Hi! Im Space Jesus, and i am the creator of the how to survive at a festival blog. My goal is to guide you through the process of encountering a music festival. With my innovative tips and products sold on this website i know that you will be the coolest person come festival season. I am a seasoned festival goer myself, attending over 10 festivals in all different parts of the country. My experience ranges from Lollapalooza, summercamp, electric forest, moonrise festival, hulaween, basslights, and lightning in a bottle. I have spent the last four years of my life dedicating myself to traveling and experiencing festivals to in turn create a better festival experience for consumers like you. If you have any questions or inquiries please feel free to contact me at the link below.
Wednesday, February 3, 2016
Exploring the Festival
So... its day one at your first big festival, you have your camp all set up, now what to do? Well, chances are you have a few hours before the first set of the day starts music wise, so what do you do to occupy your time until then? I will provide two great options:
1. Patrol the campsite
2. Enter the fest and explore.
Number one. "Patrolling the campsite" This can be a very useful thing to do before the music in the festival begins to play. When patrolling the campsite one may look to locate other groups of friends and their camping position relative to your spot. Also when patrolling the campsite it is a good idea to locate the area of all the major shops and outlets. Not only will this locate a place for you to purchase trinkets and other sorts of goodies, but it is likely the main source of all the food at a festival. There will also likely be a general store in which to purchase forgotten items, as well as necesities such as ice and cigarettes.
After thoroughly patrolling the campsite, my next piece of advice would be to enter the festival. Even though there is no music playing, the festival still has much to offer. The time before any music starts playing is the best time to check out what the festival has to offer aside from music. Explore things like the little shops, and "street performers" that the festival has hired to entertain you. Oftentimes there are places to explore or people to listen too or check out that you may not have the time to explore later in the festival. Also this is a great time to familiarize yourself with the festival grounds. Festivals are usually very large, and it takes some time adjusting to the nature of the fest an locating where everything is at. Now may be a good time to check out all the stages and plan out your music agenda for the day. My last suggestion would be to scope out a "safe spot" inside the fest. This is a secluded area inside of the festival that your whole group is aware of, and can meet up at if you were to get separated from the group. This is a very helpful tip as many cell phone providers have poor service inside festivals.
1. Patrol the campsite
2. Enter the fest and explore.
Number one. "Patrolling the campsite" This can be a very useful thing to do before the music in the festival begins to play. When patrolling the campsite one may look to locate other groups of friends and their camping position relative to your spot. Also when patrolling the campsite it is a good idea to locate the area of all the major shops and outlets. Not only will this locate a place for you to purchase trinkets and other sorts of goodies, but it is likely the main source of all the food at a festival. There will also likely be a general store in which to purchase forgotten items, as well as necesities such as ice and cigarettes.
After thoroughly patrolling the campsite, my next piece of advice would be to enter the festival. Even though there is no music playing, the festival still has much to offer. The time before any music starts playing is the best time to check out what the festival has to offer aside from music. Explore things like the little shops, and "street performers" that the festival has hired to entertain you. Oftentimes there are places to explore or people to listen too or check out that you may not have the time to explore later in the festival. Also this is a great time to familiarize yourself with the festival grounds. Festivals are usually very large, and it takes some time adjusting to the nature of the fest an locating where everything is at. Now may be a good time to check out all the stages and plan out your music agenda for the day. My last suggestion would be to scope out a "safe spot" inside the fest. This is a secluded area inside of the festival that your whole group is aware of, and can meet up at if you were to get separated from the group. This is a very helpful tip as many cell phone providers have poor service inside festivals.
Choosing and Setting up a Camp Spot
Once you have gained entry into the gates of a festival, the next step can be tricky... The next step is to obtain the optimal campsite area. When looking into the type of campsite you would like to construct on your festival journey, factors you must consider are:
1. How many people are in your group?
2. How many cars/ tents/ canopies do you have in your group.
3. Would you like to face a walkway (high traffic area), or would you like to face other camps?
4. What shape is most optimal for your campsite?
5. Proximity to the festival ***
Regardless of what kind of camp that you intend on setting up, i would highly recommend that every potential camp pursues number five. Proximity to the festival is a crucial aspect in determining the area that you would like to camp. It is extremely important that you position yourself in the closest proximity possible to the festival entrance. There are many reasons for this but the main reason being, this will allow you to enter/ exit the festival with ease as many others may have up to a 30 minute walk to reach their camps. Also many vendors/ food/ and shops will set up near the entrance of the festival and towards the center of the campground. Even though you may not be spending much time at your campsite during the fest, it is still crucial to get the location of the camp right so that if you need to make a quick trip back to your camp during the day, its not the end of the world. Once you have found the optimal campsite, set up a camp that gears towards your needs as a group and have fun!
