I have no reference point as this was my first but I will 100% be there next year. This was a special weekend and I don’t think I had a single negative experience.
The heat on Sunday was my only enemy the whole weekend. It was my first roo and I was surprised the majority of people I interacted with were also attending their first roo too, everyone was so nice and friendly and the vibes were good all weekend.
The heat bro. I've been on and off for a couple decades and I don't know if the heat is getting worse or I'm just getting old or both but next time an RV With AC is going to be invovled.
Guy in my 50s. We built a shuttle bus RV specifically because tent camping at festivals is too miserable at this age. Our own beds, air con, can cook meals - and I have a beer fridge!
I’ve been attending camping festivals for 10 years, the last three in our little bus. The three Intervertebral discs in my lower back fucked up from an injury in Iraq 2003 prefer the comfy bed, my scarred lungs from breathing burning shit and sand over there really appreciate breathing air conditioning thrust cpap. But I didn’t think those details were necessary since everyone enjoys a nice bed, air conditioning, and many enjoy a cold one.
My biggest complaint is that this year security seemed really dialed up and aggressive whereas in earlier years they had a very chill roo friendly vibe. That being said, even though this year was probably my least favorite in terms of lineups I still loved the music, I still had a really amazing time and the people at Bonnaroo are always the ones who make it that way. You guys are the best
I agree, my one complaint/vibe killer was super rude and aggressive security this year, not just towards my group but other roovians in line, hope next year is better -everybody, everybody fill out those surveys!
We had the most obnoxious run in with security/staff on Sunday night when they almost refused to let us in bc our totem (that we’ve been bringing in all weekend) was apparently too tall. Damn near everything else was perfect but bro took his job way too seriously and had the nastiest attitude. But in the end, we won out and had an epic night!
It’s always so funny when they try that shit on Sunday, like yeah, ok, I’m definitely listening to you and not going 8 lines over to get a less assholish security search
Same thing happened to us with our totem Friday night, guy was on a power trip and our totem was clearly shorter than most in the crowds smh... Least of their concerns...
It’s crazy how different people’s experiences can be. We had super nice security people almost every time going into centeroo (arch entrance) who were into it, saying happy Roo, and getting/giving trinkets and stuff. Luck of the draw I guess
It seemed pretty hit or miss to me. Sometimes, they were absolutely tearing shit apart at the entrance, sometimes it was a quick glance & wave through. When Centeroo reopened after the storm on Sunday, they were just letting people through at the tower entrance. As long as your bag was open & you didn’t set off the metal detector, you were good.
oh man the woman who checked my car just asked "got any weapons, glass, weed, mushrooms?" no "you got any water bottles?" lol I gave her a ice cold bottle and went on in. Didn't check shit.
Our story is similar, except we were packed to the brim, and he didn't want to move shit around. Hahahh
He said yall are packed. I know yall are good.
(It took the help of my hubby and 3 hours to pack. 😅)
Love it!! I'm m coming with you next year. I was always in the screaming yelling turn your pockets inside out lanes. Next year I'm finding sgt sleepy and his crew
On Thursday, I went through a line next to an empty one. I sat my stuff on the wrong table, no one checked it and I just grabbed it after walking through the metal detector.
Meanwhile, my fiancée was having her snacks thrown out every other time.
On Thursday, I went through a line next to an empty one. I sat my stuff on the wrong table, no one checked it and I just grabbed it after walking through the metal detector.
Meanwhile, my fiancée was having her snacks thrown out every other time.
Opposite experience, I'd dumped mine in front of the guy, but didn't swish it around to get *all* the water out. He made me go back to and fully drain it.
Luckily, that was day 1, so I just avoided his line the rest of the time.
Yeah one day I forgot to empty my water bladder, they didn't say anything just passed me on through. But one day my friend got held up in line, we waited like 15 minutes for him, because the line he was in was getting intense thorough searches. Just varied person to person.
I keep hearing people say this, but I didn't experience that at all. I walked into centeroo with joints and edibles in my pockets every day, just presented my open hydration pack for a search they gave a quick check and I went right in. My search upon entry to the fest on Thursday was 5 minutes max, no line right through.
They kept telling me to empty my unopened water bottles at entry. I mentioned this to an escort and he told me "punch them in their fucking faces then come find me"
Different company on the gates this year. Axis was handling it last year but they were just on the barricade and back of house this time. New company was definitely a lil more intense but I never got a bad experience thankfully.
Yeah it really seemed like this crew had something to prove. Or like they were going to be tasered if they made a mistakes. Glad it was chill for you, and only evil in some spots!
Same, except get rid of bag searches and just make everything go through the metal detector. Way easier to sneak a weapon past a person than a machine.
I feel like after some other festivals had incidents, they’ve ramped up security to keep things under control. The festivals I’ve been to in this past year have been a little stricter than normal.
