The event
18 to 22 June 2026
SCOUTINGLANDGOED, ZEEWOLDE
đ§ Join for Build from Monday 15 June 2026
Are you handy with tools? Not afraid to get your hands dirty? Maybe you even have a forklift certificate? Then come join the Build Team!
Weâll be starting Build on Monday, June 15, and itâs good to clarify what that actually means. Build is a participant activity, and not all of it is Dream Camp build. Some work needs to happen before camps arrive.
To make things clearer, weâre using a few terms to help explain:
- Org Build: Starts on June 15. This includes setting up core infrastructure like Gate, the Shepherd Shack, power, mapping, and other essential services.
- Dream Camp Early Entry : Comes later. Camps can start building once the basics are in place.
Help with Strike! From Monday 22 June
Sorry, it’s over, all the beauty that has been created must also be taken away again! Help the team break down, clean up and pack away. This shift is so important, please donât forget that many people have been preparing for months and really need many extra hands when itâs time to Strike.
By purchasing a ticket, youâre committing to participate in the ongoing creation of this community, under the guidance of the fundamental Burning Man Principles.
We donât book acts or provide entertainment. What happens here is up to you! There is no corporate sponsorship. You are entering a âdecommodifiedâ space where participants value who you are, not what you have. There are no spectators! You are expected to participate, collaborate, be inclusive, creative, connective and clean up after yourself.
Where the Sheep sleep is is not a festival. Where the sheep sleep is part of the Burning Mancommunity and global cultural movement
Where it all began
In 2016 Burning Man Netherlands organized its summer event for the first time. It was held on the meadows of an estate near Kootwijk, a part of The Netherlands where the sandy soil shows at the surface so it can be considered somewhat of a desert.
The name of the very first estate where we hosted our event was âCaitwickâ, a Gaelic name that translates to a place where the sheep sleepâ. Hence the name âWhere the Sheep Sleepâ for the event!
This first edition had about 750 participants and already had some theme camps and some impressive large-scale artworks. It also had a few unexpected challenges like overflowing toilets and outright sabotage of the electric supply, most probably by someone from the surrounding village as it was a bit of a noisy event smack in the middle of the Dutch Bible belt. Although the location was fantastic it was not possible to stay on these lands we moved the Apeldoorn, and now to Zeewolde.
In 2026 we are back!
Event Overview: Where the Sheep Sleep
A burn is a community-driven event where participants create a temporary space for art, self-expression, and collaboration, following principles like gifting, participation, and leaving no traceâeveryone contributes, and nothing is left behind.