Initially planned for 46 days and extended until 6 September, NIBIRU's first season brought together over 350 events, 500 artists and an audience made up of different generations and communities. More than two million visitors came to NIBIRU, and together with Beach, Please!, the total traffic generated in this ecosystem exceeded 2.6 million visits.
NIBIRU closes its first season after a summer in which it tested a new model for the Romanian seaside: a destination active every day, built around music, culture, sport, gastronomy, art, play and time spent together.
The project generated approximately 400 million euros in the economy of Constanța county. The daily average reached 42,000 visitors at NIBIRU and around 50,000 people during peak periods.
Related to the length of the season and the daily average, these figures describe the scale and operating rhythm of a resort: a constant flow of visitors, services active every day and the capacity to generate spending over 53 days. NIBIRU operated as an entertainment resort and as a point of attraction for the coast, with visible effects on tourist movement and the local economy.
The season, initially scheduled for 46 days, was extended until 6 September. The extension brought “Christmas in September”, an idea inspired by a public proposal and turned into a week of concerts, open-air cinema, activities for children, themed décor and festive-inspired evenings held a few hundred metres from the sea.
NIBIRU, a destination built on the model of the experience economy and community
The first season shaped NIBIRU as a cultural, leisure, sporting, gastronomic and community territory. The concerts were one of the components of a program that ran daily, throughout the entire summer.
Under the artistic direction of director Răzvan Dincă, the promenade and the Center Stage hosted a format of a scale rarely seen on the Romanian coast. The seven themed universes — Circus of Wonders, Neon Asia, Velvet Cabaret, Barrio Carnaval, Summer Disco Love, American Soul System and Worlds of NIBIRU — returned weekly with sets, choreography, costumes, acrobatics, parades and artistic interventions developed especially for this destination.
The shows turned the promenade into an open stage. Languages specific to theatre, musicals, cabaret, circus and the visual arts reached a very wide audience, in a space accessible to families, teenagers and adults.
Comedy had its own stage at NIBIRU
Entertainment also came to life through The Fool Comedy Club, which brought the best open-air stand-up on the coast all summer long. Micutzu, Bordea, Drăcea and many other comedians took the stage with stand-up shows, one-man shows, roast battles and open mic nights.
The comedy program gave the public an extra reason to return, completing the profile of a resort where music, performance and humour each had their own space.
NIBIRU Arena, the largest open-air club in the world
NIBIRU Arena brought together the season's major festivals and concerts in a space designed for tens of thousands of participants. Through its capacity, infrastructure and program density, the arena became the largest open-air club in the world.
Huge LED screens and state-of-the-art sound and lighting systems turned the evenings into experiences comparable to the great international entertainment destinations. The audience experienced the concerts and festivals under the open sky, in a space that brought international and Romanian artists, diverse music communities and varied show formats onto the same stage.
A musical map built from different communities
NIBIRU brought trap, hip-hop, Latino music, reggaeton, house, techno, EDM, K-pop, rock, Romanian pop, manele and the repertoire of the ’90s and 2000s into the same calendar.
Beach, Please! opened the season with Playboi Carti, Future, Don Toliver, Tyla, Yeat and Quavo. GALAXIA brought Ozuna, Nicky Jam, Farruko, HUGEL and DJ Snake to Costinești. NEBULA X continued with Black Coffee, John Summit, Charlotte de Witte, Marco Carola and The Martinez Brothers.
K-POP DAYS brought TAEMIN, JEON SOMI, EVERGLOW and WHIB to the stage and drew fans from Romania, South Korea, Greece, Austria, Spain, Bulgaria, the Republic of Moldova, Australia, Germany and Italy. ROCK DAYS brought Iris, VAMA, Vița de Vie, Subcarpați, Zdob și Zdub, byron and other names of the Romanian scene. STARDUST recovered the energy of the ’90s and 2000s with artists such as Haddaway, Snap, Corona, Nana, ATC, while Popcorn Days brought back to the fore the Romanian musical phenomenon that reached the international charts.
