Is it worth going? Can you actually get close enough to the stage to see/hear the bands? How early do you have to get there to actually make it in (get a parking space) by the time the first groups start?

You can get really close if you to the stage early. This might mean missing some acts you want to see. You can get a parking space at any time but you'll have an extremely long hike. The biggest thing about this festival is the heat. It's ridiculous. Also I suggest staying at a hotel and commuting everyday instead of camping out.

I've heard of people getting there a day early because the line of cars to pull in takes so long to get through.

I got there about 4:00 in the morning the day of the event. I waited in line about about 2 hours. It seemed to me after the intial surge of cars, it moved realitively quickly.

hmm, i was considering going to this only because of radiohead but if it's that hectic to get in, i'm not down to make the trip out there. is it really that bad?

i would be shocked if radiohead doesnt do a US tour this year with their new album......

i am not a fan of festival shows AT ALL

It's a really rural area that doesn't have proper infrastructure for an event of this size. So yeah, the traffic is a bit of clusterf*ck. But we just drank the whole time and played music while waiting wasn't that bad in retrospect.

I'll be there if I don't have to pay for it. You can hear it, but Festival PAs SUCK ASS. Definitely my least favorite setting for a band. They've done a decent job of helping out the traffic situation since the first two years. When were you there oldbullee?



I recommend commuting as well. I drove in from Nashville everyday last year. It's about 1hr15min. drive to Manchester. Murfreesboro is about 30min. away. It's not THAT bad of hike to the actual fest from the camping/parking area. At the most it takes 10 minutes. The heat isn't that bad either, but I grew up in the South, so it doesn't bother me as much. What sucks is the rain and mud that has plagued the fest the past 3 years. Organizers need to read a Farmer's Almanac for once.

i'm sure they will. but i love festivals and i'm really interested to check out other festivals in other states.

we got to manchester, tn around 5am the morning of the event (with the gates supposed to open around noon) ....
and the place was ALREADY a clusterfuck.

though, we got in....within an hour, i'd say. but i know of many more who had 10 hour waits.

we got a campsite pretty close. so, we were lucky. but.... A LOT of the camping involves a LONG hike. we set up a campsite....but also had a hotel. we only slept on site one night....the first night.... after that....we wanted air conditioned sleep.

it's HOT there. but make sure you hydrate and bring a misting bottle....and you'll be fine.

pack for all kinds of weather. you never know how quickly it can change. i think mud ruined a lot of things last year. maybe the year before too.

can you get close enough to the stages to see the bands? sure. either get there early (and miss other stuff like oldbullee said) or push your way to the front (which is what most people do.)
there are screens (at almost all of them, i think. except for one that i remember....). and, the sound was good everywhere.....except the one late night place.

if you're going to see one band in particular..... then, yeah, it's totally worth it. you can put all of your energy into making that one band the highlight of your weekend.

i, however, wouldn't go to bonnaroo again. (or any other festival in which more than 2 stages are going on simultaneously....) because when i sat down to figure out what we actually got to see..... we saw less of what we went to see than i thought even reasonable. pretty much everything i wanted to see was scheduled at the same time as everything else i wanted to see.

(radiohead, though, is a headliner, i think. right? if that's the case.....then you're set. the headliner doesn't have any competition....iirc.)

anyway. my verdict.....i prefer much smaller festivals. and will stick with them. but, i'm SO GLAD i experienced it. i just don't want to experience it again.

I was there for Dylan, The Dead, Dave Mathews Band, and Wilco.

I wasn't prepared to hike as far as I did everyday and while it wasn't that bad at first, it defintely got old. The year I went was hot and it rained on one day at the end of My Morning Jacket's set.

5AM FOR A MUSIC FESTIVAL?

fuck that.

hippies ruined it for me.

don't blame it on the 'hippies'.
blame it on the lotrats.


not all hippies are 'bad'.

no, of course not.

but it was still the hippies that ruined it for me both times.

No. No free passes for hippies. They DO ruin everything.

I wish hippies and goths would get into a giant cage match to the death... ah, what a dream.

oh like little ravers are any better.