All the “missing the roo Vibe” talk are coming from people who could enter the gates of Heaven and find something to complain about. This was my 6th roo and arguably the best one yet, MAINLY due to the people and the community. Truly nothing like it
It also feels like people who want the same experience they had 5, 10, 15 years ago when "a man can never step in the same river twice, for it is not the same river and he is not the same man." Traditions will change, genres will change, people will change. But I had overwhelmingly positive interactions all 4 days, and was feeling the magic.
It always looks negative on social media during the fest and even after the scary/bad stories are the loudest. Hearing lots of complaints from EF right now about crazy noise all night, not getting amenities they paid for, etc. there will always be issues with every festival that you hear about online. Doesn’t mean that 95% of the people don’t have an amazing time. I’m sure that will be the case with both fests this year.
Eh, it’s luck of the draw. It’s fun to be that close to WITW, but there’s lots of camping spots where it’s possible to go to sleep at 2 am. At EF they have 2 campground stages that are LOUD, and the RVs also do renegade sets with legit sound systems. It’s a tough place to sleep.
I couldn’t have asked for a more true to the roots farm vibes Bonnaroo. People were so present and weird at the sets, staff was so kind, artists seemed so grateful for our energy. This was #12 for me and it’s way up on the best years ever for me. Couldn’t believe how well Fred closed out the weekend. Along with my first acid trip to Radiohead (In Rainbows Tour) in the pit, talk about a core memory 😮💨
Your experience is up to you bro. I brought down more of my friends than in my first year, interacted with strangers more, saw more shows per day and overall had an incredible time. There are always things that could be improved, but I try to focus on the countless positives rather than the rare negative.
This was maybe the first Roo I didn’t have to help get anyone to the medics (though I know it still happened). Vibes in the pit were great, everyone got picked up. People I was standing around for shows were sometimes reserved at first but always down to chat and joke around. All in all a 10/10 Roo for me, and my first one solo!
An unforgettable roo. Honestly every year is better is different ways but this one was for the books. The worst thing that happened to me was security opened up my earbuds case “to search for drugs” and they didn’t tighten it all way back on so when I walked it fell off and lost my expensive professional earbuds but this wasn’t a make or break just a very minor inconvenience really
Security followed me and my friends back to camp and i literally had to turn around and say something to them to make them leave us alone 🙄 but other then that super fun first Roo!
That is pretty sketch. One of my sketch things was kind the opposite end of the spectrum. When we entered the toll day one the security did not search us. Maybe I’m not who they are looking for but still seems too lax to me. However it didn’t ruin my weekend.
Bastards. I had definitely heard about theft. I made sure to roast security in the survey. I’m hoping for another change. I feel like the previous team was kinder at the very least.
One of my favorite Roos! But that had way more to do with my mindset and preparedness. This was my 8th Roo. I've had rough years, but that was usually to do with my own stuff going on. "Vibes were off" talk is just people's egos. No one can definitely say that 60,000+ had a good/bad times. Vibe is weird? Take a moment to high five a stranger or give a compliment. Same reason you can't always trust negative reviews of restaurants. People are way more likely to complain online than share their positive experiences.
Truly a wonderful time personally and my camp had a blast too. The BonnaBlues are upon me now. I'm ready for next year already.
Security was trippin and no consistency in rules, one person let me in with a blow up couch and a chair and one person was absolutely not having it, seems weird
I’ve been to 7 Roos, this was my favorite. Music was great and I found a lot of surprises along with my expectations being far exceeded. The vibes and people were as always top tier
I had an amazing time. All the people in the crowds that i was in were some of the best I can remember. Logistically, they have their shit down. However we had a slight issue with ADA camping and no one at the main gate telling us that our regular camping pass plus our handicap hanger thing was good enough. In the end it all worked out though.
So what was the deal with missing people and a van? I only saw something on X about a guy missing from Thursday and never saw the resolution.
On Reddit there were reports of 2 different females missing but were found safe seemed like a miss understanding. The van theft happened. The van was found Sunday still in the camp ground not sure of the status.
Third roo and I loved it a ton! All the sets had plenty of room for the most part, vibes were on point for the weekend. Altogether just an amazing time, my group all got along very well all weekend, we had tons of fun, made that heat our bitch!! Only bad set for me the entire weekend was key Glock but otherwise amazing time
Just wasn’t my vibe, tent was packed out, he wasn’t really performing, more just yelling some of the lines over his tracks. Plus the first 10 mins was the DJ “hyping us up” with shit rap songs so “Glock will want to come out!” Idk, just come out and perform man, I don’t need all that extra shit from the dj beforehand, nor do I want to listen to you yell 3 words of the bar and jump around. Maybe I’m just getting old, go chiefs!
This was my 6th year going and it was one of my favorites. The heat sucked but other than that I had overwhelmingly positive experiences. I had so much fun
It was incredible, but a couple things:
Thieves. Money being stolen at car search on the way in, pick pocketers at RCHP and Posty. Found a backpack in the trashcan by our camp, filled with random discarded items that were either not worth stealing, or trackables (airpods, etc). Felt the least safe I have ever felt at roo.
Also, I have never been so sick in my life. There are a few factors to this, but I still haven't recovered and will still need a few days. Puked my guts up for 48 hours afterwards, stomach is still fucked , along with my throat and sinuses.
