Bad weather, more competition and high ticket prices have hit some of southern Finland's festivals while events in the north continue to thrive.File photo from Flow Festival. Image: Nelli Kenttä / YleXYle News10:26Festival organisers across Finland have experienced very different summers depending on where they are based.In the north, Oulu's Qstock sold out for the 13th consecutive year, while tickets for Simerock in Rovaniemi are selling faster than ever.A total of 40,000 people attended the two-day Qstock festival in Oulu. Image: Juha Virranniemi / YleIn contrast, some festivals in southern Finland have struggled to attract audiences. Downtown Calling in Helsinki gave away tickets for free after sales for the indie event fell short of expectations. Meanwhile, rainy conditions contributed to lower audience numbers at Turku's Ruisrock festival this year.According to Rovaniemi's Simerock festival director, Samuli "Sime" Yliaska, ticket sales are already 30 percent higher than last year, putting the northern event on track for a fourth consecutive sell-out.Yliaska believes festivals in the north benefit from having less local competition, while audiences in the region are also more accustomed to travelling long distances. Around half of Simerock's visitors come from outside the Rovaniemi area, some all the way from Helsinki.Crowded festival marketThe picture is very different in the Helsinki metropolitan area, where organisers say the festival market has become increasingly crowded.Alongside established events such as Flow Festival, Tuska, Tikkurila Festival, and Weekend, several new festivals have emerged in recent years, including Helsinki City Festival, Tapiola Festival and Downtown Calling.The (EDM-heavy) Weekend Festival's director Atro Anttila said the growing number of events means they are increasingly competing for the same audiences.This year, you could buy three tickets for the price of two for Weekend festival. Image: Anton Vanha-Majamaa / YleAccording to Antilla, the festivals that have built a strong identity and loyal audience are generally the ones performing best.That trend was reflected this summer, with Helsinki's metal event Tuska seeing a new attendance record. At the same time Weekend and the domestic indie festival Downtown Calling both offered discounted tickets — Downtown Calling eventually handed out some tickets for free.A few traditional festivals have also been hitSome of Finland's longest-running festivals have also seen attendance fall.According to Jenna Lahtinen, executive director of live music industry organisation LiveFIN, weaker ticket sales at Ruisrock and Pori Jazz can partly be explained by this year's line-ups.Pori Jazz sold 33,000 tickets for the main concerts at Kirjurinluoto this summer, which is the second-lowest result in the festival's recent history. In previous years, up to 60,000 tickets have been sold. Image: Rami Koivula / Yle"Ruisrock and Pori Jazz have traditionally relied heavily on international artists. and this year it has been particularly difficult to book major international acts," she said.For example, there were no international headliners at Ruisrock on Saturday this year.Ruisrock was sold out in 2024, with 105,000 people attending. This year there were only 85,000 festival attendees. Image: Grigory Vorobyev / YleBy contrast, regional festivals including Provinssi in Seinäjoki and Ilosaarirock in Joensuu reached their attendance targets.Ilosaarirock CEO Niina Hattunen said the economic situation is also shaping consumer behaviour, with young people and students becoming more selective about which festivals they attend.City and niche festivals growing in popularityCity festivals continue to benefit from lower travel and accommodation costs .Tammerfest in Tampere sold out this summer, while Helsinki City Festival and Flow Festival continue to attract large audiences in the capital.Festivals with a clearly defined musical identity are also proving resilient. Heavy metal festival Tuska and hip-hop event Blockfest continue to perform strongly, while smaller festivals targeting specific audiences are also growing.Photo from last year's Blockfest festival. Image: Jani Aarnio / YleEarlier this summer, Turku's alternative music festival Kesärauha attracted a record 24,000 visitors.Affordable ticket prices are another draw. The Vauhti Kiihtyy festival series, held around Finland, offers two-day tickets for less than 100 euros.