Like I've said before, I'm a festival junkee. I can't get enough of them and the minute I hear of one, I have to go to it. It's not a want, it's a need. And with more and more festivals being added to that list, that means more and more money to be spent. Let me break it down how much I spend at a festival.
Average prices of:
Ticket - $300
Gas - $40-$65
Food- $30-$75
Merch- $30-$60
camping supplies- $30
Alcohol- $50-$100
Misc. - $150-$150
Hotel- $90
Now these prices are not the same with every event I go to, but most of them are in the higher range. Some festivals are cheaper, but those are the ones I have to get a hotel for. The ones I need a hotel for, don't really need camping supplies for that. But on average, the total comes out to be anywhere from $500-$700. I could literally buy a car if I stopped going to all these fests. No joke, last year I attended 7 different music festivals... 7. Insane amount of money and insane amount of good times.
The number one question I get is, " how do you afford to go to all of this?!" My answer; living at home with mom and dad and having a job. Since I live at home, I don't pay for rent, utilities, or groceries so therefore I have all this money from waiting tables to festival hop. Almost my entire budget goes in to my next festival, many think it's ridiculous. You may think it sucks living at home, but I know that the memories and awesome friends I've made from doing this is so much better than having my own place. I'm taking advantage of this time in my life because I know here in a few months after I graduate, it will all have to come to a halt.
Being an adult but not having to be an adult yet is exciting and I'm not ready for this to end. I really am having the best years of my life right now.
-Blaze
Showing posts with label live music. Show all posts
Showing posts with label live music. Show all posts
Tuesday, October 6, 2015
Thursday, October 1, 2015
Festival Do's and Don'ts
With Austin City Limits weekend 1 coming up this weekend and myself attending weekend 2 next weekend, I thought it would be a good idea to write some tips on how to prepare. Luckily, ACL is a festival where you can go back to a hotel room after a full day of walking and dancing for countless hours, so you don't have to be as prepared than if you had to camp.
Do's:
Always eat a BIG breakfast. And when I say big, I mean until you absolutely can't eat another bite. Breakfast may be your only meal of the day and it'll be your biggest source of energy.
Backpacks are important, preferably a camelbak backpack because those hold water bladders.
With that being said, DO STAY HYDRATED. I can't stress this enough. Keep drinking water because even if you're not thirsty, you're most like still dehydrated and that makes for a terrible time.
Do bring in little snacks like granola bars. Most festivals allow you to bring in small snacks.
Toilet paper. Especially for us girls. Never assume that the port-o-potties will have TP because by the end of the night, none of them will.
If you're a drinker on a budget ( like myself), smuggle it in. Best way to do that is drink the clear liquor, fill up a water bottle to the brim. You're allowed to bring in an unsealed water bottle, but the security really just checks to see if it's filled all the way.
Do be weather alert. Prepare for heat, or cold, or rain, or whatever mother nature may throw at you that weekend and make the best of it. This is about to be the best weekend of your life, don't be unprepared and have weather ruin it!
Do expect to make new friends! You'll meet the craziest people but also the nicest people and maybe even some forever friends.
Don'ts:
Don't start the party too early, you'll miss the artists you really want to see at night. Trust me.
Don't wander and lose your friends. Always make a meeting point at a certain time if your group separates or you will never find them.
Don't expect to have cell service. There are 80,000 other festival attendees all trying to use their phone at the same time.
Don't be that Guy. What do I mean by that you ask? I mean don't be that asshole that gets mad if someone wants to get closer than you to the stage, because no matter where you stand, someone will want to get closer. Don't be the guy that doesn't help out someone in need, 9/10 someone will help you when you're in need. Pretty much don't be the Debbie downer.
Don't ever underestimate getting sunburned. Just because it's October doesn't mean you can't burn to a crisp anymore. I learned that the hard way.
Don't walk into the port-o-pots barefoot. I feel like this is common sense, but I've seen it and yes you will get looked at. I am a person that loves to walk barefoot around grassy festivals but I always carry flip flops in my backpack just for that.
First time festival goers may need advice on what to pack. Well have no fear because I can give you the most important things you will need.
Packing List:
- Sunglasses/ back up pair
- Sunscreen
- At least $60 ( you may never know what will happen)
- If you don't like being in the crowd, a sheet to sit or lay on
- Small flashlight to help in the port-o-pots at night
- Hand sanitizer
- Baby wipes
-Water Bottle ( reusable)
- Backpack/camelbak
- Hair ties
- Hats ( helps with shade)
- Raincoat/ rain boots
Austin City Limits is a wonderful weekend filled with amazing people, incredible artists, and will create beautiful memories you will cherish for a lifetime. Do have a fantastic time and happy festing!
