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I was wondering about getting in on Wednesday too. Last year we just went with getting in on Thursday, and we thought it might be better to go Wednesday and feel no rush on setting up camp, getting to Thursday shows, etc. So are there any major drawbacks with going Wednesday?
So I'm actually not camping but staying in a hotel, and will be utilising day parking. How exactly does this work, where is it on the grounds, and so forth. I haven't found much info thus far.
It's in the upper left hand corner. Basically, you drive in through the nearest toll booth when you want to come in and exit the same way when you are ready to head back. Expect to get searched every time you come in. If I remember correctly, Thursday is an absolute beast of a day both coming in and leaving due to so many people heading in for camping. LD has used it before, so he might be a good person to ask for more details.
And now I've become the Hotel Guy.
Come in from the tollbooth on the west side of New Bushy Branch and day parking is right there. As Dave shown, top left corner of that map. It's not far from Route 55 and 24. Thursday I suggest getting there pretty late - when most people have already shown up and started setting up camp. My first year, I didn't go on Thursday at all. My second year I didn't arrive until 7 pm or so. Last year I got there around 3 pm (but was also in VIP that time.)
It's in the upper left hand corner. Basically, you drive in through the nearest toll booth when you want to come in and exit the same way when you are ready to head back. Expect to get searched every time you come in. If I remember correctly, Thursday is an absolute beast of a day both coming in and leaving due to so many people heading in for camping. LD has used it before, so he might be a good person to ask for more details.
And now I've become the Hotel Guy.
Haha. You're just the person that came to mind that checks the forum regular that I know has done Day Parking before. I totally plan to exploit the f*ck out of tagging to draw people with specific knowledge to people that could take advantage of that knowledge.
Last year was my first 'roo and following the advice on the official website my friends and I believed that the earlier we got there the better spot we would have. Now almost every post i've read on here says that if you get to the gate early Wednesday you will be in BFE. This was not the case for us, we waited in line at the east tollbooth for roughly 45 minutes to an hour and we were let in around 4:00pm Wednesday afternoon. We got the Peggy Olson campsite in POD 2 which was awesome and surrounded by trees. I plan on doing the same thing this year as we did last year.....hopefully I will get the same luck because from what I've read we got lucky. I am struggling to remember if the campsites in BFE were filled up before we got our spots because at that time (being my first roo) I was bewildered with the sights all around me.
Agg,
My experience was not much different than yours. I'd say me and my friend queued up in the line to get in around 3:30 PM on Wednesday and at around 4 they started letting people in. It took us about an hour to get in and we were also put in POD 2 at the John Kreese camp (right next to the Gap Be Bright stage, which was awesome. Loved the free juice and secret shows) it didn't look like BFE was full when we were driving by, but seeing as it was also my first roo, it's possible I just didn't know what I was looking for. It did look like they were still putting people in BFE and my car just got lucky enough to be routed a different way. My guess is that the people that get there really early on Wednesday and sit in the queue for a few hours before they open at 4 get put in BFE. Anyways, we still plan on getting there around the same time this year.
Last year was my first 'roo and following the advice on the official website my friends and I believed that the earlier we got there the better spot we would have. Now almost every post i've read on here says that if you get to the gate early Wednesday you will be in BFE. This was not the case for us, we waited in line at the east tollbooth for roughly 45 minutes to an hour and we were let in around 4:00pm Wednesday afternoon. We got the Peggy Olson campsite in POD 2 which was awesome and surrounded by trees. I plan on doing the same thing this year as we did last year.....hopefully I will get the same luck because from what I've read we got lucky. I am struggling to remember if the campsites in BFE were filled up before we got our spots because at that time (being my first roo) I was bewildered with the sights all around me.
Agg,
My experience was not much different than yours. I'd say me and my friend queued up in the line to get in around 3:30 PM on Wednesday and at around 4 they started letting people in. It took us about an hour to get in and we were also put in POD 2 at the John Kreese camp (right next to the Gap Be Bright stage, which was awesome. Loved the free juice and secret shows) it didn't look like BFE was full when we were driving by, but seeing as it was also my first roo, it's possible I just didn't know what I was looking for. It did look like they were still putting people in BFE and my car just got lucky enough to be routed a different way. My guess is that the people that get there really early on Wednesday and sit in the queue for a few hours before they open at 4 get put in BFE. Anyways, we still plan on getting there around the same time this year.