1. How many people are in your group?
2. How many cars/ tents/ canopies do you have in your group.
3. Would you like to face a walkway (high traffic area), or would you like to face other camps?
4. What shape is most optimal for your campsite?
5. Proximity to the festival ***
Regardless of what kind of camp that you intend on setting up, i would highly recommend that every potential camp pursues number five. Proximity to the festival is a crucial aspect in determining the area that you would like to camp. It is extremely important that you position yourself in the closest proximity possible to the festival entrance. There are many reasons for this but the main reason being, this will allow you to enter/ exit the festival with ease as many others may have up to a 30 minute walk to reach their camps. Also many vendors/ food/ and shops will set up near the entrance of the festival and towards the center of the campground. Even though you may not be spending much time at your campsite during the fest, it is still crucial to get the location of the camp right so that if you need to make a quick trip back to your camp during the day, its not the end of the world. Once you have found the optimal campsite, set up a camp that gears towards your needs as a group and have fun!
The Road to a Festival
So you purchased your festival tickets for this upcoming season? So what? The real question is now, how do you plan on making that happen... That is, how do you plan on getting there? Believe me from experience, there is a right way and a wrong way to approach getting to a festival. Here is a list of a few tips and suggestions that will make the journey to the festival a breeze:
1. Use the buddy system - always drive with as many people as can physically fit into your vehicle. Not only does this save gas money, but it also provides many forms of entertainment as well as other drivers.
2. Obey all traffic laws - this is a big issue. If your one of those people who has a lead foot or likes to switch lanes with no signal, now is the time to really break those habits. Police are always patrolling the major highways and channels used to travel to festivals as easy targets to catch unlawful drivers. The police will take advantage of any slip up they can to pull over festival goers in an effort to make some easy cash and to mitigate some other external factors.
3. Use Waze - Waze is a directions and maps application just the same as google maps or any other application of the sorts. But one key element of Waze is that it allows its users to track the point of any police on any street at any time. The application stays up to the minute by having users like or dislike a post to determine whether or not the patrol car is still in the same location taking radar for instance.
4. Do not distinguish yourself - As exited as you may be about the festival culture you are about to embark on I strongly suggest that you do not label yourself as a festival goer while driving to the event. Distinguishing effects such as: Grassroots hats, festival pins, pajminas, hula hoops, gloves, or signs on windows such as "Headed to forest" will make you an easy target for police on the roads.
5. Leave at the optimal time- This is a very crucial point. Departure time can be a blessing but it can also be very discouraging if it is not correct. A good departure time will allow you as a festival goer to drive right into the event and get a good camping spot. A poor departure time will ensure that you wait in long lines to enter the festival, as well as a lesser quality camp spot.
Abiding by these tips will allow for safe, easy, and efficient travels to a festival.
1. Use the buddy system - always drive with as many people as can physically fit into your vehicle. Not only does this save gas money, but it also provides many forms of entertainment as well as other drivers.
2. Obey all traffic laws - this is a big issue. If your one of those people who has a lead foot or likes to switch lanes with no signal, now is the time to really break those habits. Police are always patrolling the major highways and channels used to travel to festivals as easy targets to catch unlawful drivers. The police will take advantage of any slip up they can to pull over festival goers in an effort to make some easy cash and to mitigate some other external factors.
3. Use Waze - Waze is a directions and maps application just the same as google maps or any other application of the sorts. But one key element of Waze is that it allows its users to track the point of any police on any street at any time. The application stays up to the minute by having users like or dislike a post to determine whether or not the patrol car is still in the same location taking radar for instance.
4. Do not distinguish yourself - As exited as you may be about the festival culture you are about to embark on I strongly suggest that you do not label yourself as a festival goer while driving to the event. Distinguishing effects such as: Grassroots hats, festival pins, pajminas, hula hoops, gloves, or signs on windows such as "Headed to forest" will make you an easy target for police on the roads.
5. Leave at the optimal time- This is a very crucial point. Departure time can be a blessing but it can also be very discouraging if it is not correct. A good departure time will allow you as a festival goer to drive right into the event and get a good camping spot. A poor departure time will ensure that you wait in long lines to enter the festival, as well as a lesser quality camp spot.
Abiding by these tips will allow for safe, easy, and efficient travels to a festival.
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