June 7th, 2018
When my girl Kelsey texts me and says “are you in town?! Lets go to Bonnaroo!” I do not hesitate to say “i’m in!” Spontaneous adventures are hands down my absolute favorite thing to do and there’s no one better to do them with than this girl right here.
I’ve had my fair share of country concerts and music festivals but Bonnaroo was unlike any other. I could not believe how friendly everyone was! Constantly yelling ‘happy roo” and giving high fives all around to complete strangers! I loved it, thats something you don’t get everyday. Bonnaroo was definitely a breath of fresh air.
Kelsey is a travel blogger and social media influencer so she had the work opportunity to go shoot content for Nature Valley and I had the pleasure of tagging along. Social media marketing with influencers is a big deal people, the world is evolving, get on board. Any job where you can go to a music festival and call it work sounds like a dream job to me.
Our day started with a pit stop to the grocery store to get supplies for the hour long bus ride to the venue.
Bonnaroo is a camp out music festival meaning probably 80% of the attendees end up camping out for the week. We were among the few people who shuttled to and from Nashville. Not my cup of tea roughing it in 90 degree weather and humidity after sweating all day and being on your feet. I love me a cold shower and my bed after these kinds of days lol. Call me soft, i’ll own it. So tip #1 is get a shuttle to and from Bonnaroo! You will thank me later.
Or…… you could rent one of these hobbit tents with ac and a toilet and shower for somewhere between 7k & 10k. Im hoping thats for the whole festival and not just a night….. But, they were sick. So maybe just make friends with someone who has one.
view of the campgrounds as you enter the venue
entrance to the hobbit tents and everything VIP.
Remember what I said about the level of friendliness…. Yeah, high fives all around as you enter the venue.
video as we walked under the Bonnaroo arch into the venue, couldn’t not selfie.
The BONNAROO arch at the entrance was a huge photo opp for us lol.
Tip #2 be prepared for LOTS & LOTS of walking. I was unprepared and went the cute shoe route and wore unbroken in Frye boots that completely tore up my heels. I actually ended up buying a pair of sandals from a vendor late at night because I was DYINGGGG.
That’s another cool thing about Bonarroo that may be different from other musical festivals you’ve been to, there are thousands of vendors. Food and drink vendors obviously, but clothes and shoes and art work and everything in between. & Gourmet food vendors at that! Come with an empty belly!
Kels scored a sweet pair of festival boots from Festy Besty . We visited their tent on my sandal hunt and started talking to the two owners, a husband and wife. They were so cool telling us their story and I happened to notice they had a wall of models doing fun adventurous stuff wearing their boots and I said do you guys do influencer marketing? The husband replied yes those are all influencers you see up there. Ding ding ding! immediate in for Kelsey, we pull up her instagram and start talking business. before you know it she is walking away with a brand new FREE pair of Festy Besty boots. It’s all about networking and talking to people! You never know who you’re going to meet or how it’s going to improve your brand or open new doors. Moral of the story don’t be afraid, take the damn shot. Had I not asked that question we wouldn’t have made that contact and gotten free boots and a marketing opportunity. Side note- I have never seen boots like these before, go check them out, you’ll turn heads!
tip #3 look cute lol, you WILL walk away with hundreds of adorbs photos. Just maybe pick better shoes than I did. Also, dress for the heat, we about passed out right there and went home because the heat was honestly unbearable. Or just drink faster, that usually helps too hahaha. bring one of those squirt bottles with the fans or a backpack that doubles as a water bottle, those sounded so glorious to us in the moment and of course we didn’t have either. Also bring one of those oil dab sheets, a sweetheart in the women’s bathroom offered us some and they were a life saver!
tip #4 ride all of the rides. Especially the ferris wheel, you can see a view of the whole park from the top and check out which corner you want to go explore next. Just have fun, this is the most free, no rules music festival i’ve ever seen and there wasn’t a grumpy soul in the whole place.
I think one of the best things about Bonnaroo is there are so many different stages playing music at once. The venue is so large that you can’t even hear the music from a different stage. I always love a festival that gives me options to explore and do as I please. Don’t like music playing at one stage? Go to the next and you can find a completely different genre and group of people! Another tip, for the more chill tents and moments in the day maybe bring a light blanket or something you can easily take out of your bag to sit on in the grass! We got Bonnaroo handkerchiefs and used those lol.
Theres also different “themes” if you will, happening at every corner of the park. Theres a North Pole Christmas club, a beach luau with real sand! Last but not least my absolute favorite… A SILENT DISCO!!!
tip #5 get you a friend who looks at you the way Kels looks at me in selfie mode. LOL. jk but for real surround yourself with people who give you life and make you excited for the next adventure. This girl is one of the most driven, selfless and independent people I have ever met, & we just met! Heres to meeting new friends and having a life full of spontaneous adventures. Kels, i’m waiting for the next, “hey you busy? Lets go!” text. 😉
Xx Lettey
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