I plan on doing the same and I would give a kidney to get the same spot as last year! I guess its all up to luck but I've always wondered if you could pay off the guy to direct you a certain way hahaha. And yes I agree looking back on it there were absolutely people being filled up in BFE because I walked over there exploring shortly after parking.
So against my advice, some of my friends plan on flying in on friday afternoon/evening. Any advice you guys could give me to give to them? They plan on flying in to Nashville and renting a car from there. Should I get a companion pass and have them set up their tent by the RV or should I have them just come in and set up in GA camping. I read somewhere on one of the threads that latecomers usually get either very close or very far camping spots, which one is more likely? I am aware of the generator noise and exhaust fumes issue, but they say they don't plan on spending much time sleeping so I do not think that is going to be an issue.
So against my advice, some of my friends plan on flying in on friday afternoon/evening. Any advice you guys could give me to give to them? They plan on flying in to Nashville and renting a car from there. Should I get a companion pass and have them set up their tent by the RV or should I have them just come in and set up in GA camping. I read somewhere on one of the threads that latecomers usually get either very close or very far camping spots, which one is more likely? I am aware of the generator noise and exhaust fumes issue, but they say they don't plan on spending much time sleeping so I do not think that is going to be an issue.
Really its a toss up...how much of a gambler are you? Companion pass if you dont like 50/50 odds
hsid - I'm not positive but I think to use a companion pass they need to come in with you so I think set up in GA would be more likely.
I remember the site saying that as well last year. However, I distinctly remember one of my neighbors last year had somebody with a companion pass come in on saturday and parked where the rest of the companion vehicles were kept.
So against my advice, some of my friends plan on flying in on friday afternoon/evening. Any advice you guys could give me to give to them? They plan on flying in to Nashville and renting a car from there. Should I get a companion pass and have them set up their tent by the RV or should I have them just come in and set up in GA camping. I read somewhere on one of the threads that latecomers usually get either very close or very far camping spots, which one is more likely? I am aware of the generator noise and exhaust fumes issue, but they say they don't plan on spending much time sleeping so I do not think that is going to be an issue.
Like others have said, it's really a toss up. I arrived on Friday morning last year, and I ended up camping in Dillon which was very close to the ferris wheel entrance. The advice I got from other people was to take I-24 and get of at exit 111 to get a decent spot, which did seem to work in my favor last year.
So against my advice, some of my friends plan on flying in on friday afternoon/evening. Any advice you guys could give me to give to them? They plan on flying in to Nashville and renting a car from there. Should I get a companion pass and have them set up their tent by the RV or should I have them just come in and set up in GA camping. I read somewhere on one of the threads that latecomers usually get either very close or very far camping spots, which one is more likely? I am aware of the generator noise and exhaust fumes issue, but they say they don't plan on spending much time sleeping so I do not think that is going to be an issue.
Like others have said, it's really a toss up. I arrived on Friday morning last year, and I ended up camping in Dillon which was very close to the ferris wheel entrance. The advice I got from other people was to take I-24 and get of at exit 111 to get a decent spot, which did seem to work in my favor last year.
Thanks @platlicanim I think having them get their own GA camping spot would probably be the best bet, and if they do get put up somewheres far away I'll have them lug their stuff to the RV.
hsid - I'm not positive but I think to use a companion pass they need to come in with you so I think set up in GA would be more likely.
I remember the site saying that as well last year. However, I distinctly remember one of my neighbors last year had somebody with a companion pass come in on saturday and parked where the rest of the companion vehicles were kept.
Yeah, we had some friends join us at our RV a few hours after we got there. I met them at the gate as they came in and just drove them over liked I owned the place and it wasn't an issue.
There are some shows I'd definitely prefer not to miss on Thursday, but being so far away, arriving first thing Thursday morning is not realistic, so it's either get there Wednesday night or lunchtime Thursday. The latter would be nice since I'm flying solo this year and I think setting up shop (and maybe getting a helping hand from a neighbor) would be considerably easier in the afternoon, but if I don't get in line until, say, noon on Thursday, am I definitely risking not being set up in time for that night's shows?