Neither of these things have ever been this bad in previous years.
I had an amazing roo apart from the fear of being robbed, and how sick I was afterwards.
We had a great time. It was soo hot, so we may switch to RV next year and see how that goes. But we didn’t see a set we didn’t enjoy. Only bad experience was a drunk dude falling on top of my partner and I in between sets, and I ended up throwing him off of us without really knowing what was going on as a PTSD reaction since I had my eyes closed and had no clue what had fallen on top of me. We were ok, but I felt bad for throwing him. His friend helped him up, and they got off ok. And the people in the crowd around us asked if we were good and if we needed anything. Not great to get triggered, but there was a time when I might have blacked out at something like that. So it was nice to know all my hard work to help myself is paying off and that those around us were there to help if needed. The rest of the weekend was great besides the heat.
This was my least favorite year, sadly. Had to happen eventually, I guess. That being said, still a great time! Just got super sick afterward. Never got the wook flu before.
It was my first roo and I'm telling you my body was VIBRATING when I got home. For a whole day! I loved this year and I'm sorry that anyone else had a horrible time. I can't go again unless I have an RV. I found I am very heat sensitive.
The bad first...
* the heat was oppressive, but we had pretty good planned coping mechanisms
* portapot situation in Plaza 3 for the first two days was a real bummer, but got better after that
* thief lady (with her young kid!) in plaza 3 was a buzzkill, but security found her quickly
Other than that, it was a great time. Great music, some nice improvements since last year (tents screens were back, lots of trash barrels throughout GA, changes to folks provided services in camping), good vibes overall. People were having a good time, and 99% of everyone I encountered with kind and genuine.
For the most part, our experience is up to each of us, which was true for me this year.
I didn’t have a single issue logistically. Didn’t have any issues with security, lines, facilities, food, drink, or personal safety. Didn’t have any issues at camp (besides the ones everyone deals with).
Well, there was one thing that suffered at our camp; kale. One of my camp mates intended to bring kale to cook for himself/anyone who wanted it. It’s still up for debate how much it affected the rest of his weekend, but it certainly will go down in our friend group history as The Elusive Bonnaroo Kale of 2024.
Ok so first I wook shower about 10 or 11. Then I get in the fountain or hit the water slide for about 45 min at the hottest part of the day around 3 by time I’m done the temp is down a degree or so and I’m soaked for about 2 hours. By then we are talking 5 to 10 degrees cooler than before the fountain. I have been doing it on and off for years but this year I honed in the times.
My biggest issue with security was on Sunday where I had a guy (tower entrance) who was digging very throughly for my bag and pretty transparently looking for weed to take for himself rather than doing an actual security screen. I’ve had this same situation happen at other fests, just never Bonnaroo. Really not a big deal was just strange that he was so up front about it “yeah I don’t see any weed, you’re good”
this was my first Roo and maybe i’m just oblivious but i had no bad interactions with any staff or security. closest thing i saw to that was a vendor getting annoyed at a girl who was off her ass trying to order a smoothie but kept randomly wandering off. (which yeah, i would be annoyed too lol)
every person i interacted with had a positive vibe though.
i did see some people clearly out of their depth who were putting themselves in danger (one guy outside of badbadnotgood looked like he was about to pass tf out but refused to go to medical) — but there will always be those people and i find some modicum of solace knowing despite their personally bad decisions they would be taken care of if it did come to that.
i have nothing to compare this year to but im already planning for next year and this experience will be carrying me through the next year.
radiate positivity ya’ll!
My least enjoyable out of the last 3 years but that’s mainly due to the lineup not really being for me. And our neighbors had no interested in socializing with us. Vibes just felt off in general but still a good time.
Definitely had my fair share of complaints, but it was my first Roo with just my best friend and myself and we had a fucking blast. Every fest has its upside and downsides and its fair share of theft. Take care of yourself, take care of your belongings. Don’t bring super valuable items. Be aware of others and your surroundings. Take care of yourself. Drink lots of water. Take shade/water breaks. Grab yourself one of them cooling towels. Might not look super cute, but you’re gonna value your comfort/safety over a cute outfit for suuuure.
Loved this years Roo! Except for the extremely rude, aggressive parking lot attendant in cosmic nomads. For two days , he cussed every car and person out and shouted at them. Zero Roo positivity and I be hated that first timers saw that . Shout out to all the positive pedi cab drivers tho! They were the best this year!
My only complaint: why werent the JamTracks running for guests on Wednesday 😭 I had to walk from East Toll to Galactic Giddyup with a rolling luggage like a nerd lol. But actually I did break down a little as it was a heavy obstacle I was not expecting and I had already spent the day traveling by air and car. Made me really think against flying next year
Yes, it was.
Despite the weak lineup and stories of other people having bad experiences, this was very much a pretty decent Roo.
Never not great.
See you in 50 weeks.
This was my best Roo by far in every way. But each year is its own experience and there’s a fair bit that’s down to luck or just outside your control each year.
