Light art festival GLOW returns to Eindhoven from Saturday, November 7, through Saturday, November 14, 2026, introducing its first-ever ticketed droneshow inside the Philips Stadion. While the festival has offered free access for the past six years, the new 15-minute performance, titled The Breathing Collective, requires a two-euro ticket to help balance the foundation’s budget.
The 21st edition of the festival transforms Eindhoven into an open-air gallery featuring a 5-kilometer walking route with roughly thirty light artworks. Alongside the central route, the festival extends its reach to surrounding areas including Helmond, Oirschot, Best, Veldhoven, and Lieshout.
Did You Know? GLOW originated in 2006 out of Eindhoven’s historical ties to the light industry, dating back to the era before Philips grew large in the city. The inaugural event featured fifteen works and drew roughly 45,000 visitors.
Why the Philips Stadion Droneshow Costs Two Euros
Organizers expect to welcome 7,000 visitors per show for the stadium performance, which features one hundred drones flying at audience eye level on the stands rather than high above an open square. If every ticket sells out, the event will generate 448,000 euros in revenue. Director Philip Ross explains that the charge is necessary because the production is costly and the foundation aims to keep its financial records balanced.
We’ve been calculating because you don’t know exactly how many tickets you’re going to sell,
Ross notes, adding that weather conditions can sometimes force schedule changes. After deducting value-added tax and ticketing system fees required to manage stadium capacity, any remaining non-profit proceeds will be reinvested directly into the next edition of GLOW.
What Other Installations Can Visitors Expect This Year?
Aside from the stadium show created by Eindhoven-based design studio TWOFIFTYK, the 2026 festival features several standout public installations across the city. On the Markt square, artist collective Captain Energy presents BRICK, where architectural projections transform building facades into a continuously shifting LEGO world. Meanwhile, the Flemish collective BOBOLITO&Co collected 1,200 portraits to assemble MACHINA, a light artwork built from plexiglass drawings.
Festival hours in Eindhoven run daily from 18:30 to 23:00. In neighboring municipalities, routes conclude an hour earlier at 22:00. Due to anticipated crowds and road closures surrounding the event sites, organizers recommend traveling by public transport.
Find dates, locations, and ticket prices for festival events
When and where does the GLOW festival take place?
The festival runs from Saturday, November 7, through Saturday, November 14, 2026. In Eindhoven, installations are open from 18:30 to 23:00, while routes in Helmond, Oirschot, Best, Veldhoven, and Lieshout close at 22:00.
Do visitors need a ticket for the entire festival?
No, the five-kilometer walking route through the center of Eindhoven and all surrounding municipal routes remain completely free to visit. Tickets costing two euro are required exclusively for The Breathing Collective droneshow inside the Philips Stadion.
Who designed the stadium droneshow?
The Eindhovense design studio TWOFIFTYK produces the stadium show. The studio previously installed light artworks in the Philips Stadion during the 2017, 2018, and 2019 editions of the festival.
Will you be visiting the Philips Stadion to see the drones at eye level, or will you stick to the free walking routes through the city?