Written by Randy Plavajka Photos by Randy Plavajka
music festival survival guide SURVIVING & THRIVING DURING FESTIVAL SEASON
54 | Pursuit
ith the arrival of a new calendar year comes a few things: the start of the spring semester, resolutions to finally work out, a chance to finally land a real job and, most importantly, the restart of the music festival season. The summer festival season’s formal beginning is signaled by Southern California’s own Coachella Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif. A haven for all things hip, cool, fresh and vibrant, Coachella is the big kahuna of music festivals as far as North America is concerned. An added benefit: If you can thrive at Coachella, you can thrive at any music festival. To live your best life at Coachella and other music festivals across the nation, consider the following advice collected from years of research.
the preparation Many music festivals release their lineups and sell passes months in advance of the actual event. Larger festivals tend to sell out quickly because of their popularity and attending the best ones comes with a hefty price tag. The best thing you can do is plan everything out as far in advance as possible. Priority No. 1 is buying the actual passes. Set an alarm on your phone and have as many computers ready as possible for when tickets go on sale. Weekend No. 1 is notorious for selling out within the first few hours because every special guest imaginable will be in attendance. Camping at Coachella is all fun and games until the dust settles and the Coachella Flu destroys your chances of recovering in time to take any final exams. Assemble a group of friends and book an Airbnb, hotel room or condominium and split the cost evenly among the people who will be crashing in the residence each night.