Before camping at a festival for the first time, I was pretty terrified of it. I was scared of bugs, not having a proper restroom, not sleeping well, etc. After having to dive in full force with Lightning in a Bottle three years ago, where my only option was to camp, I quickly discovered that not only was it “not that bad,” but I really enjoyed it!

Since then, I’ve learned a bunch of hacks to make my festival camping experience much more enjoyable. Let’s just say I’ve grown from the small two-person tent I borrowed from a friend the first time, and yes, two of us shared that tent. Here are 10 tips to make your festival camping trip more enjoyable:

 

Splurge on a tent larger than your group size

Buying a four-person tent for our group of four seemed perfect - until we put all our stuff in it AND us. We now have a ten person tent that fits up to five people really nicely, including all our outfits, festival gear, and standing room to change. That’s a huge plus.

 

Add a canopy 

Canopies offer coverage from the sun if they fit over your tent, but also serve as a great hangout space if you’re using it outside your tent. Most times it will get pretty warm inside the tent so having a space to relax outside the tent in the shade is optimal.

This tent canopy is pretty nice, it’s only $69 at Walmart and comes in multiple colors.

Upgrade the space under the canopy

Try using bamboo beach rugs that you roll out to cover the ground under your canopy. This saves you from having to lace up your shoes as you go in and out of the tent, and protects your feet from some rough terrains.

Use a hanging shoe rack to sort items

Hang it from the canopy bars and unpack your goodies into it for easy finding. Example: paper towel roll, baby wipes, maybe even some of your festival outfits if you have the wider spaced rack!

Upgrade your tent with Solar powered LED lights

We wrap them around the outside and inside. On the outside, they serve as a great way to find your tent at the end of the night, on the inside they make for a nice atmosphere for the cuddle puddle chats as you drift off to sleep.

There are lots of cute lights you can get, they don’t have to be just plain bulbs. These LED flower lights are super cute, and only $11.99 on Amazon.

 

Organize all your stuff

I have a plastic 3 drawer set that has been super helpful for camping events. I organize each drawer to have specific items. For me, the top one is all LED accessories, flashlights, and extra batteries, the second is for tools (scissors, safety pins, small packs of tissues, my blog stickers, hand sanitizer, etc.) These are all things that you might need to grab before heading out for the day, or when used need to be returned to the same spot so we always know where they are (think scissors). The third drawer is always flash tattoos, glitter or other festival jewels. When traveling, make sure to tape the drawers closed before you hit the road.

I always label my drawers as well so that my friends know where to find things. This container is only $5.

Before you arrive, remove all unnecessary packaging from new items. Put your beer in the cooler and out of the cardboard box, if you have a new tent make sure to take it out of the box, remove all your clothing's tags, basically anything you have that is new, take it out of its packaging. This is useful in many ways. For one, it avoids having to find scissors or a box cutter to open something while camping. More importantly, though, it keeps you from having a ton of trash to deal at the event.

Pack trash and recycling bags

These are so often forgotten. What I’ve found that works best for me, is getting a brown paper bag for recyclables, and then plastic trash bags for trash. Bringing extras is great too so that you can carry your trash with you each day to a bin as you enter the festival. This way it’s not annoying and you don’t let it build up.

Whenever given the option, always pay extra for car camping

Car camping makes camping so much easier. At first, I didn’t really understand (were people sleeping in their cars?) but no, all this really means is that you have your car right there so you don’t have to truck your stuff from a parking lot to the camping areas. It’s a real luxury especially if you have a big group with a lot of stuff.

Get a camping chair

I got mine at Walmart for $10, and I was the only person in my group at LiB that had one and needless to say everyone was jealous. Without it, there’s really nowhere to sit unless you’re on the floor, and sometimes you’re waiting around for people to get ready for the day/night. It’s a small thing, but it makes a big difference.