Twenty-five sand sculptors from across Europe spend 10 days creating a fairy tale world on the Belgian beach of Middelkerke for the annual sand sculpture festival, which opens to the public on July 1st. “We bring in about 5,000 tons of sand” explains Peter Monbailleu, the festival’s organiser.

“We try to stay attractive for the people. We try to stay really relevant by including more and more interaction, by not just showing sand sculptures, but also including a storyline, showing the people around, having little walkthroughs for the children. Surprises left and right.”