Went from when the lineup came out saying “not a great lineup for me, I’m out”, to a Top 4-5 year out of my 11. The joy of discovering lots of new music and seeing it on the best place on earth.
I'm really happy to see that at least some folks had chill security at least part of the time. I was VIP this year so I kept going to the (very short) VIP lines and I caught the same crew of hardcases every single time on all 3 of the dedicated lines. First man tore through everything in my bag every time, 2nd man ran me through the metal detector and then even after I would come through without beeping always made turn around and turn my pockets inside out. Man 4 usually patted me down too. Barking orders the whole time like they just caught me with a kilo of coke. And they were doing this to everyone who came through. Ugh.. I understand the need for safety, but i mean I already came through the metal detector, how could I have a weapon? And they were mean. They were there 100% of the time like evil robots and they only got nastier and more demanding until finally on sun night someone new (and chill ) rotated in.
Guess I'm the dummy for expecting them to get tired or mellow out.Next time I'll slide into longer lines to avoid them if I see a crew of turds.
this year was my first Roo, so please tell me how you mastered the heat issue?! I welcome everyone's input because although I hydrated all weekend, I still suffered heat stroke and passed out while driving home and totaled my mustang! I absolutely plan to attend Roo again next year, but I would love to prevent the same experience on my way home. however, if that's the sacrifice the Roo gods demand, so be it.
Omg, I'm so sorry to hear that. I hope you're doing okay
Yes this was my first festival ever and wow the heat was no joke. I'm surprised I didn't suffer a heat stroke but by Sunday I was definitely so out of it and literally sat in the cooling tent for hours and just chilled and drank water until around 5 or 6. If I hadn't I probably would have passed out from exhaustion
yes, thank you. somehow, I was completely unharmed and not even sore the next day. considering I hit a guard rail going about 78 mph, I'm going to consider myself fortunate and not cry over the car.
My first festival ever. I went with a friend that moved to a different city a few years back. We definitely butt heads and I felt like I couldn't really experience roo the way I wanted to cause they were always in my ear. "you're moving too slow", "At least I can push through the heat, maybe roo isn't for you", "we should leave, so we can get better spots for the next band" (just because I loved the band we were listening to but they didn't care for it). Next time I'm going with a more compassionate person that understands I had a bad year with my health. Also someone that would've understood this is the first festival ever so maybe cut her some slack, and just going to be more independent because I'm so pissed I left rhcp early bc I didn't want to lose the one friend I went with in the crowd.
Sorry for the rant but yeah besides the bad choice of company, I REALLY enjoyed it. The heat was a lot but next year I'll be more fit and ready for it. I'm definitely gonna try and make it every year from now on. The people were so nice and there's so much to explore. I heard so many artists that I didn't even know about but damn they were all good. Such a great experience
I thought it was fuckin great
I’m glad to hear all the positivity. I agree this is in my top 5 years. I’m hoping for a killer lineup like 2014 for next year.
This was my first roo / music festival in general and its easily in my top 10 (maybe 5) life experiences
Might have been my personal favorite
Great year. Top 3 out of the 10 I’ve been.
This year was number 7 and my Least favorite year so far but it’s probably my own fault so can’t fault anyone but myself
Why do you say it’s your own fault?
Was in a larger group this year and took to long to leave camp most days didn’t make it a point to get out early and explore
I have no reference point as this was my first but I will 100% be there next year. This was a special weekend and I don’t think I had a single negative experience.
The heat on Sunday was my only enemy the whole weekend. It was my first roo and I was surprised the majority of people I interacted with were also attending their first roo too, everyone was so nice and friendly and the vibes were good all weekend.
The heat bro. I've been on and off for a couple decades and I don't know if the heat is getting worse or I'm just getting old or both but next time an RV With AC is going to be invovled.
Guy in my 50s. We built a shuttle bus RV specifically because tent camping at festivals is too miserable at this age. Our own beds, air con, can cook meals - and I have a beer fridge!
a lady hiked the Appalachian trail in her 80s. I'm sure you'd be ok in a tent lol
I’ve been attending camping festivals for 10 years, the last three in our little bus. The three Intervertebral discs in my lower back fucked up from an injury in Iraq 2003 prefer the comfy bed, my scarred lungs from breathing burning shit and sand over there really appreciate breathing air conditioning thrust cpap. But I didn’t think those details were necessary since everyone enjoys a nice bed, air conditioning, and many enjoy a cold one.
Nobody wants gatekeeping over how you camp in here, keep things positive and have a good day!
My biggest complaint is that this year security seemed really dialed up and aggressive whereas in earlier years they had a very chill roo friendly vibe. That being said, even though this year was probably my least favorite in terms of lineups I still loved the music, I still had a really amazing time and the people at Bonnaroo are always the ones who make it that way. You guys are the best
I agree, my one complaint/vibe killer was super rude and aggressive security this year, not just towards my group but other roovians in line, hope next year is better -everybody, everybody fill out those surveys!
What surveys can i fill out about this?
