Don’t Survive Your First Festival, Thrive!
Find below the best practices and pro-tips to be on top and stay on top of this amazing experience!
Find below the article breakdown :
1) Awareness:
There are two main philosophies regarding “how to live” a festival:
- Either you want the full surprise and you want to immerse yourself in something completely new where you know nothing
- Or you have heard of what it could be and you want to know more in order to enjoy it to the fullest this adventure.
Our viewpoint: In regards to Festivals, getting to know what’s in front of you, will actually enhance the experience and not diminish it.
2) Plan (months before):
- The tickets: Know when the tickets will be available for purchase, they do go really fast
- The trip ==> by plane, by train, by bus, by car ?: It’s silly but knowing in advance how you’ll get there can give you a rough idea of how much you will pack and how much it will cost you
- The bed…: you have to ask yourself what type of festival-goer are you, tents, on-site cabins, hotels, Airbnb, or even friend house (if it’s relatively close to the Venue)? Note: we will not go into too much depth regarding this but there is no right or wrong, we are all here for the same reasons fun, music, and friends, when it comes to resting the “how” is totally up to you.
3) Prepare (weeks before):
The essentials (the aim of the list below is not to be exhaustive but rather to emphasize):
- Your outfit: it’s up to you, some festivals can have some “dress code” or a theme but the idea is just to have fun! (Prioritize comfort though)
- Good shoes
- Cash: make sure you already have that ready so you don’t stay in line for ATMs.
- Tent (if you choose on-site experience): larger tents do have an effect on your well-being!
- Portable Phone Charger (FULLY CHARGED!)
The event:
- Artists/Performers: Have a plan on who you want to see, and who you are ready to miss
- Map of the area: Some festivals let you know how the venue will be set up, have a look so once you are there you will know where the sh*t takes place 🙂
The weather: check and pack accordingly:
- Wellies/rain boots and raincoat: If rain or heavy rain
- Sun cream: If sunny
- Sunglasses: If sunny
4) On-site
First:
- A good camping spot: Easy to set up, pitch uphill, and close to a recognizable landmark
Second (Know your surroundings): For the below, of course, you can ask someone there, but if you’re in a hurry for whatever reasons you’ll save those 30 seconds, or more if the first 4 people you ask have no clue… :
- The nearest water supply to reload: Have water with you with reusable water bottles and stay hydrated (and yes we do mean water), because you will be walking, dancing, and jumping all day long, all night long. We are telling you, water is gold!
- The nearest food supply: As you’ll probably drink over there, don’t forget to eat before and during
- The nearest bathrooms
- The medic tent
- Spot where ALL the stages are and their name
- A rally point with a friend (does not work well in a group, it’s more of a spot you define with someone you decided to be with all the time)
5) Pro-tips:
Products:
Ziploc or sandwich bags: in case of storm dust, rain, mud, or anything it will protect your money, phone, food, or any important stuff you have on you or in your tent!
Baby wipes are saviors: Oh boy, yes you WILL get dirty, this is not open to question, it is going to be useful from cleaning your hands, to cleaning dirty items that fall on the ground or even to have a decent and clean bathroom for yourself, the list goes on…
A roll of bin bags: besides the fact that it’s a hack, it also goes with the festival’s zero waste mentality, it’s actually a must, nature has provided you with this location, protect and preserve it (please be that kind of person, if you already are, we LOVE you! Thank you)
A Flashlight or Head Torch: This is the pro-tip because believe it or not we’ve seen people using their phones instead, and all they managed to do is kill their phone batteries and even portable charger by doing so. A good flashlight is the trick (a portable one you can carry with you easily).
Earplugs: Yes you will need them more than you think when you rest you want to be resting for real and earplugs WILL save you from, people talking passing by, laughing, shouting, snoring, or playing music. It will save you!
Safety first:
- At least one person should stay sober (just in case), this is where big groups become handy 🙂
- Always stay with someone you know
- Do not accept any foods, pills, substances, drinks, or even medication for that matter, from a stranger!
- Don’t go overboard: take a break from time to time, breathe and enjoy the nature around you, you will feel refreshed before going back in and reconnect to the vibe!
- Keep your most valuable items close to you like car keys, phone, money…
- Backpacks are quite handy but people can take things from your bag without you noticing it… fanny packs are an alternative or if you are a female we recommend a cross-body purse/bag
Remember the usual restrictions:
- Nothing that could harm another human being: weapons, glass, chains and believe it or not but even selfie sticks
- Nothing that could harm the performance: Laser pointers, flashlights (you can have flashlights just not into the festival venue), drones…
6) Bonus:
- Want to get in for free? ==> Volunteer do that with a friend or by yourself, it can be a great way to meet new people
- Great stage spots: It’s quite obvious but works every time, go to the stage where your favorite artist will be and stay all day, we have done it for artists we craved to see perform, and it works every time
- Food: Food at festivals can be very expensive: bring food and snacks with you
- Flip-flops or a spare of footwear: depending on the weather obviously, but changing shoes or having flip-flops (for sunny days) is magical for the feet, we are telling you!
- Leave early or late: decide early on if you want to avoid waiting in lines for hours to get out of there by leaving early, or if you see this opportunity to extend quality time with your friends and leave when the masses are mostly gone
- Don’t necessarily bring your best clothing: We have done the experience and some of our clothes were messed up, not so much because of all the exercise of moving around jumping and dancing but more for being wet, then dry by the sun, then wet again with dirt…
- Customize the top of your tent to spot it easily out of an infinity of tents: Yes, when you go back to your tent you are usually close to falling asleep walking and you don’t want to be the person searching for his tent, trust us on that one!