There are some shows I'd definitely prefer not to miss on Thursday, but being so far away, arriving first thing Thursday morning is not realistic, so it's either get there Wednesday night or lunchtime Thursday. The latter would be nice since I'm flying solo this year and I think setting up shop (and maybe getting a helping hand from a neighbor) would be considerably easier in the afternoon, but if I don't get in line until, say, noon on Thursday, am I definitely risking not being set up in time for that night's shows?
You should be fine at noon on Thursday. The last two years I've been, there was little to no line on Thursday in the early afternoon (I think I arrived 2:00PMish both times). So, it's just more of a matter of how long does it take you to get your stuff set up. Depending on that, you may be rushed to get to the early shows, but the later ones should be no problem.
It's in the upper left hand corner. Basically, you drive in through the nearest toll booth when you want to come in and exit the same way when you are ready to head back. Expect to get searched every time you come in. If I remember correctly, Thursday is an absolute beast of a day both coming in and leaving due to so many people heading in for camping. LD has used it before, so he might be a good person to ask for more details.
And now I've become the Hotel Guy.
Come in from the tollbooth on the west side of New Bushy Branch and day parking is right there. As Dave shown, top left corner of that map. It's not far from Route 55 and 24. Thursday I suggest getting there pretty late - when most people have already shown up and started setting up camp. My first year, I didn't go on Thursday at all. My second year I didn't arrive until 7 pm or so. Last year I got there around 3 pm (but was also in VIP that time.)
There's really not much to day parking.
I didn't plan on arriving till perhaps even Friday, as I have things to do in Nashville as well. So that might well be the plan.
Adding on... Maybe this is not the best thread but does anyone have any hotel recommendations?
The three years I went, I was at the Super 8 in Murfreesboro. It's not bad, pretty affordable and not a roach motel. Not the classiest place, but good enough and has a bunch of Roo commuters that weekend.
Manchester and Tullahoma will both be insanely expensive, and from what I've been told - it's not suggested driving from the farm to Monteagle at night (into the mountains)
First time Rooer and first time poster here, we plan on arriving sometime late Wednesday/early Thursday. Do they keep letting people in all night into the morning or do the booths close at a certain time? Any other tips/suggestions would be helpful, this board has already been so helpful, you're all awesome!
First time Rooer and first time poster here, we plan on arriving sometime late Wednesday/early Thursday. Do they keep letting people in all night into the morning or do the booths close at a certain time? Any other tips/suggestions would be helpful, this board has already been so helpful, you're all awesome!
Once the gates open, they do not close unless there is some sort of unforeseen circumstance. In 2010 (I think), they closed the I-24 entrance overnight because the mud there was causing a sh*t ton of cars to get stuck. Even in the morning when it dried some, I watched two poor gentleman start their Roo by pushing their car out of the mud with a third friend behind the wheel.
This will be my third roo, my previous two years I found setting up camp to be a pain in the ass. It's like a battlefield when everyone gets out to set up their camp. I always seem to not have enough room, and I only have a small tent and canopy. Anyone have any suggestions on how to get some more room for yourself? Or, as I've figured myself, the only thing I can do is bust ass and get my space outlined by my canopy and then set my tent up under that?
This will be my third roo, my previous two years I found setting up camp to be a pain in the ass. It's like a battlefield when everyone gets out to set up their camp. I always seem to not have enough room, and I only have a small tent and canopy. Anyone have any suggestions on how to get some more room for yourself? Or, as I've figured myself, the only thing I can do is bust ass and get my space outlined by my canopy and then set my tent up under that?
Casually mention you have a case of leprosy.
Or: I usually throw a couple tarps down, and look completely inept at putting up my tent/pop-up. It kills a few minutes, and hopefully people won't be totally dickish and set up on top of your tarps.
Swing wide when you park (if they yell at you to park tighter pretend you don't speak english) . . . As soon as you park swing your doors open so the car next to you can't get super close. Pack your canopy so that you can grab it and set-it-up as soon as you park - now crack a beer and say hi to your neighbors!
A member of my group has to leave early Sunday to be back home Sunday night for a wedding. Anyone know if there is shuttle service or a taxi station available for a ride to the airport?
Thanks Mike. I got some finite answers in another thread. I learned that the shuttle doesnt run again until Monday and really his only option is to reserve a cab a head of time and pay the expensive cost to the nashville airport. Also he has to keep his fingers crossed that car actually shows up.