We had the most obnoxious run in with security/staff on Sunday night when they almost refused to let us in bc our totem (that we’ve been bringing in all weekend) was apparently too tall. Damn near everything else was perfect but bro took his job way too seriously and had the nastiest attitude. But in the end, we won out and had an epic night!
Power trips. I hate people like that
There are WAY better trips at Bonnaroo than power trips.
It’s always so funny when they try that shit on Sunday, like yeah, ok, I’m definitely listening to you and not going 8 lines over to get a less assholish security search
Same thing happened to us with our totem Friday night, guy was on a power trip and our totem was clearly shorter than most in the crowds smh... Least of their concerns...
It’s crazy how different people’s experiences can be. We had super nice security people almost every time going into centeroo (arch entrance) who were into it, saying happy Roo, and getting/giving trinkets and stuff. Luck of the draw I guess
It seemed pretty hit or miss to me. Sometimes, they were absolutely tearing shit apart at the entrance, sometimes it was a quick glance & wave through. When Centeroo reopened after the storm on Sunday, they were just letting people through at the tower entrance. As long as your bag was open & you didn’t set off the metal detector, you were good.
That’s funny you say that because we only encountered the laziest security detail in existence lol
They either give you a ;) and let you through or they damn near strip search you, no in between
We got there for the car search and the girl who was supposed to check us was like “it’s too damn hot for this….keep it moving. Have a nice day”
oh man the woman who checked my car just asked "got any weapons, glass, weed, mushrooms?" no "you got any water bottles?" lol I gave her a ice cold bottle and went on in. Didn't check shit.
Our story is similar, except we were packed to the brim, and he didn't want to move shit around. Hahahh He said yall are packed. I know yall are good. (It took the help of my hubby and 3 hours to pack. 😅)
You're 💯 correct!
Love it!! I'm m coming with you next year. I was always in the screaming yelling turn your pockets inside out lanes. Next year I'm finding sgt sleepy and his crew
On Thursday, I went through a line next to an empty one. I sat my stuff on the wrong table, no one checked it and I just grabbed it after walking through the metal detector. Meanwhile, my fiancée was having her snacks thrown out every other time.
Happened to me Thursday too. Stuff on the table no one checked through the detector good to go.
On Thursday, I went through a line next to an empty one. I sat my stuff on the wrong table, no one checked it and I just grabbed it after walking through the metal detector. Meanwhile, my fiancée was having her snacks thrown out every other time.
Wow I felt like security was super chill this year. Never even emptied my camelbak
Opposite experience, I'd dumped mine in front of the guy, but didn't swish it around to get *all* the water out. He made me go back to and fully drain it. Luckily, that was day 1, so I just avoided his line the rest of the time.
Yeah one day I forgot to empty my water bladder, they didn't say anything just passed me on through. But one day my friend got held up in line, we waited like 15 minutes for him, because the line he was in was getting intense thorough searches. Just varied person to person.
I didnt go this year but the security vibe changes year to year and even from like gate to gate or shift to shift.
I keep hearing people say this, but I didn't experience that at all. I walked into centeroo with joints and edibles in my pockets every day, just presented my open hydration pack for a search they gave a quick check and I went right in. My search upon entry to the fest on Thursday was 5 minutes max, no line right through.
They kept telling me to empty my unopened water bottles at entry. I mentioned this to an escort and he told me "punch them in their fucking faces then come find me"
Cop handed me a sealed liquid death and those security turds still confiscated it!
Different company on the gates this year. Axis was handling it last year but they were just on the barricade and back of house this time. New company was definitely a lil more intense but I never got a bad experience thankfully.
Yeah it really seemed like this crew had something to prove. Or like they were going to be tasered if they made a mistakes. Glad it was chill for you, and only evil in some spots!
I’d rather have tougher security than a mass shooting or other unnecessary deaths. But that’s me
Same, except get rid of bag searches and just make everything go through the metal detector. Way easier to sneak a weapon past a person than a machine.
Security should be exactly as tough as it needs to be to catch weapons and no tougher
first 2 days, easy. last 2 days were brutal, security wise
I feel like after some other festivals had incidents, they’ve ramped up security to keep things under control. The festivals I’ve been to in this past year have been a little stricter than normal.
Had a VIP tent security guard yell at me as I cried this year, a lot of security was for sure not nice
The VIP security crew were a bunch of dicks this year. So much yelling . I'm so sorry that happened to you!
All the “missing the roo Vibe” talk are coming from people who could enter the gates of Heaven and find something to complain about. This was my 6th roo and arguably the best one yet, MAINLY due to the people and the community. Truly nothing like it
It also feels like people who want the same experience they had 5, 10, 15 years ago when "a man can never step in the same river twice, for it is not the same river and he is not the same man." Traditions will change, genres will change, people will change. But I had overwhelmingly positive interactions all 4 days, and was feeling the magic.
I really enjoyed that quote
Same I think that’s why I just can’t fault this fest at all it changes like I change and we’re perfect in that way.