-Blaze
Do's:
Always eat a BIG breakfast. And when I say big, I mean until you absolutely can't eat another bite. Breakfast may be your only meal of the day and it'll be your biggest source of energy.
Backpacks are important, preferably a camelbak backpack because those hold water bladders.
With that being said, DO STAY HYDRATED. I can't stress this enough. Keep drinking water because even if you're not thirsty, you're most like still dehydrated and that makes for a terrible time.
Do bring in little snacks like granola bars. Most festivals allow you to bring in small snacks.
Toilet paper. Especially for us girls. Never assume that the port-o-potties will have TP because by the end of the night, none of them will.
If you're a drinker on a budget ( like myself), smuggle it in. Best way to do that is drink the clear liquor, fill up a water bottle to the brim. You're allowed to bring in an unsealed water bottle, but the security really just checks to see if it's filled all the way.
Do be weather alert. Prepare for heat, or cold, or rain, or whatever mother nature may throw at you that weekend and make the best of it. This is about to be the best weekend of your life, don't be unprepared and have weather ruin it!
Do expect to make new friends! You'll meet the craziest people but also the nicest people and maybe even some forever friends.
Don'ts:
Don't start the party too early, you'll miss the artists you really want to see at night. Trust me.
Don't wander and lose your friends. Always make a meeting point at a certain time if your group separates or you will never find them.
Don't expect to have cell service. There are 80,000 other festival attendees all trying to use their phone at the same time.
Don't be that Guy. What do I mean by that you ask? I mean don't be that asshole that gets mad if someone wants to get closer than you to the stage, because no matter where you stand, someone will want to get closer. Don't be the guy that doesn't help out someone in need, 9/10 someone will help you when you're in need. Pretty much don't be the Debbie downer.
Don't ever underestimate getting sunburned. Just because it's October doesn't mean you can't burn to a crisp anymore. I learned that the hard way.
Don't walk into the port-o-pots barefoot. I feel like this is common sense, but I've seen it and yes you will get looked at. I am a person that loves to walk barefoot around grassy festivals but I always carry flip flops in my backpack just for that.
First time festival goers may need advice on what to pack. Well have no fear because I can give you the most important things you will need.
Packing List:
- Sunglasses/ back up pair
- Sunscreen
- At least $60 ( you may never know what will happen)
- If you don't like being in the crowd, a sheet to sit or lay on
- Small flashlight to help in the port-o-pots at night
- Hand sanitizer
- Baby wipes
-Water Bottle ( reusable)
- Backpack/camelbak
- Hair ties
- Hats ( helps with shade)
- Raincoat/ rain boots
Austin City Limits is a wonderful weekend filled with amazing people, incredible artists, and will create beautiful memories you will cherish for a lifetime. Do have a fantastic time and happy festing!
-Blaze
Tuesday, September 22, 2015
The Brains Behind Bonnaroo Announce New Florida Festival
Music festival junkees will be thrilled to hear that a new Bonnaroo and Coachella like festival is coming to South Florida.
Details were released on Thursday that Okeechobee, Florida will host a new, bigger festival on March 4-6, 2016. This will be the biggest camping festival as it is located on 848 acres of land called Sunshine Grove. To give you an idea on how large that is, Bonnaroo is on 700 acres and holds up to 90,000 attendees. Now image what opportunities an extra 148 acres can offer.... exciting right?
The new festival will release the lineup later next month and will include 80 different acts including bands, producers, and DJ's from around the world.
This event will include a white-sand lakeside-swimming beach and bar, wooded VIP camping areas, various art installations. Just like Bonnaroo, the festival will be very environmentally conscious and provide recycling bins, serve food on compost plates, and reduce the waste.
I'm hoping to be able to make it to the first year of this festival. Not only is my birthday March 2nd ( hint hint) but its in a new location with new festival attractions I'd love to experience. I can't wait to see what it's first year will look like and see how successful it'll be.
Now a days, the industry of festivals is so heavy saturated that it's hard to start a new one. But with the brains behind Bonnaroo putting this together, I have faith.
Now to wait for the lineup!
- Blaze
Details were released on Thursday that Okeechobee, Florida will host a new, bigger festival on March 4-6, 2016. This will be the biggest camping festival as it is located on 848 acres of land called Sunshine Grove. To give you an idea on how large that is, Bonnaroo is on 700 acres and holds up to 90,000 attendees. Now image what opportunities an extra 148 acres can offer.... exciting right?
