Whether it's your first Bonnaroo or you’re a music festival veteran, we welcome you to Inforoo.
Here you'll find info about artists, rumors, camping tips, and the infamous Roo Clues. Have a look around then create an account and join in the fun. See you at Bonnaroo!!
Post by rogermexico on Jun 17, 2013 17:08:11 GMT -5
Deal with Thursday better, there are a lot of people there a lot earlier than in years past. Specifically:
1. Open up Centeroo earlier on Thursday.
2. Book the same kinds bands, no huge acts, but for fucks sake put a few on which. The fun of checking out smaller acts is ruined by insane crowds.
Build some flexibility into the comedy schedule so when there is a ton of demand for tix people don't have to waste whole days waiting. Or deal with assholes scalping comedy tickets. Saw the same guy do this twice for two different Cross shows.
Sound bleed from the Miller Stage (as has been mentioned). Why ruin the sound for a lot of people trying to see a major act so some small band can play?
Isn't VIP camping like $750 a person, though? She didn't need real bathrooms, showers, or A/C. She just has a bad knee. Maybe she can try to convince her doctor to give her a handicap sticker before next year or something. I don't know how all that works, but oh well. I will probably be in GA next year anyway since that is more my scene. :-)
Considering the amount of bands you see, the proximity and other amenities, $750 really starts to feel like you underpaid compared to my experience camping in GA.
It would have been nice if they had a VIP line separate from GA, like at the Cinema tent.
All these years and Bonnaroo still has done a poor job of getting the message out. I spent an hour of my time chilling in the shade of the standby line for Comedy Bang Bang.
Here is what I observed and what I was told by a staffer: About 1,200 tickets are given for shows. Capacity is 1,700. Roll Like a Rock Star and Artist / Guest passes get first shot at standby. Then goes VIP without tickets. If you're VIP and wait for a ticket, you're in first and that presumably puts you front row. But even VIP without tix went in before the people with tix. And then there were still maybe 100 seats left, so I and many others went in without hassle. I think some of this is different than in years past, but if VIP ticket holders have this benefit and weren't made aware, then it is something Bonnaroo must fix. It's something that would help sell me on VIP if I knew I could walk up 15 minutes before a comedy act and with near certainty get in first.
However, they always change things at that funny little tent with scant notice. It used to be one hour before an act they handed out tickets. Now it's two hours. Either way, there still appeared to be seats for Comedy Bang Bang's first show, so presumably you could have walked in at any time. I'm sure the standby process isn't the same for things like Conan and Tosh, but I got tickets for Aziz last year and still watched standby people come in after we were seated.
Speaking of getting the word out.....who knew this year VIP had special areas at the sides of the tents? NO ONE! That was until everyone saw other VIP wristbands inside and came in. Certain days VIP wasnt allowed, volunteers said it was up to the stage manager that day. The Other Tent VIP/Artist area was a LIFE saver, as was the one at That Tent for the late nights. I was never able to get into it at This Tent.
Isn't VIP camping like $750 a person, though? She didn't need real bathrooms, showers, or A/C. She just has a bad knee. Maybe she can try to convince her doctor to give her a handicap sticker before next year or something. I don't know how all that works, but oh well. I will probably be in GA next year anyway since that is more my scene. :-)
It's called ADA/Access. You all could have camped RIGHT up front and had special areas at ALL the stages. No handicap sticker required. Just go to the ADA Tent and tell them what you need and why.
Isn't VIP camping like $750 a person, though? She didn't need real bathrooms, showers, or A/C. She just has a bad knee. Maybe she can try to convince her doctor to give her a handicap sticker before next year or something. I don't know how all that works, but oh well. I will probably be in GA next year anyway since that is more my scene. :-)
It's called ADA/Access. You all could have camped RIGHT up front and had special areas at ALL the stages. No handicap sticker required. Just go to the ADA Tent and tell them what you need and why.
Thanks for the info, Phi. She thought she couldn't get in without a handicap placard/sticker. I will let her know.
The one thing that seemed very awesome was chirpvision. Could you imagine being at any stage or location and be able to watch a live stream of the concert while being on the farm? I think Bonnaroo should invest in that technology more and give the majority of people a way to see different artists better than having to walk around like zombies and wait for hours to get a good spot....
