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10 ways to make the most of your international festival experience

With Coachella kicking off this weekend, here are some essential tips from one seasoned music festival traveller

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Northern hemisphere summer is fast approaching and that means we are on the brink of some of the biggest international music festivals. Kicking off the season is the first of two weekends of Coachella in Indio, California. In addition to this, there are hundreds of both large scale and intimate festivals, concerts, and gigs happening all through Europe and America over the next six months. If you’re lucky enough to be escaping the impending Aussie winter for sunnier shores and one of these events, we have you covered with our festival prep guide. Whether you and your friends are heading for a camping festival or staying in a hotel near the concert, here are our 10 tips for making the best of your trip:


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01. Pack light

No matter what your lodging situation may be, it’s always better to pack light. We all know there’s nothing worse than lugging huge suitcases through airports, onto buses, into taxis, from one hostel, hotel, or campsite to the next; that alone should be enough encouragement to lose some of your unnecessary shit. If you don’t bring it with you, it’s not even an option. And guess what? You’ll figure it out! Showing up to a festival with 15 outfit options for three days is not the move. Too much choice can be stressful. If you only pack three outfits for three days, you’re not wasting precious drinking time in front of the mirror trying to decide what to wear. Instead, you’re first out in the sun with a beer and that means you get the aux cord. Win.


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02. But pack well

That said, there are definitely some essentials you should pack which will come in handy:

1. A mini sewing kit (Two words: Safety pins)
2. Scissors
3. Cheap sunglasses that you won’t be devastated to lose
4. A scarf or bandanna to wrap around your face if you are going to a particularly dusty or windy festival (ie. Coachella)
5. Baby wipes
6. An extra phone charger and/or a portable phone charger
7. A wallet that is small and secure
8. Sunscreen – pack a big bottle as well as a smaller tube for your bag
9. Speakers
10. Disposable cameras (They are light and small, plus everybody loves posing for a disposable camera)


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03. Windbreakers

This one is a ‘major key alert’ so it gets its own bullet point: Windbreakers! The traditional raincoat’s way cooler cousin. These little guys fold up small but offer a surprising amount of warmth for when the sun sets. Make sure your one has a hood to protect you from the elements and to make you look more badass when you’re barging past people to get to the front.


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04. Make friends

If you’re travelling alone or with only a small group of friends, be open to meeting new people. When it comes to music festivals, more is definitely merrier so befriend people on your bus or at your hotel, motel or campsite.


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05. Details, details, details

Make sure you have your tickets and accommodation details printed. Have ID on you if you need to go somewhere to pick tickets up. 

Ensure you have the address of where you’re staying memorised if it is offsite. On the first night of Coachella two years ago, I got separated from my friends and our address was on my dead phone. Luckily we had a meeting spot which I went to and my friends came back for me.


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06. Meeting spot

Which brings me to my next tip: Meeting spot. Make sure it’s easy to find and well lit, but don’t pick the most obvious place that hundreds of people will be congregating at once the show ends.


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07. Don't be thirsty

Stay hydrated and don’t drink too much. I’m not your Mum but seriously, who wants to have paid thousands on flights, accommodation and festival tickets, only to be ushered out early for being too drunk or worse, not even making it to the show because you ‘fell asleep’? Pace yourself.


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08. Be a good hype man

If one of your friends is being a wet blanket, ditch them. Joking. But definitely play Waka Flocka, Hard in the Paint really loud right next to them. True friends hype each other up.


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09. Don't arrive early but definitely leave early

Don’t get to the festival too early unless there are acts you are dying to see. Save your energy for later in the day so you can last through to the headliners. 

Leave one stage with enough time to get to the next. Don’t underestimate the distance between stages and how difficult weaving through thousands of people can be.


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010. Suss your hangover cure

After day one, you’ll probably need a hangover cure – I swear by a cup of black tea (no sugar, no milk) and a swim.

Most of all, focus on having fun, don’t let your expectations get too high and for the love of god, please don’t give our fair country a bad name on international shores by acting like a dick.