Happy Forest!!! I wanted to give you guys an ultimate guide to Electric Forest to help those who are wanting to go. I absolutely loved my first forest so I hope this helps. I highly recommend reading through Electric Forest’s website first then read this blog post. Feel free to email me or DM me on Instagram with any questions.
How to Start Planning
I did a blog post on how to start planning that has some great details on how to start planning. Check this post out first then see the rest of the tips below!
Budgeting for Electric Forest
Below you’ll see all I spent to give you an idea. Knowing what I know now probably could’ve reduced in some areas with flights, camping, and the rental car.
For Electric Forest 2018
| GA Ticket | $365.45 |
| Flights | $438.80 |
| Rental Car/Camping/Food/Early Arrival | $374.00 |
| Outfits | $85.00 |
| TOTAL | $1,263.25 |
For Electric Forest 2019
| Ticket | Free |
| Flights | $373.30 |
| Rental Car | $100.00 |
| Walmart/Camping | $100.00 |
| Outfits | $50.00 |
| Food/Drink at Forest | $150.00 |
| Hotel night before | $50 |
| One Way Shuttle | $50 |
| TOTAL | $873.30 |
For Electric Forest 2021 – Group Camping
| Ticket | Free |
| Flights | Used flight points (estimated $600) |
| Rental car split with friends (friend had a travel deal) | $18.31 |
| Walmart/Camping | $100.00 |
| Food/Drink at Forest | $300.00 |
| Hotel night before | $50 |
| TOTAL | $500 (would’ve been more with ticket and flights) |
Pricing has definitely increased. Depending on the type of forest you want, you could be spending at least $1000 if you aren’t driving.
Tickets
I break down all the ticketing options in this blog post here. If you were unable to get a ticket, keep an eye on the resale page, social media, and from friends to get a ticket. The wristband exchange is the safest most reliable method. Buy from friends and social media if you really trust the person selling it.
Tickets go on sale beginning of December and that kicks it off with the Loyalty Sale and then there’s a General On-Sale.
Loyalty Sale
The Loyalty Sale are for those who attended in previous years. They recently revamped the loyalty system. You can learn more about that on their website.
General On-Sale
If you do not have loyalty, you will purchase your ticket in the General On-Sale. Don’t worry about if there will be any tickets left over after the Loyalty sale as there will be. It’s best to be ready to go and ready to purchase if you want to guarantee yourself a ticket in the general on-sale.
I Didn’t Get a Ticket, Now What?
If you sadly didn’t get a ticket, no need to stress!! You can easily find one through social media, Reddit, and the official ticket exchange. It is a long time between the tickets going on sale and the festival that things sometimes happen where people can no longer attend. If people happen to forfeit their ticket from not making payments on the payment plan, Electric Forest will have a mini sale to resell those. Keep your eyes peeled and you will make it to the forest one way or another. You can also look into volunteer and work exchange programs too.
Flights
Flights can depend on where you’re traveling from. I probably could’ve been more strategic and gotten my flights ahead of time for a cheaper price. Most people fly into Grand Rapids, Chicago, and Detroit. From the airport, people either rent a car (if you’re of age) or take a shuttle.
Shuttles to the Forest
There are one-way and roundtrip shuttles to and from the airports. This is especially helpful if you can’t rent a car. You can book it and see the pricing for roundtrip or one way. If you’re worried about if you’ll be able to bring all your camping essentials this is from the website: “For camping festivals, ask that passengers limit their gear to a total of three items. For example, you could bring one large bag, one tent and one cooler.” A friend recommended to me to have another suitcase to fill with food because you stop by a Walmart on the way. If you do the shuttles you can get early arrival on Wednesday without a pass and you will be in tent-only camping (unless you have friends in car camping or group camping).
Getting to the Forest
If you are driving to the forest, I got in on Wednesday to Grand Rapids around noon and we stopped by a Walmart and got into the grounds and all set-up by 4:30. We waited maybe 30 minutes to get through campground security then set-up camp. I’m not sure what wait times were like on Thursday, but I can imagine potentially longer since you have to pay to arrive early on Wednesday. I HIGHLY recommend early arrival because you get to get to the forest and get all situated. Music starts on Thursday at around 1 pm so getting there on Thursday puts you more at risk of missing artists you were wanting to see.