I have a hard enough time keeping my phone charged for a full day as it is. Every time they mentioned downloading the app and streaming the shows I laughed because the phone would die before I get to see any footage.
I did like the idea of seeing what was going on in the other tents while I was waiting at a tent that had nothing going on. If they added screens to the tents they could just show some streams of the other ones going on at the same time. My battery doesn't die and I get entertained while waiting instead of just reading my guide book for the 50th time.
Post by glitterous on Jun 17, 2013 17:32:10 GMT -5
Does anyone know if Bonnaroo has a suggestion box? I would like to tell them both the good points (AMAZINGLY friendly staff everywhere I went, even in tense situations) and the bad points. I am sure they have a system for this in place, I just don't know how to access it.
1. Fix the sound bleed issues. They are TERRIBLE. That fucking barn should not be allowed to have outdoor speakers. If you put someone on the stage at the fountain, do it when This Tent is empty. Consider the fact that at larger shows, the majority of your audience is OUTSIDE the tent and make changes to the sound systems accordingly. I don't care if Bonnaroo wants to shove a MILLION people onto the farm, as long as those people can see a show with good-sounding music and without the fucking dance music from that barn blaring while they're watching Billy Idol or Matt and Kim.
2. Please explain the amenities for VIP better. I didn't learn about the viewing areas next to the tents until the last minute. I understand they want to keep them open for RLARS, but I am perfectly fine with a system that lets me into the viewing area until they need the room for a RLARS person. I'm a big girl who wears big girl panties. I can handle rejection. This same complaint goes for the entrance at the What Stage and the hours for the showers and such on and so forth. I felt like the only way to get info on VIP was to ask other VIP'ers. That's not really helpful. Also, keep it consistent. If you're going to have a VIP line at the Cinema Tent, there should be one for the Comedy Tent. Why do all the different locations have different rules?
3. Fix that ditch. Make a covered drain. Put grates on top of it. I don't care how you do it, but fix it! It shouldn't take half-an-hour to leave the What Stage area. A civil or drainage engineer could EASILY design a system that would allow drainage from the area, but also keep people's feet dry.
4. Start the Roo Run at 8 instead of 9. Start it on time, regardless if the photographer is late. The temp at 10 (when I finished the race) was unbearable compared to 9:30 (when I should have finished). According to weather.com, there was a five degree difference between those two times. Taking into account the half-hour they made us stand in the heat before we could start, it was a potential disaster waiting to happen.
5. Make an announcement via the Bonnaroo app about special sets and secret sets and all that jazz? I was REALLY lucky to get into the Polyphonic Spree RHPS,but there were hundreds of people that didn't. Unfortunately, that means they also didn't get to hear about second set PS was playing at the fountain that night (since that's where PS announced it). So the second set, meant to alleviate the pain of the people that didn't see RHPS, was seen by all the people that... got to see RHPS. Not very helpful.
6. Don't give me Bonnaflu. Fucking Bonnaflu. I think I might be dying.
Post by bonnaroodavid on Jun 17, 2013 17:37:28 GMT -5
1. Fix the ditch. It really slows things up 2. Thanks to Bonnaroo for more water stations but the mud around them gets a little out of control 3. Keep up the good work
This was a great year. Very diverse with a lot o choices. The weather was perfect. It seemed more crowded to me and Thursday gets more jam packed every year. I agree about the screens but we have all complained about that for years.
And the Facebook check in things- did they ever work?
2. Educate the volunteers about Family Camping (not their fault--I have worked events like this and it ain't easy when you aren't given the info you need). At least three different volunteers asked me if I had purchased the special pass for Family Camping. Someone in our group finally had to pull up the website on their phone to show the volunteers that you don't need a special pass. We were then told we could not enter through that particular tollbooth, and we had to pull out and go wait in line at a different tollbooth. That was okay with us--maybe we missed the instructions somewhere. When we got to the next tollbooth, however, we were again asked if we had purchased the special pass. :-)
3. Consider turning part of the GA camping area into a reserved section for older people. Some people need to be close and in a calm area, but they don't have kids and they are not officially handicapped, so there is not really a "home" for them. I came in a group of 3 adults, but we had to use Family Camping because one was older and simply could not have handled GA (neither the partying nor the walk to Centeroo). We were good neighbors, of course, but it still made me feel guilty that we were in there without kids. If I had come alone, I would have just camped in GA.
