Hello, I am Luna Alexandra! Thank you so much for checking out my page and clicking on this post. You being here means the world to me, as it means I am one step closer to achieving my goal of creating a successful business and positively impacting the lives of many ravers!
I have been attending festivals for a handful of years and consider myself pretty good at preparing and saving money by planning ahead. I have compiled a few of my favorite and most valuable tips on planning fests for the least amount of money. I hope you learn a little something new and can utilize these small but helpful tools I have written for you below! Let’s get into it!
Suggestion #1: Buy your tickets as soon as possible!
Purchase your tickets as soon as they go on sale and before prices increase. When you plan this far in advance, you can also purchase your ticket using a payment plan with the most spread out payment dues and lowest prices! Price tiers are commonly scheduled by date; however, they may periodically be based on the number of tickets sold. Either way, if you stay ahead of the game and know when tickets will be first released, I can guarantee you’ll save a decent amount of cash that can be put toward other expenses and lower your overall costs.
Suggestion #2: Book a decent hotel or RV in advance!
Reserve your room or RV as soon as you know the dates of an upcoming festival you plan to attend. It is common practice for me to search for hotels using Expedia or Travelocity where filters can be applied to narrow my search. I typically look for 3-star or 4-star hotels in the mid-price range, which is often $120-160/night after taxes and fees. If you choose a hotel at a much lower price, you’ll risk being in an unsafe and unclean area. (Your health and well-being are worth the extra money! You can find ways to save in other areas, but don’t skimp on safety or comfort!)
Although these prices may seem steep, splitting the cost with multiple friends will always drastically decrease the total owed by each raver.
In addition, you can look around for hotel “best price guarantees,” even after choosing the perfect room on Expedia or elsewhere. Granted, this will not impact the costs very often, but you may come across a hotel where it does. An example of how this has been helpful to my group was when I attended my first EDC. A friend and I had been scavenging many hotel sites when we came across a lower price on Expedia than on the actual hotel website. Out of curiosity, we decided to see if our chosen hotel had a “best rate guarantee” and if it would benefit us in any way. It stated that they would not only price match, but would also deduct an additional 10% from the price we would have paid if we had booked through the travel site (not including taxes, fees, late checkout, or parking). We ended up saving hundreds of dollars because of this!
Booking hotels that offer free cancellations could also save you a lot of money. This way, if you can’t make it to a planned festival for any reason, you can still cancel for a full refund and prevent spending unnecessary money.
Another small thing to note is that carpooling will also save you money on any possible hotel parking fees (and gas money)! This will also come in handy for camping festivals.
If you’re renting an RV, reserve it as soon as possible, as you would a hotel. Watch out for added costs such as extra mileage, generator use, current gas prices, RV mpg, tank emptying fees, water refill fees, or even festival cleanup fees.
Suggestion #3: Camping passes should be purchased right away!
If you are camping, purchase your camping pass as soon as it goes on sale. Not only will this ensure you’ll be able to secure a pass at the lowest price point, but it will also give you the first pick of camping passes! This will allow for the type of experience you were looking for instead of snoozing on the first round of passes and missing out on purchasing the one you wanted.
Suggestion #4: Have a reliable method of transportation!
Whether you choose a shuttle service or private transportation should depend on the number of people in your crew. If your group includes someone who will attend the festival sober, driving to and from the event may save you a decent amount of money. However, it is not uncommon for ravers to plan to be intoxicated and, therefore, unable to drive. In this case, the options are to purchase a shuttle pass (if available) or to take an Uber or Lyft.
If planning to Uber or Lyft, you must decide if you are willing to leave the event a bit early, pay the surge price for a ride home, or wait around outside the venue until the surge drops (or until you can even order a ride in the likely instance there is an influx of riders). If you end up waiting for the surge to end, I recommend having a one-time-use emergency blanket for each person (the foil-looking blankets you see people sometimes wearing at cold events) to stay warm while you wait. They come in very compact packaging and can be ordered from Amazon for less than $1 when purchased in bulk. Whichever you choose, avoiding the urge to request a ride during the surge will save you and your group the most amount of money!
Suggestion #5: Plan your outfits ahead of time and purchase pieces during sales!
It is surprisingly easy to get your hands on some beautiful rave fits if you keep your eye out for sales at your favorite rave stores. Add yourself to email lists and follow your favorite shops on Instagram for flash sales! You can often also use ambassador discount codes or discount links to save even more, and to support rave friends while doing so!
For accessorizing, purchasing high-quality pieces that will last a long time are more likely to save you money in the long run. They will also elevate your look to a new level instead of purchasing cheap pieces that fall apart after one use. In addition, mixing and matching already worn chains, jewelry, flowers, bandanas, or body jewels can create a new look!
Although fast fashion may seem tempting, investing in accessories or outfit basics you know you’ll want to wear many times can save you a ton of money (and help you avoid supporting unsustainable companies). Reversible bodysuits or two-piece sets can also make for a fun, money-saving outfit (not that you’ll want to wear the same clothing piece two days in a row without a wash)!
A fantastic example of a piece that will benefit you to spend a little more now to save a little more later is a pair of high-quality, comfortable shoes. When I first started raving, I found the cutest pair of shoes that perfectly matched my outfit. They felt fine walking around the store and I even bought a pair of inserts to wear with them. I purchased them from a regular store and my total cost was under $40 which was super exciting! Unfortunately, about halfway through the first night at Hard Summer 2017, my knees and back were killing me, and I could feel blisters forming on my ankles. I still had so much of the weekend ahead of me!! My boyfriend had to carry me on his back for about half a mile to our Uber! I never wore those shoes again, but a lesson was learned: don’t skimp out on staple pieces! I currently wear my YRU Matrixx or Demonias to every festival and absolutely love them.
What clothing, shoes, and accessories really should come down to is the cost per use. Of course, if you’re only planning to wear something once, like my Hard Summer shoes, a low price tag is what you’re searching for. However, on the other hand, investing in something that you know you’ll love and get a lot of use out of is the more “money-saving-in-the-long-run” move.
There are many ways to save when planning for festivals or any trip in general! I hope you found my list helpful and can take a few of these tips and use them when planning your next event!
Thank you for checking out my first blog post! Stay tuned for more!