With each rumored headliner and every “finally bought my Bonnaroo ticket!” Facebook status, we get that much closer to Summer Music Festival Season (it’s capitalized because it’s important). If you’re new to the music festival scene, but ready to bake in the heat, covered in what you hope is predominately mud and sweat, then consider this your unofficial guide.
Buy your tickets early…like, now:
We can’t all be so lucky as to snag those early bird tickets to Lollapalooza, but we can be smart enough to snag some tickets before they jack up the prices, or worse: before they sell out. Whether you plan on hitting Lolla or camping out at Bonnaroo (or maybe even both, you music lover), get your passes now because there’s a 100% guarantee that prices will increase with time. The (most likely) 3-digit price you’ll be facing might be a bummer to your bank account now, but this also gives you the most time to save up or take on some extra shifts at work to ensure that you haven’t burned a complete hole in your wallet.
Where to Stay:
First off, it’s good to know if you’ll be camping out (I mean tents and everything) or if you’ll be blessed with the option of staying with friends or at a hotel. Once that’s established, try to finalize plans as soon as possible. Have friends that live near the festival? Ask if they have a spare room they wouldn’t mind letting you crash in (offering a nice gesture of money/food always helps). If you’re staying in a hotel, check out your options and when you find one that seems best fit for you, book it, because they fill up fast.
What to Pack:
Despite heat that feels like it emerged from the depths of hell, a lot of people pride themselves on maintaining their style while being pressed up against sweaty strangers at a Passion Pit concert. Coachella, for example, seems to become more and more about what people are wearing than anything else (I guess bands play there, too). Check out websites like Refinery29, which has multiple articles on music festival style, to start getting some ideas on what you need to pack (and shop!) for. And obviously remember the essentials: water, sunscreen, and a poncho (you just gotta trust on this one).
Create A Plan:
As it gets closer, have you and your friends figure out who wants to see who and how it fits into the schedule. You’ll probably end up ignoring most of what you planned out, but it’s good to establish your “must-sees” ahead of time to ensure less of a risk of missing your top shows once you get there.
So whether it’s Pitchfork or The Governor’s Ball, music festivals are always the highlight of the summer. And the more you prepare now, the more fun you’ll have later.