That said, I thought everything else was really well done. The port a potties were reasonably clean and usually had toilet paper, the showers and shade were much better than I thought they would be, and I rarely had to wait in long lines for anything. Really well organized, and I was also thought the vibe was good. I did not overhear people complaining or arguing, which you usually do hear when you mix heat, alcohol, grime, etc. And the music was fantastic. Really great experience!
That's exactly what VIP camping is. Calm, quieter, and super close to the What stage, plus it has real bathrooms, showers, and air conditioned havens throughout Centeroo.
I'm older and while I couldn't go this year I've done both GA and VIP over the last 5 years and for someone who has some mobility issues VIP makes what could be a real challenge into the experience it's meant to be. There's considerably less walking required and the VIP tent near the Which Stage is a lifesaver. It's more expensive but as someone said above it's still a pretty good deal and in my estimation it can extend one's Bonnaroo career significantly. Just as an FYI, tix are about $750 each but are sold in pairs so figure it's around $1500 that you'll be billed for. I loved GA but reality interfered and VIP solved a lot of that.
Does anyone know if Bonnaroo has a suggestion box? I would like to tell them both the good points (AMAZINGLY friendly staff everywhere I went, even in tense situations) and the bad points. I am sure they have a system for this in place, I just don't know how to access it.
You can most definitely send them some e-mails and junk but one of the things they tend to do every year is send out a survey/questionnaire thing. You can definitely put stuff in there about positives and negatives.
2. Please explain the amenities for VIP better. I didn't learn about the viewing areas next to the tents until the last minute. I understand they want to keep them open for RLARS, but I am perfectly fine with a system that lets me into the viewing area until they need the room for a RLARS person. I'm a big girl who wears big girl panties. I can handle rejection. This same complaint goes for the entrance at the What Stage and the hours for the showers and such on and so forth. I felt like the only way to get info on VIP was to ask other VIP'ers. That's not really helpful. Also, keep it consistent. If you're going to have a VIP line at the Cinema Tent, there should be one for the Comedy Tent. Why do all the different locations have different rules?
They do need to be more clear about some things. Even before the festival I tweeted at Roo to please make a clear announcement/explanation about the comedy tent....since people always are confused/ignorant about it.
3. Fix that ditch. Make a covered drain. Put grates on top of it. I don't care how you do it, but fix it! It shouldn't take half-an-hour to leave the What Stage area. A civil or drainage engineer could EASILY design a system that would allow drainage from the area, but also keep people's feet dry.
Someone else can correct me if i'm wrong but I felt like it was at least improved a little bit with more concrete. I felt like there was still an issue but maybe not as big of one? I'm probably wrong though. Still....you'd think there would be something to do in this area to make things better.
4. Start the Roo Run at 8 instead of 9. Start it on time, regardless if the photographer is late. The temp at 10 (when I finished the race) was unbearable compared to 9:30 (when I should have finished). According to weather.com, there was a five degree difference between those two times. Taking into account the half-hour they made us stand in the heat before we could start, it was a potential disaster waiting to happen.
Starting things on time is tough for a huge festival with so many working parts in motion at the same time. If it was just because of a photographer being late, that's lame.
Also, congrats to chicojuarez. I believe I was told he won the run.
5. Make an announcement via the Bonnaroo app about special sets and secret sets and all that jazz? I was REALLY lucky to get into the Polyphonic Spree RHPS,but there were hundreds of people that didn't. Unfortunately, that means they also didn't get to hear about second set PS was playing at the fountain that night (since that's where PS announced it). So the second set, meant to alleviate the pain of the people that didn't see RHPS, was seen by all the people that... got to see RHPS. Not very helpful.
I'm not sure if they updated the app or not (it would be smart to....if they didn't) but they definitely made it clear on Twitter and Facebook that this would be happening. Roo tweeted the following:
Psst… There's reports that @polyspree may be popping up for a surprise set Thursday night. Where? We'll keep you posted
and
Ok friends! @polyspree is due to magically teleport to the Fountain Stage right now! Come check their surprise set #bonnaroo
While Polyphonic Spree wrote on twitter/facebook (and Roo retweeted it): Bonnaroo folk look for us here at 2am TONITE for a throwdown @polyspree psychphonic rock set #yesitstrue fb.me/2R0rBUeqn
I also think they made it clear pre-festival to follow them on those social media sites in order to find out about surprise sets.