RETROGRADE closed the series of great international festivals with Timbaland, Busta Rhymes, EVE, Fat Joe, Keri Hilson and La Familia. The daily concerts on the Center Stage brought Smiley, Delia, INNA, Carla’s Dreams, Irina Rimes, Theo Rose, Antonia, The Motans, Alex Velea, Connect-R and many other Romanian artists in front of the audience.
At NIBIRU, the music communities kept their identity and shared the same space. Holograf and Adrian Minune, Ozuna and Stela Enache, Iris and the artists of the urban scene were all part of the resort's program.
Dance brought people together
Dance was the common language at NIBIRU. On stage, in the choreography coordinated by Răzvan Dincă, and on the promenade, in the horas formed spontaneously, movement turned crowds into communities. People danced together to the music of several generations, from the ’90s and 2000s to today's hits, and dance became the most direct way of belonging to a place and a shared moment.
Films and matches watched together in Piațeta NIBIRU
The giant screen in Piațeta NIBIRU created a NIBIRU community experience around film and sport. The audience watched the premiere of “TEAMBUILDING 2” alongside the film's actors, and the broadcasts of football matches gathered the community of supporters in front of the screen.
In the final week, the open-air screening of “Home Alone”, produced together with Cinema Europa, brought one of families' winter rituals to the seaside. Piațeta thus functioned as a cinema, a stand and an open-air meeting space.
Sport, play and experiences for the whole family
The NIBIRU experience continued beyond the stages. Visitors had access to padel and basketball courts, the Roller Rink, a zipline, a Ferris wheel, an amusement park and open-air activity zones.
Hype Play, the Museum of Planets, the immersive MINA experience, the character parades, the magic shows, the puppet theatre, the creative workshops, the science experiments and the interactive games built a daily program for families.
The street shows set the rhythm of the promenade and turned moving between restaurants, activity zones and stages into an artistic experience in itself.
Families became the surprise of the first season
The surprise of the first season was the response from families. From the concept stage, one of NIBIRU's objectives was to attract this audience and build an identity as an entertainment resort, with a daily program and experiences for all ages. The festivals operated within this broader infrastructure, alongside cultural, sporting, recreational and gastronomic activities.
Parents understood that a destination wanted by children can influence the choice of the whole family and can form a new tourism phenomenon around it. Children found play, characters, shows and activities, while adults found music, gastronomy, sport and relaxation spaces.
Safety was among the aspects most often appreciated by parents. The 53 days ended with zero major incidents, and the security measures, constant surveillance and organisation of the space gave families the confidence to spend time at NIBIRU throughout the entire program and to return with their children.
This formula extended the time spent in the destination and turned the evening visit into a family experience. NIBIRU became the place where parents came to their children's concerts, and children discovered their parents' artists.
From Dumitru Prunariu to Florian Munteanu: role models for the new generation
During the moments hosted by Dan Negru, the NIBIRU stage welcomed personalities who represent Romanian excellence in science, sport and film.
Dumitru Prunariu, the only Romanian to have reached space, opened NIBIRU in front of an audience of around 30,000 people. Ilie Năstase, the first ATP number one in the history of tennis, and Rică Răducanu, one of the emblematic figures of Romanian football, brought back to the public's attention performances that marked the history of Romanian sport.
The film industry was represented by Florian Munteanu, the Romanian actor who has built an international career in Hollywood productions, and by actor and producer Codin Maticiuc. The two took the NIBIRU stage together and announced an initiative through which a new talent will get the chance to make a name for themselves.
Also at NIBIRU, 32 national olympians were applauded by thousands of people. Each received from Bookzone a blank contract of guaranteed publication, with no expiry date, in a moment that turned the recognition of performance into a concrete opportunity.
Through these encounters, excellence was presented to the new generation through people and results built with work, discipline, courage and continuity.
