Our son wants to go to the music fest., which we plan to combine with a trip to Nashville & Memphis. He's obsessed with music. ;-) I'm not. I've never been to a festival like this. I'm hoping someone will be willing to provide info to help a festival rookie out. I have no idea what to expect or where to begin in the planning process. I've done some research & it seems that most people camp. That's not for us. Will that negatively impact our ability to see the "showcase" bands? Also, in researching I've discovered that the price of tickets varies, but there's no descriptions explaining the different tickets. What ticket should I try to purchase? Basically, I need all the advice & tips I can get. A "Bonnaroo for Dummies" tutorial is what I really need. Thanks in advance for any advice you can offer. I really need it!!!

My kids (now 19 and 22) have gone to Bonnaroo for the last 3 years. All I can tell you is that 80,000 music fans enjoy 3 days of great music. Everybody camps, as far as I know. It gets very hot and can get muddy if it rains. It's like Woodstock.

The traffic is horrific getting in, but it has improved greatly each year as officials learn from the past.

Sorry, I can not tell you about "non-camping" options. Bonnaroo is the highlight of my kids summer and they make all their other plans around it.

My 21 yo son has gone the last two years. It is camping with not the greatest sanitary facilities. It is very hot, buggy, and last year very muddy. From what my son has told me the music is awesome. My take, from what he says, is that it's a latter day Woodstock.

Not my thing at all, but they do draw many many thousands of people. If you do a Google search you will find a lot of information. And pictures.

We live about 25 miles from Manchester,
the home of Bonnaroo. There is a Hampton Inn in Manchester. Maybe you
would like to stay there while your son
goes to Boonaroo. The weather is almost
always very hot and humid. If you do
decide to camp on site, be sure to buy
all your supplies, food, ice, etc. before you arrive at the site-it is very
hard to leave.

Thanks for the responses. It sounds like staying in a hotel & commuting isn't a common way to enjoy the festival. Unfortunately, I'm no longer physically able to camp, nor am I up for less than sanitary facilities.

We would all be going to the festival. My husband & son would probably spend more time there than I. I don't think I mentioned it before, but our son will only be 15 at that time. Definitely not old enough to be there without one of us.

Your responses have gotten me concerned about planning to go knowing commuting could be very frustrating. I'm afraid he'd be more disappointed by missing some of his favorite bands, due to the commute, than he would to skip the festival all together. He does really want to go though.

I'll perform a Google search for more info. I've tried that a few times already, with little success. I must have been using the wrong keywords. Hopefully, I'll happen upon some reviews from people who've stayed in hotels. Thanks again

tarheel, what a nice thing to do for your son. I have a 16-year old daughter who is similarly obsessed with music. Her Dad drove her into NYC from the western suburbs of Philadelphia last Monday to see Fall Out Boy at an MTV taping at the Hard Rock. I thought that was going above and beyond the call of duty, but to face the crowds at Bonnaroo in the heat, well you win the nice parent award. I think that once I got there, I would really enjoy a music festival, and I hope you find a way to attend that isn't too uncomfortable.

Another thing I failed to mention is that we considered renting an RV for that portion of the trip. It doesn't look like that's going to happen though. We have a mini-pinscher that travels with us on land trips. Apparently, you can do pretty much everything on the grounds at Bonnaroo, except bring pets. Hmmm.... I wonder, if anyone would even notice she was there after the 1st couple hours of partaking.

Suki,
Thanks for the kind words. He's an only child & I'm afraid it shows. Combine that with the fact that I hear that clock ticking ever more loudly warning me that we have so few years until he's off to college & on his own, & we want to make our summer vacations really count.

How tolerant are you to things like heat, mud, drugs, humidity, alcohol, strange people, extremely large crowds and the like?

I live outside Nashville and it is a wonderful festival but you need to plan on just staying on the grounds once you get there. RV is a good idea. Be prepared to be hot, stinky, muddy, and thirsty!

We live in Southwest Florida & visit Universal Studios & Walt Disney World often. So, I would say, we're very tolerant of heat, humidity, & crowds. Not crazy about mud, but I have plenty of tennis shoes to change into. I consider what other people do none of my business. We love NOLA, & most people would say they have their fair share of strange people. As long as I don't feel we're being physically threatened, the rest I can handle. One thing our family is adverse to is standing in very long lines. That doesn't appear to be a problem at the festival though. At least, I don't think so.

Don't know how old you are but I'm in early 40's and Bonaroo is WAY beyond my comfort level. I wouldn't go if you paid me. Maybe your son should wait a couple of years until he is old enough to go on his own.

Would you mind elaborating on what you mean by "out of my comfort area"? I have no idea what to expect. Actually, I think I'd rather be there to see what he's doing. BTW, I'm in my late 30s & my hubby's in his early 40s.

Don't mean to be a stick in the mud- it's not the elements that bother me but so many people at these festivals are tripping on mushrooms, acid and ecstacy and act like idiots.

Sharon,
I missed your post earlier. As I noted, we would definitely look into going the RV route, if it wasn't for our mini-pin. I wonder how strict they are about not allowing pets, especially if we kept her in the RV except when being walked.

Dear Tar Heel-I am only reporting third hand, but I have a 20 year old who knows kids that go down. I am sure the crowd is varied, but it has always sounded really wild. I think the Woodstock analogy if not far off. Many kids that go are looking for a wild time. In thinking about your NOLA analogy(a place which I also love!) I do not mind walking my mid-teen kids down Bourbon street to "see the sites" but I would never plant us in the middle of it for several days. I think that would be what a trip to Bonnaroo would be like. Only offering advice since you asked! Good luck.

I don't know, this sounds like a great adventure to me. I was at plenty of concerts when I was of an age where people were tripping, etc. If you can manage the RV, you would be able to walk away if things got too uncomfortable. I would never go with my husband though - he can be a real stick-in-the mud!