Post by bonnaroodavid on Jun 17, 2013 18:17:49 GMT -5
Another thing relates to following them on social media. I had better phone service. I could send texts. But Internet/3G was VERY bad for me except near the food tricks. No way I could have kept up with their twitter/FB posts. And I have AT&T so you would think it would be better since they sponsored
Another thing relates to following them on social media. I had better phone service. I could send texts. But Internet/3G was VERY bad for me except near the food tricks. No way I could have kept up with their twitter/FB posts. And I have AT&T so you would think it would be better since they sponsored
Same here. I put my phone on airplane mode all day, then updated it at night for about five minutes. Then it was back to black. If it wasn't on the app, I didn't look at it.
And I agree that Twitter sucks. Bonnaroo doesn't place all the same info on Facebook, Twitter and their app. They may have tweeted about PS, but I didn't get the memo (which is kind of the problem. Different info for different people). I didn't get to see the Bonnaroo paper for that day. Did it say anything? There just needs to be ONE system for getting info to the people or Roo needs to cover all the bases.
Another thing relates to following them on social media. I had better phone service. I could send texts. But Internet/3G was VERY bad for me except near the food tricks. No way I could have kept up with their twitter/FB posts. And I have AT&T so you would think it would be better since they sponsored
Several times I had to reset my connection by turning on airplane mode then turning off again. Every time my phone worked great after!
Isn't VIP camping like $750 a person, though? She didn't need real bathrooms, showers, or A/C. She just has a bad knee. Maybe she can try to convince her doctor to give her a handicap sticker before next year or something. I don't know how all that works, but oh well. I will probably be in GA next year anyway since that is more my scene. :-)
Considering the amount of bands you see, the proximity and other amenities, $750 really starts to feel like you underpaid compared to my experience camping in GA.
I wish I had fully understood all that VIP had to offer when I bought my tickets. I kicked myself square in the butt for not going VIP.
Post by dandcwindsor on Jun 17, 2013 19:44:43 GMT -5
- Viewing screens on all tents it can be a static camera of the entire stage but it would be a great option.
- Do not allow Chairs and blankets under the show tents once the show has started, they should be only allowed outside the tents and under streets. There were several shows, where chairs and blankets were left and the owners wandered up closer to the stage, if I were a summers breeze I would have stepped all over them but no I stood back and respected other peoples things.
- Spread the Porta Jons out more, we were at the back of Groop camping and had to walk all the way to the front at night to take a leak, in the middle of the night it was a pain, and I don't want to be that guy pissing on the fence or on the walking paths like I saw many do.
Something needs to be done about the check in check out at the gates, this turned into chaos a few times.
1. As stated a million times already, fix the effing ditch. Seriously, it can't be that big of an investment. Although I couldn't help but laugh as I dealt with it yet again...brings me back. Now that I think of it, don't fix it. It's now a staple of the Roo experience.
2. I really don't know if anything can really be done about this, but the damn sound on the Which Stage. Of Monsters and Men was barely audible, and Pretty Lights who i've seen and loved many times just seemed like background music and I was pretty close, relatively speaking. R Kelly was turned up more, but then I realized I could hear his set from up at The Other Tent during Weird Al and I realized that they probably keep the Which Stage quieter on purpose so as to not create sound bleed with This and The Other Tent. Not sure if anything can be done to resolve this, but i'd love to not look at my favorite artist get slated for the Which Stage next year and get frustrated knowing the sound is going to suck.
3. Bring Mumford back next year
I really have no other criticisms. They really nailed the logistics this year. It simply amazes me that they can build a makeshift city like that and have it run so flawlessly, relatively speaking. The right amount of trash cans, workers, portos, security, shops/food...they've got everything pretty much down, and it's really cool. AC knows what they're doing.
- Spread the Porta Jons out more, we were at the back of Groop camping and had to walk all the way to the front at night to take a leak, in the middle of the night it was a pain, and I don't want to be that guy pissing on the fence or on the walking paths like I saw many do.
At SBIX I had an empty water jug I peed in at night. If you wake up thirsty in the dark just be careful which jug you grab.