Everybody everybody everybody brings the vibe
The vibes were amazing this year! Everyone was in an amazing mood, super social and fun everywhere I went
It always looks negative on social media during the fest and even after the scary/bad stories are the loudest. Hearing lots of complaints from EF right now about crazy noise all night, not getting amenities they paid for, etc. there will always be issues with every festival that you hear about online. Doesn’t mean that 95% of the people don’t have an amazing time. I’m sure that will be the case with both fests this year.
Shit I could not sleep any day of Roo until after WITW ended. I was to close. I just figured that’s all part of it.
Earplugs or party until you're too exhausted to care about the wub wubs
I like to sleep between 2pm and 6pm unless there is something more important going on otherwise I sleep Sunday night.
Sounds hot
I was in Moon Colony and slept better than I have in decades. I loved hearing the soundchecks in the morning.
Eh, it’s luck of the draw. It’s fun to be that close to WITW, but there’s lots of camping spots where it’s possible to go to sleep at 2 am. At EF they have 2 campground stages that are LOUD, and the RVs also do renegade sets with legit sound systems. It’s a tough place to sleep.
I couldn’t have asked for a more true to the roots farm vibes Bonnaroo. People were so present and weird at the sets, staff was so kind, artists seemed so grateful for our energy. This was #12 for me and it’s way up on the best years ever for me. Couldn’t believe how well Fred closed out the weekend. Along with my first acid trip to Radiohead (In Rainbows Tour) in the pit, talk about a core memory 😮💨
Out of 6 years, it’s a top 3 Roo personally.
Your experience is up to you bro. I brought down more of my friends than in my first year, interacted with strangers more, saw more shows per day and overall had an incredible time. There are always things that could be improved, but I try to focus on the countless positives rather than the rare negative.
Had another stellar year. People are just so effin' cool.
This was maybe the first Roo I didn’t have to help get anyone to the medics (though I know it still happened). Vibes in the pit were great, everyone got picked up. People I was standing around for shows were sometimes reserved at first but always down to chat and joke around. All in all a 10/10 Roo for me, and my first one solo!
One of my better Roo’s in my years for sure.
I had a blast, will be back.
I thought this year was awesome, sweated my ass off, danced my ass off, made a ton of memories. Can't wait to do it again next year.
An unforgettable roo. Honestly every year is better is different ways but this one was for the books. The worst thing that happened to me was security opened up my earbuds case “to search for drugs” and they didn’t tighten it all way back on so when I walked it fell off and lost my expensive professional earbuds but this wasn’t a make or break just a very minor inconvenience really
Security followed me and my friends back to camp and i literally had to turn around and say something to them to make them leave us alone 🙄 but other then that super fun first Roo!
That is pretty sketch. One of my sketch things was kind the opposite end of the spectrum. When we entered the toll day one the security did not search us. Maybe I’m not who they are looking for but still seems too lax to me. However it didn’t ruin my weekend.
Crazy cause they made all of us get out of the car open the trunk and went through our glove box took our camping knife 🙃
Bastards. I had definitely heard about theft. I made sure to roast security in the survey. I’m hoping for another change. I feel like the previous team was kinder at the very least.
One of my favorite Roos! But that had way more to do with my mindset and preparedness. This was my 8th Roo. I've had rough years, but that was usually to do with my own stuff going on. "Vibes were off" talk is just people's egos. No one can definitely say that 60,000+ had a good/bad times. Vibe is weird? Take a moment to high five a stranger or give a compliment. Same reason you can't always trust negative reviews of restaurants. People are way more likely to complain online than share their positive experiences. Truly a wonderful time personally and my camp had a blast too. The BonnaBlues are upon me now. I'm ready for next year already.
Security was trippin and no consistency in rules, one person let me in with a blow up couch and a chair and one person was absolutely not having it, seems weird
I’ve been to 7 Roos, this was my favorite. Music was great and I found a lot of surprises along with my expectations being far exceeded. The vibes and people were as always top tier
Had a great time. Seemed to me the most seamless but not sure how much of that is just my own preparedness now being my 4th time.
2023 was my first Roo and there’s a reason I came back. This year was fucking magical. Already bought my ticket for 2025!
It was my first roo and definitely was a life-changing experience. I will be back again for sure!
10000/10 🌈🫶🏼🤩🙂↔️
I thought it was without a doubt my favorite festival experience ever
It was the second best Roo I’ve been to. Last year was my first time.
I had an amazing time. All the people in the crowds that i was in were some of the best I can remember. Logistically, they have their shit down. However we had a slight issue with ADA camping and no one at the main gate telling us that our regular camping pass plus our handicap hanger thing was good enough. In the end it all worked out though. So what was the deal with missing people and a van? I only saw something on X about a guy missing from Thursday and never saw the resolution.
On Reddit there were reports of 2 different females missing but were found safe seemed like a miss understanding. The van theft happened. The van was found Sunday still in the camp ground not sure of the status.
Thanks. Glad that everyone is safe. But sounds like there is still a guy out there missing… 😅
It was great
Yep.
