I’ve been to Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival every year since since 2021 (yes, it got cancelled, but I still camped the whole weekend so I’m counting it!), and I’ve picked up a lot of pro-moves along the way. I thought I would share some of these tips along with how to combat the difficulties that accompany an almost week-long camping festival in Tennessee during the summer.
The Arrival Strategy
Tuesday or Wednesday arrival is always going to be your best bet. I’ve never been more than a 10-15 minute walk from a Centeroo entrance in my years attending the festival. Trust me, with how exhausting this week is, you’ll be so thankful to have a short walk from your campsite to Centeroo. Plus, when there’s down time, you can walk back to camp quickly for a couple of drinks (or whatever else you’d like to partake in) before heading back in. So it’s really a money-saver too.
As I’m originally from Birmingham, AL, it used to only take a few hours to get up to The Farm. The process was always:
- Fully pack the car the night before
- Wake up around 4 in the morning
- Get to the Manchester, TN Walmart around 7 in the morning
- Get to the gates at 8 am
This ALWAYS went off without a hitch. Well, we did have a hitch haul, but you know what I mean.
Nowadays, things have changed a lot for me. I live in the Denver, CO area which makes this whole thing a lot more complicated. In 2025, we left on Sunday afternoon. We spent 2 nights on the road and ended up at the Bonnaroo gates at 2pm Tuesday. Obviously, there is no Tuesday entry in 2026 so we will push our plans back one day to accommodate that this time around.
A few things that made the drive a lot easier:
- Pack sandwiches, snacks, energy drinks, etc. You’re already bringing a cooler (or should be!!!), so just toss them in there!
- Pick a hotel early in the day. It helps a TON to have a goal when you’re driving. Especially since I don’t have anyone to trade off driving shifts with, it’s really nice to always have a destination for the day.
- Go ahead and download music and podcasts. You’ll likely go through a lot of areas without service, and nothing makes me more tired than a quiet drive. Plus, you probably won’t have much service on The Farm anyway, so this is a double whammy.
Mastering the Weather
There’s so much I could say here. From the heat wave (no, not Glass Animals) in 2022 to sitting under the canopy utterly zoned out until the sun goes down enough to feel like I can brave the outside. But, I’m going to keep it simple in this section.
I want to give a list of my essentials, why I like them, and a link where you can buy them. Keep in mind that this list is comprised ONLY of things that I own and actively use for any festivals and even just camping trips. I would never link something that I haven’t invested in myself.
Solar Generator / Solar Panels
I will NEVER do another festival without a solar generator again. This was a big investment, but it genuinely changed my life. They are also much cheaper nowadays. I plugged in a box fan at camp, put the solar panel on top of my car, and it made a world’s difference. With the typical amount of sunlight at Bonnaroo, the generator never even got below 75% with only a 100W solar panel.
Fans
Everyone always recommends battery-operated fans for Centeroo, but my hot take is that I don’t think they’re worth it. A rave fan is what you need. Not only does it move SO MUCH air, but you can also block the sun with it.
If you’re looking for nice battery-operated fans to use at camp, however, I bought 2 of these and absolutely loved them. The battery life is fantastic, the fan speed is super strong, and you can just clip them on your camp chair and take a nap without having to hold them. As someone who has bought way too many battery fans, these are a non-negotiable for me.
Cooling Towels
Buy a few. Always keep one in your cooler. Always keep one on your body. That’s it. Please don’t skip these.
Hydration Pack
People are all over the board with this one. Honestly, you don’t need to spend much. I got a small camelback from Sierra for about $30 to replace my larger one, and I loved it so much more than the bigger model. Yes, it holds less water, but I still found it to be plenty since you have to dump it out when you enter Centeroo anyway. Plus, it was much lighter which made standing for hours a whole lot easier.
Dark Room Tent and Aluminet
A few years ago, I invested in a pretty cheap “dark-room” tent. Basically just a normal tent that is black on all sides. Oh my god it changed my experience like I never thought it could. We consistently sleep comfortably well into the morning.
This past year, we also bought a huge piece of Aluminet to put on top of our canopy. I promise you it was at least 10 degrees cooler than before we put it on.
Combine those with also having a box fan in the tent… I slept like a baby. I will never not recommend these.
Electrolytes
For years I have been bringing Liquid IV to drink first thing in the morning. I still like this sometimes, but I have found coconut water to work wonders. In my opinion, it tastes better too. However, if you don’t have enough room in your cooler for coconut water, any sort of electrolyte mix will do. Trust me, after a night of … recreation … and energy expenditure you will absolutely need it. Just don’t overdo it. One or two portions is plenty for a day.
There are so many other small things that I could mention, but I really wanted to keep this blog post simple and to the point. Maybe I will do another, more detailed post closer to the June, but for now, Happy Roo, I love you, and I hope you have an amazing Spring.
P.S. Start getting your steps in now or you’ll regret it.