The new festival will release the lineup later next month and will include 80 different acts including bands, producers, and DJ's from around the world.
This event will include a white-sand lakeside-swimming beach and bar, wooded VIP camping areas, various art installations. Just like Bonnaroo, the festival will be very environmentally conscious and provide recycling bins, serve food on compost plates, and reduce the waste.
I'm hoping to be able to make it to the first year of this festival. Not only is my birthday March 2nd ( hint hint) but its in a new location with new festival attractions I'd love to experience. I can't wait to see what it's first year will look like and see how successful it'll be.
Now a days, the industry of festivals is so heavy saturated that it's hard to start a new one. But with the brains behind Bonnaroo putting this together, I have faith.
Now to wait for the lineup!
- Blaze
Thursday, August 27, 2015
My Addiction is Real
People ask me all the time " Why do you go to so many music events? Do you know how much money you're spending going to all of this? You're driving how far for a music festival?! Is there anything else you do besides go to concerts?" and the I answer I always tell them is, it's my passion. The happiness I get whenever I am at a live show is something that is indescribable. When you're at a live show and you're favorite song comes on, you look at the person next to you and you create a moment and share the same feeling, making a memory to last a lifetime. I realize that over the passed 5 years, I could've bought a new car, lived in an apartment, have many different options to spend my money, but my passion is greater than all of that and I might as well do it now while I still live at home, before I go and have to put my big girl pants on and live in the real world. My live music addiction doesn't just come from the music itself, but also the people that I meet. From time to time, you'll share a laugh, a tear, or a swig of some smuggled in booze from a complete stranger and come home with a great story about a person you will never see again. But then you create special connections with people who will be your life long friends.
My first year at Bonnaroo, I made some friends from Chicago and had such a good time with them, one of them opened their home to my friends and me for Lollapalooza that same summer. But my real group of friends I met my third year at Roo. They happened to be camped by us and helped us in a time of need when it was raining and our tent was not holding up too well. From then we noticed our schedule was almost identical and we spent the entire weekend together. This group of people got to witness my best friend getting proposed to under the Bonnaroo arch, they celebrated with us, they danced until sunrise with us, and cried with us as we said our goodbyes. Little did we know that we would meet up with them in Austin at Austin City Limits, go to visit them over spring break, and have them come and attend the wedding that they saw the proposal for. Because of these personal connections, I have friends in Seattle, Chicago, Columbus, Atlanta, Tuscaloosa, Denver, Clemson, and several places in Indiana and Michigan. My festival group started with 4 girls and now almost every event I go to, the group is never smaller than 20. And almost all of these friends keep up on a daily basis.
So you see, it's not just the fact that I've seen diverse legends like Paul McCartney, Robert Plant, The Cure, and Wu Tang Clan, or that I've seen some current big names like Kendrick Lamar, Florence and The Machine, and Deadmau5, It's the overall experience and the memories I make with the people I love the most. I'm passionate about music, live music, and friendships.
So if you ever want to tag along, I guarantee you a great time you'll never forget and a memory that you will forever hold close to you.
-Blaze
My first year at Bonnaroo, I made some friends from Chicago and had such a good time with them, one of them opened their home to my friends and me for Lollapalooza that same summer. But my real group of friends I met my third year at Roo. They happened to be camped by us and helped us in a time of need when it was raining and our tent was not holding up too well. From then we noticed our schedule was almost identical and we spent the entire weekend together. This group of people got to witness my best friend getting proposed to under the Bonnaroo arch, they celebrated with us, they danced until sunrise with us, and cried with us as we said our goodbyes. Little did we know that we would meet up with them in Austin at Austin City Limits, go to visit them over spring break, and have them come and attend the wedding that they saw the proposal for. Because of these personal connections, I have friends in Seattle, Chicago, Columbus, Atlanta, Tuscaloosa, Denver, Clemson, and several places in Indiana and Michigan. My festival group started with 4 girls and now almost every event I go to, the group is never smaller than 20. And almost all of these friends keep up on a daily basis.
So you see, it's not just the fact that I've seen diverse legends like Paul McCartney, Robert Plant, The Cure, and Wu Tang Clan, or that I've seen some current big names like Kendrick Lamar, Florence and The Machine, and Deadmau5, It's the overall experience and the memories I make with the people I love the most. I'm passionate about music, live music, and friendships.
So if you ever want to tag along, I guarantee you a great time you'll never forget and a memory that you will forever hold close to you.
-Blaze
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)