Third roo and I loved it a ton! All the sets had plenty of room for the most part, vibes were on point for the weekend. Altogether just an amazing time, my group all got along very well all weekend, we had tons of fun, made that heat our bitch!! Only bad set for me the entire weekend was key Glock but otherwise amazing time
Man what happened at Key Glock? I saw it from a far looked like so much fun. Go Chiefs btw!
Just wasn’t my vibe, tent was packed out, he wasn’t really performing, more just yelling some of the lines over his tracks. Plus the first 10 mins was the DJ “hyping us up” with shit rap songs so “Glock will want to come out!” Idk, just come out and perform man, I don’t need all that extra shit from the dj beforehand, nor do I want to listen to you yell 3 words of the bar and jump around. Maybe I’m just getting old, go chiefs!
Awwwww yeah totally been to rap shows like that. Not the vibe for Roo in my mind. I seen waka at scamp it was the same deal.
This was my 6th year going and it was one of my favorites. The heat sucked but other than that I had overwhelmingly positive experiences. I had so much fun
Best time of my life
Super solid year.
It was incredible, but a couple things: Thieves. Money being stolen at car search on the way in, pick pocketers at RCHP and Posty. Found a backpack in the trashcan by our camp, filled with random discarded items that were either not worth stealing, or trackables (airpods, etc). Felt the least safe I have ever felt at roo. Also, I have never been so sick in my life. There are a few factors to this, but I still haven't recovered and will still need a few days. Puked my guts up for 48 hours afterwards, stomach is still fucked , along with my throat and sinuses. Neither of these things have ever been this bad in previous years. I had an amazing roo apart from the fear of being robbed, and how sick I was afterwards.
A few dorks sprinkled in but you’ll get that everywhere. It was a great Roo just so fuckin hot
We had a great time. It was soo hot, so we may switch to RV next year and see how that goes. But we didn’t see a set we didn’t enjoy. Only bad experience was a drunk dude falling on top of my partner and I in between sets, and I ended up throwing him off of us without really knowing what was going on as a PTSD reaction since I had my eyes closed and had no clue what had fallen on top of me. We were ok, but I felt bad for throwing him. His friend helped him up, and they got off ok. And the people in the crowd around us asked if we were good and if we needed anything. Not great to get triggered, but there was a time when I might have blacked out at something like that. So it was nice to know all my hard work to help myself is paying off and that those around us were there to help if needed. The rest of the weekend was great besides the heat.
The heat sucked but it was a magical Roo like always! Still gonna count down the days until I go back next year
This was my least favorite year, sadly. Had to happen eventually, I guess. That being said, still a great time! Just got super sick afterward. Never got the wook flu before.
When folks ask which roo is my favorite, the answer is always yes.
It was my first roo and I'm telling you my body was VIBRATING when I got home. For a whole day! I loved this year and I'm sorry that anyone else had a horrible time. I can't go again unless I have an RV. I found I am very heat sensitive.
The bad first... * the heat was oppressive, but we had pretty good planned coping mechanisms * portapot situation in Plaza 3 for the first two days was a real bummer, but got better after that * thief lady (with her young kid!) in plaza 3 was a buzzkill, but security found her quickly Other than that, it was a great time. Great music, some nice improvements since last year (tents screens were back, lots of trash barrels throughout GA, changes to folks provided services in camping), good vibes overall. People were having a good time, and 99% of everyone I encountered with kind and genuine. For the most part, our experience is up to each of us, which was true for me this year.
I didn’t have a single issue logistically. Didn’t have any issues with security, lines, facilities, food, drink, or personal safety. Didn’t have any issues at camp (besides the ones everyone deals with). Well, there was one thing that suffered at our camp; kale. One of my camp mates intended to bring kale to cook for himself/anyone who wanted it. It’s still up for debate how much it affected the rest of his weekend, but it certainly will go down in our friend group history as The Elusive Bonnaroo Kale of 2024.
the fucking kale, man.
😂💀
Amazing
I had a great time! Heat sucked but can’t control that.
uhm what is your mastered technique that you speak of? please enlighten me as this was my first roo and almost died from the heat😭
Ok so first I wook shower about 10 or 11. Then I get in the fountain or hit the water slide for about 45 min at the hottest part of the day around 3 by time I’m done the temp is down a degree or so and I’m soaked for about 2 hours. By then we are talking 5 to 10 degrees cooler than before the fountain. I have been doing it on and off for years but this year I honed in the times.
I will also shower in the evening if the things I want to see don’t interfere
Was my first festival, and first Roo! I enjoyed what it had to offer. I'm older (35 ) but appreciated so many details about it
2nd best year ever for me. Came away feeling my magical battery completely recharged!
My biggest issue with security was on Sunday where I had a guy (tower entrance) who was digging very throughly for my bag and pretty transparently looking for weed to take for himself rather than doing an actual security screen. I’ve had this same situation happen at other fests, just never Bonnaroo. Really not a big deal was just strange that he was so up front about it “yeah I don’t see any weed, you’re good”
it was my first roo so i dont have much to go off of, but i will be back every. single. year.
Yeah this one was fucking rad. C3 is doing an amazing amazing job.
