularly well: major international bands share the bill with historic Latin American names, extreme music, ska, reggae, indie rock and a new generation of Bogotá artists, while the wider anniversary programme looks back at the cultural infrastructure built around the festival over the last three decades.
For three days in October, Parque Simón Bolívar will once again become the centre of Bogotá’s rock culture, with a free programme that moves from Editors and Mon Laferte to Ministry, Apocalyptica, Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra, Los Bunkers, Rata Blanca, Stratovarius and dozens of artists from Colombia and abroad.
Editors, Mon Laferte, Ministry, Apocalyptica, Los Bunkers, Stratovarius, Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra and Rata Blanca lead the 30th-anniversary edition of one of Latin America’s largest free rock festivals.