Boy, do the Dutch know how to party.

Sneakerz, a Dutch house music institution, is a young enterprise.

Set up by popular DJ Erick E the, the scheme offers Holland’s newest talent a chance to take to the decks and gig to millions of house fans desperate for the latest beat.

As a rock/indie fan, I was a little surprised to find myself going to the highlight of the Sneakerz scheme- the Sneakerz Festival being held on a lake near Eindhoven – but, despite my inexperience with that dark arts of the DJ, I loved every minute of it.

Put together with the typical Dutch talent for organisation, the Sneakerz team assembled a massive main stage, three smaller stages and two tents to house the dozen of DJ’s performing at the event.

The music on offer included everything from hard house to electro, rap, RnB, trance and all the subtle sub-types of the genre.

The DJ’s performing were the cream of the crop, ranging from energetic performer Funkerman to international DJ stars Carlo Gambino, Prok and Fitch and the Cube Guys.

My personal highlight was the arrival of dreadlocked DJ Lucien Foort, who kept the crowd jumping by playing anthem after anthem before piling into a limo with 10 girls (allegedly) and driving off to his next gig - now there’s a man living the lifestyle.

Lasting for 12 hours, the festival was a constant hotbed of activity, as thousands of keen clubbers wandered from stage to stage, listening and dancing to the latest beats, enjoying the beautiful scenery of the lake or tucking into one of the interesting Dutch snacks on offer in the food area - I can recommend the noodles.

At night the festival became another world, all strobe lights, thumping speakers and the sound of a thousand voices joining in with the anthems as the clubbers enjoyed the atmosphere, and the DJs all led the crowd with great skill, mixing the beats perfectly in a constant sound it was easy to lose yourself in - you could go to dance for one or two tracks and come out an hour later without noticing how much time had passed, it was that much fun.

And unlike English festivals, the token system the Dutch rely on makes ordering a drink a matter of moments – first you buy a book of tokens, then you simply take your token, exchange it for a drink and walk away - no queuing, fighting in the bar line or 30 minute waits for a burger. It’s a system some of England’s festivals could do with adopting.

All in all, Sneakerz Festival was a night I'm going to remember for a long time. The combination of skilled DJ’s, Dutch organisation, beautiful setting and endless great tracks made for a night which ended all too soon, and one which opened my eyes to the possibility of clubbing on the continent.

I’ll be going back as soon as I can.

Andy Hemphill

For more photographs, go here

For more information about clubbing in Holland, visit hollandclubbing.com

For more information about Sneakerz, visit sneakerz.nl  

For more information about flights to Holland go to: www.easyJet.com

For more information about hotels in Holland, visit: www.hotels.com