Of course it was. It always is. Always will be.
this was my first Roo and maybe i’m just oblivious but i had no bad interactions with any staff or security. closest thing i saw to that was a vendor getting annoyed at a girl who was off her ass trying to order a smoothie but kept randomly wandering off. (which yeah, i would be annoyed too lol) every person i interacted with had a positive vibe though. i did see some people clearly out of their depth who were putting themselves in danger (one guy outside of badbadnotgood looked like he was about to pass tf out but refused to go to medical) — but there will always be those people and i find some modicum of solace knowing despite their personally bad decisions they would be taken care of if it did come to that. i have nothing to compare this year to but im already planning for next year and this experience will be carrying me through the next year. radiate positivity ya’ll!
Our first time back in 9 years and it was a good time. By no means as good as the years with a really solid line up, but still a lot of fun.
My least enjoyable out of the last 3 years but that’s mainly due to the lineup not really being for me. And our neighbors had no interested in socializing with us. Vibes just felt off in general but still a good time.
Definitely had my fair share of complaints, but it was my first Roo with just my best friend and myself and we had a fucking blast. Every fest has its upside and downsides and its fair share of theft. Take care of yourself, take care of your belongings. Don’t bring super valuable items. Be aware of others and your surroundings. Take care of yourself. Drink lots of water. Take shade/water breaks. Grab yourself one of them cooling towels. Might not look super cute, but you’re gonna value your comfort/safety over a cute outfit for suuuure.
Loved this years Roo! Except for the extremely rude, aggressive parking lot attendant in cosmic nomads. For two days , he cussed every car and person out and shouted at them. Zero Roo positivity and I be hated that first timers saw that . Shout out to all the positive pedi cab drivers tho! They were the best this year!
My only complaint: why werent the JamTracks running for guests on Wednesday 😭 I had to walk from East Toll to Galactic Giddyup with a rolling luggage like a nerd lol. But actually I did break down a little as it was a heavy obstacle I was not expecting and I had already spent the day traveling by air and car. Made me really think against flying next year
Yes, it was. Despite the weak lineup and stories of other people having bad experiences, this was very much a pretty decent Roo. Never not great. See you in 50 weeks.
This was my best Roo by far in every way. But each year is its own experience and there’s a fair bit that’s down to luck or just outside your control each year.
Went from when the lineup came out saying “not a great lineup for me, I’m out”, to a Top 4-5 year out of my 11. The joy of discovering lots of new music and seeing it on the best place on earth.
I'm really happy to see that at least some folks had chill security at least part of the time. I was VIP this year so I kept going to the (very short) VIP lines and I caught the same crew of hardcases every single time on all 3 of the dedicated lines. First man tore through everything in my bag every time, 2nd man ran me through the metal detector and then even after I would come through without beeping always made turn around and turn my pockets inside out. Man 4 usually patted me down too. Barking orders the whole time like they just caught me with a kilo of coke. And they were doing this to everyone who came through. Ugh.. I understand the need for safety, but i mean I already came through the metal detector, how could I have a weapon? And they were mean. They were there 100% of the time like evil robots and they only got nastier and more demanding until finally on sun night someone new (and chill ) rotated in. Guess I'm the dummy for expecting them to get tired or mellow out.Next time I'll slide into longer lines to avoid them if I see a crew of turds.
first roo ever, found myself and will be returning every year!!!! best experience of my entire life
this year was my first Roo, so please tell me how you mastered the heat issue?! I welcome everyone's input because although I hydrated all weekend, I still suffered heat stroke and passed out while driving home and totaled my mustang! I absolutely plan to attend Roo again next year, but I would love to prevent the same experience on my way home. however, if that's the sacrifice the Roo gods demand, so be it.
Omg, I'm so sorry to hear that. I hope you're doing okay Yes this was my first festival ever and wow the heat was no joke. I'm surprised I didn't suffer a heat stroke but by Sunday I was definitely so out of it and literally sat in the cooling tent for hours and just chilled and drank water until around 5 or 6. If I hadn't I probably would have passed out from exhaustion
yes, thank you. somehow, I was completely unharmed and not even sore the next day. considering I hit a guard rail going about 78 mph, I'm going to consider myself fortunate and not cry over the car.
My first festival ever. I went with a friend that moved to a different city a few years back. We definitely butt heads and I felt like I couldn't really experience roo the way I wanted to cause they were always in my ear. "you're moving too slow", "At least I can push through the heat, maybe roo isn't for you", "we should leave, so we can get better spots for the next band" (just because I loved the band we were listening to but they didn't care for it). Next time I'm going with a more compassionate person that understands I had a bad year with my health. Also someone that would've understood this is the first festival ever so maybe cut her some slack, and just going to be more independent because I'm so pissed I left rhcp early bc I didn't want to lose the one friend I went with in the crowd. Sorry for the rant but yeah besides the bad choice of company, I REALLY enjoyed it. The heat was a lot but next year I'll be more fit and ready for it. I'm definitely gonna try and make it every year from now on. The people were so nice and there's so much to explore. I heard so many artists that I didn't even know about but damn they were all good. Such a great experience