How to Survive Your First Festival

Last week we brought you a list of awesome music festivals to go to this summer. This week we’re going to talk about the do’s and don’ts of partying hard, brought to you by some super seasoned festival goers from around the world.

Be ready for anything.
Who cares what the other people are wearing? It’s raining like crazy! Any festival goer can tell you at least a few horror stories about crappy weather in the camps. If you bring anything in that backpack of yours, make sure it’s a poncho and a pair of waterproof shoes. Once things go south even Kate Moss will be trying to buy them off you.

Bring more underwear than you think is necessary.
We don’t care if you think it’s okay to wear the same undies twice. The truth is, with all the Tinder hookups and long lines to the toilet you’ll probably end up with some pretty nasty stuff in your underpants by the end of the day. Consider taking a few super packs from the outlet with you. You never know when your neighbor will ask to borrow a pair.

Water = gold.
The quickest way to make it to the high ranks of festival hierarchy (because festival campsites are basically a post-Apocalyptic world) is to be the king of the liquids. Yeah, we’re talking about water. Think Mad Max. The more you bring, the more power you have over those people of lesser muscle (or brain, who knows?) who thought 2 liters of water would be enough for a week of camping and partying.

Just because you brought your girlfriend doesn’t mean you’ll leave with her.
There’s a reason we mentioned Tinder earlier… it’s because festivals are notorious for becoming a gigantic orgy. You better be real secure about your relationship if you’re gonna go to a festival together. After all, there are half naked women everywhere as well as an array of chiseled man bodies to choose from. Maybe you should consider wearing handcuffs together for the whole party 😉

If Lil’ Wayne tries to sleep with you, get it on record.
It doesn’t matter if you do it or not, just make sure you get it on video! Speaking of video… it might be a good idea to bring a couple of external chargers with you just in case.

A festival is no place for personal hygiene.
Okay, so you have like, 7 packs of baby wipes and some travel sized shampoo and body wash. That’s cute, but if you’re out in the campsites you probably won’t use any of those things. Think more along the lines of “stuck on an island” hygiene. It’s basically the same thing. You know, dry shampoo, half sleeves (to hide your hairy underarms), and body spray.

If you brought goodies, try not to give any to underage people.
This can get you in a lot of trouble… obviously. Not to mention the poor kid who probably has no idea what’s going on. Or worse, that kid could go to the hospital or tell the cops about you. So yeah… keep that stuff to your crew.

If you stick to these easy steps you’ll probably survive without much drama. Festivals are fun and awesome and terrible and cold and a big dizzy mess. We’d love to hear stories from your past festival experiences in the comments.