For 2019, it was way more chaotic. We arrived on Wednesday at 4 pm and were in and set up camp by 7 pm. We used the north entrance and that expedited our process tremendously. Electric Forest has added a Tuesday load-in which can help ease set up for those wanting to get there early.
How to Camp at Electric Forest (General Admission Camping Tips)
If you’ve never camped at a music festival before, it’s okay to be nervous about camping at a music festival! I had camped at Coachella before and you definitely learn how you can improve each time you camp. It’s easy when you have a large group to split the costs of camping supplies. You are responsible for providing for yourself in terms of how you’ll sleep, eat, and maintain hygiene over the weekend. Electric Forest provides showers ($10 each time you want to use them), general store and the main square area with vendors and food if you need or forgot anything. Here are some other tips to hopefully help your camping experience:
- There is security into the campgrounds so make sure you’ve taken a look at what you can and can’t bring. Security into camping took about 30 minutes waiting in line than 10 minutes for them to search our car. Just be friendly and make sure you don’t have anything they prohibit and they’ll be nice to you. For 2019, they barely searched our car.
- Befriend your neighbors! There’s some downtime between when sets start and on the night before if you do early arrival. You never know what the connection can spark.
- Car camping spots are approximately 12′x30′ – this area includes the size of your camping space, as well as the space for parking for your car in your camp.
- Make sure you have trash bags and they provide recycling bags so you can be mindful of your waste.
- Stakes are super important to have for your tents. Weekend 2 last year got pretty windy and we saw lots of tents and EZ Ups get blown away.
- No glass is allowed in the campgrounds so most people get a beer and wine for their camp. The limit is 1 case of beer and 1 box of wine per person.
- If you are worried about showers, you can pay $10 each time you want to use them. Some people bring a portable shower that utilizes jugs of water. I used baby wipes for the first couple of days then showered the second to last day and last day.
How to Prepare
Here is a super handy list of what to bring to the festival straight from Electric Forest’s website. Some items you don’t have to worry about like a grill and propane if you don’t have one. My friend Peyton and I got along just fine eating fruit, veggies and PB&Js haha. Up to you!
As always make sure you are getting enough sleep leading up and taking vitamins so you don’t get sick. I take Emergenc before, during and after as well as immunity supplements.
Security
Security was a little bit of a joke. It wasn’t all that thorough; however, you never know until you go through security for the first time on the first day. Play it by ear and make sure you read the list of items you can’t bring into the festival. For 2019, on day one the lines were ridiculous, I’d recommend getting in line before gates open or waiting till it dies down.
What to Wear
You can be super casual and cute for this festival or you can go all out. Last year I wore a lot of two-piece rave sets or a bodysuit. I highly recommend bringing clothes for both cold and warm. Depending on the weather it could be cold and rainy or super hot (like it was for me). Just pack clothes for both situations.
How to Survive
- Take breaks as needed! It can be a super easy-going festival and there are usually great places to sit.
- STAY HYDRATED!!!
- Wear comfy shoes or put Dr. Scholls in your shoes, it is A LOT of walking.
- Bring Emergenc, Pedialyte just anything to make sure you won’t get sick.
How to Enjoy Electric Forest
- Get lost and explore the forest at least once during the day and once at night. You’ll find a lot of hidden gems.
- Eat the yummy food (Hi Spicy Pie and Mozz Sticks!!!) & HAVE THE LEMONADE
- Become apart of the Forest Family and make friends
- Enjoy every second and be open to the experience. It might not go as planned and that’s okay 🙂
Other Resources:
- Tips from Electric Forest: https://electricforestfestival.com/2019-info/guidelines-resources-tips/#tips-from-the-forest-family
- Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/electricforest
- Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/ElectricForestFamily/
- Guide: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B0rIiDle2lgpOXFmZnJPTWVTeDQ/view