Special events gave each week its own identity
The Great NIBIRU Picnic made use of the meadow and green spaces as places for relaxation and socialising. Family Fest expanded the program dedicated to children. National Anthem Day gathered over 25,000 people in a moment presented by Dan Negru, with Irina Baianț, the Representative Band of the Romanian Naval Forces and the servicemen of the Naval Forces.
Sea Days brought air shows, parachutists, demonstrations and a special program for families. Beer Days powered by URSUS and the Wine Festival completed the gastronomic component through concerts, tastings and brand experiences.
Besides the festivals, the calendar included many other musical moments such as the Gipsy Kings concert, as well as themed parties like Beach, Please! Party.
A world record and prizes that turned the audience into participants
NIBIRU also hosted its first Guinness World Records™. LaProvincia, a Carmistin The Food Company brand, together with Chef Jannis Alexandridis, prepared and served 425 kilograms of chicken wings, surpassing the previous world record of 297.5 kilograms set in New York.
The last weekend of the season brought the grand NIBIRU prize: an electric car worth 20,000 euros
Throughout the summer, NIBIRU periodically offered prizes to the public, each campaign accompanied by the announcement of the winners. When the threshold of two million visitors was reached, Marian, a Romanian living in London, received lifetime access to NIBIRU and a budget dedicated to experiences in the resort.
The final weekend brought the season's grand prize through the Pink Friday campaign, organised in partnership with Banca Transilvania. People who bought tickets or passes for NIBIRU 2027 using a BT card received an additional 10% discount and were automatically entered into the draw for a BYD Dolphin Surf electric car, worth 20,000 euros.
The campaign ended on 5 September, and the draw took place on 6 September, on the last day of the season. The car was awarded to a winner from Constanța county.
NIBIRU increased the appeal of the seaside
The impact of the season was seen in tourist movement, road traffic, accommodation occupancy, and the restaurants and services in Costinești and nearby localities. The last weekend of August brought peak-period flows to the south of the coast, at a time when the summer season was traditionally entering its final stage.
NIBIRU contributed to extending the tourism calendar and to diversifying the reasons why people choose this region. The project operated alongside hotels, restaurants, clubs, terraces, services and local operators, in an ecosystem in which every experience supports the appeal of the entire destination.
The next objective is to grow the international component. NIBIRU aims to turn an artist or a festival into a reason to travel to Romania, followed by booking a holiday and discovering the Romanian seaside.
For 2027, the season will start on 24 June and continue until 5 September, over 74 days. The program will bring new experiences, artists and communities, improved infrastructure and a stronger international presence.
The partners of NIBIRU's first season
The first season was developed with the support of partners Banca Transilvania (BT), Coca-Cola, eMAG, Lidl, URSUS, Bumbu Rum Company, Event Platform Systems (EPS), 5 to go, Takis, Jägermeister, essence, OPPO, BUMP, Head & Shoulders, Old Spice, Viva Chips, Samus, Fashion Days, Lotto Snacks, La Transalpina, Mastercard, Orange, FANbox by FAN Courier and LaProvincia, Promotors, StayFit, Sweets Kendamas, ISIC, the European Youth Card, Klintensiv.
Special thanks to the media partners VOYO, Kiss FM, ELLE, Libertatea, Ringier, Unica.ro, Mediafax, CANCAN, A List Magazine, Știripesurse.ro, Zile și Nopți, Daily Magazine, Nine O’Clock, TechStart, G4Media, Profit.ro, Cotidianul.ro, Adevărul.ro and InternetCorp, HotNews, Revista Biz.
The cultural, recreational and brand experiences were supported by collaborations with Bookzone, The Fool, Cinema Europa, Hype Play, MINA, TaranTerra, VMax and Valiza.ro, together with artists, producers, suppliers, vendors and local entrepreneurs.
The audience, the teams, the partners and the communities that took part in the first season turned NIBIRU from a project into a real destination. The first summer proved that entertainment can create tourist movement, belonging, collective memory and a new reason why the Romanian seaside is worth discovering.