These days, amid the COVID-19 pandemic, it’s hard even imagining a world where festivals are a thing. Live performances are missed by so many people, both artists and fans alike, that the UK hosted its first socially-distant concert. Artists have also begun streaming their performances online.
It’s a strange time we’re living in and it’s fair to say that by now, we’re all missing doing the things we once enjoyed in life, such as attending festivals. Of course, to return to some semblance of normal, we must first tackle the coronavirus threat and it’s hard to say when exactly that will be. However, while the world waits to overcome this virus, you can start planning for your first festival post-COVID-19 right now.
FestPop’s helpful tips are a great place for you to start your planning:
Return to the Basics
In the excitement that is likely to follow your first festival post-COVID-19, and given how much time has passed since you last attended one, you might find yourself needing a refresher on important basic festival tips. Whether you’re a festival veteran or rookie, there are just some tricks that can help make your experience more about the music and having fun rather than stressing about forgotten sunblock or lost luggage.
- Leave Excessive Luggage at Home: Packing only a carry-on ensures your festival outfits, toiletries, and other essentials get off the plane with you rather than getting lost somewhere along the way. You might think it’s impossible to fit all your necessities in one bag, but it’s easier than you think to pack for a multi-day trip in just a carry-on. Skip all those “what-if” outfits and stick to only what you’ll actually wear. You can also purchase organizing inserts that maximize your bag’s space and keep everything where you can easily find it.
- Protect Your Belongings: In all the excitement and anticipation, you might end up forgetting to secure your valuable items in your tent or simply let your guard down around your bag. Losing your cellphone or camera while at a festival is a huge bummer and makes it hard to enjoy the shows so while thievery isn’t always a major problem at festivals, it’s always better to be safe than sorry.
- Pack Necessities: One thing COVID-19 certainly taught us is the importance of good hygiene. As we’ve all witnessed, viruses and disease can spread extremely quickly, so even once life has returned to “normal,” it’s worth carrying over some of those COVID-19 habits. Be sure to bring along enough hand sanitizer and wet wipes and always take the opportunity to thoroughly wash your hands when possible.
Put Together Your Budget
If you consider how long we’ve all been stuck at home, you might decide to turn your next festival adventure into a full-blown vacation. Moreover, one of the few upsides to the current COVID-19 situation is having more time to create the ultimate budget for your next vacation. Since it’s looking like festivals won’t return until at least 2021 why not start saving for your dream festival experience now?
First, decide where you would like to go, even just tentatively, how long you want to stay, and utilize helpful tools like Google Destinations, which provides a rough idea of what your trip will cost. You should also include the cost of your passes, the specific gear you’ll want to purchase beforehand such as portable chargers, and any merch you’ll want to buy. Once you land on a total cost for your festival vacation, compare it to your current income and see how much you should be saving and squirreling away each paycheck. You might opt for a summer or fall festival vacation to give yourself more saving time. It’s also not a bad idea to purchase flights now, as some airlines are providing discountsdue to the current decrease in flyers.
Protect Yourself
While COVID-19 taught us the importance of hygiene, it is also a reminder of how important it is to protect and take care of our health. For example, singing, dancing, and running around an event-packed festival is always a blast. However, if you aren’t careful, you could end up hurt or sick. Think sunburns, dehydration, and other germs and viruses. With all of that in mind, it’s never a bad idea to take a bit more time and effort to better protect yourself and your health.
For your next festival, make an effort to start better habits such as regularly applying sunblock and protecting your eyes from UV rays. The sun has longterm negative effects on our skin and eyes, and while it’s easy to get swept up in the moment and forget to protect yourself, the damage will last much longer than that moment. You can also turn protection into a fashion statement with stylish parasols or re-live COVID-19 days with a face mask made for sun protection. It’s also important to keep a filled water bottle on hand so that you don’t end up in the medic tent with severe dehydration. And of course, wash your hands with soap and water as much as possible and always carry around hand sanitizer.
Planning your first festival post-COVID-19 is a great way to get your mind off of the world’s current struggles. While we might not be able to attend shows by our favorite artists this year, there will always be plenty of time to enjoy dancing, singing, and rocking out in the future. And when the day finally arrives, you’ll be more than ready to have the best time of your life.
Written by: Adrian Johansen