For walking from Which to What I take the path next to That. Its a longer distance but in the end it saves me time. I will always take a longer way around to avoid a crowd. Similarly at What I always head to the back of the field before making any moves left or right. Just less stressful for me that way. I do think @phi has a good idea regarding making it one big path, but that would cut out a ton of vendor space. Not only the ones on that path but also the vendors on the What field on the other side.
-The lines getting into Centeroo were huge Thurs/Fri/Sat. To Roo's credit they moved fairly quickly, but I'd still much prefer if they had larger or more entrances.
-Screens on tents, the greatest of all suggestions.
-I said this before the festival as well, I don't understand why communication regarding VIP amenities is so poor. I guess its because they know it will sell out regardless. It would be great if VIPers could have consistency regarding VIP viewing areas at tents, and clear communication on Cinema/Comedy tent VIP entrances.
-Paved paths in the campgrounds would be pretty awesome as well.
Post by nashpreds99 on Jun 17, 2013 23:10:03 GMT -5
I had a GREAT time but I do have some thoughts on possible improvements. -I agree that the ditch is a major issue that should have been fixed years ago. Build something. Anything. -I agree that all of the tents need video screens. I even posted to bonnaroo that I would pay 50 more bucks if they would add them,lol. Video screens would completely change a lot of folks Bonnaroo experiences. -They did a lot better job this year in my opinion at not overlapping big acts like they did last year but again whoever is scheduling these acts needs to plan WHERE a little bit better. I'm curious how these decisions are made. -The Cinema Tent needs to either hand out tickets or at least have people out there working the line telling people that their odds of getting in are really bad. I know that you can probably look at the line and tell but there are a lot of folks who wait in that line. I had never been in the Cinema before. It looks huge on the outside. I thought based on where I was for RHPS,my odds were good but I wasted over an hr and a half in that line. Just have at least one person working the line answering questions. I could've gone to see another show. -Schedule Fountain shows when This Stage isn't going. -Give the ability to buy single VIP tickets. Is it because of the amount of space in VIP camping that they don't?
I think issues with the Which could be its own thread. -I agree with moving the Miller Lite stage. -I would prefer that they move the beer/conc area in front of the which. -I wish that they would add some speakers angled towards the folks not seated in the field directly in front of the stage. - I wish for shows that they know are going to bring in a huge crowd at the Which then move that set about 30-45-60 min apart from the evenings headliners. I hate having to miss either part of the headliner/or which stage act due to the congestion from those stages. Also, Which stage shows starting directly after the headliner in addition to the ditch add on to the congestion problem. I wish they would schedule all shows in all tents at least 30 min after a headliner personally,but the Which definitely would benefit. -Move the Which Stage.
I wish that they could redesign Centeroo but at this point it would be a lot of work with so many what look to be permanent fixtures in place. Overall, I had an amazing weekend but I would like to see them change some stuff up in the stage/tents department.
Post by theeimportance on Jun 17, 2013 23:39:18 GMT -5
1. As mentioned previously, what the fuck is up with the tent situation? Either make them bigger or add screens. After going to Coachella this year, with the massive tents there with huge screens on BOTH sides of the stage and ample room to dance, all of the tents at Roo felt like a massive step back.
2. Start the comedy tent on time! Maybe it was just the one instance I went, but Bob Saget's first opening act went on maybe twenty minutes after the listed start time. I had to bail only fifteen minutes into his set to catch Tame Impala. Very lame.
Two major complaints, but compared to the last time I went (2011) this year was a massive improvement!
Post by divemistressofdark on Jun 18, 2013 1:19:48 GMT -5
I'm a local with a place to crash, so I wind up having to carry all my stuff on my back all day. Would love it if there were more than one locker location so I don't have to hike all the way over to the Ferris wheel area to dump things off (my shuttle drops me off on the far side of What stage).
Roo was updating FB and Twitter?! Hell if I knew - can't ever get a signal for data at all, period amen. Have an AT&T IPhone and this year just bought a burner Tracfone so I could send texts. Honestly I have no idea why they don't update the cell carrier capacity - how are we all supposed to update our own social media accounts with what an amazing time we're having if we can't get online?
Another vote for tent screens. Hell, I'll chip in too
Post by Od Lid Johnny on Jun 18, 2013 8:24:09 GMT -5
Pretty much if they cared about improvements during the festival as well as before. I find it strange that they are not prepared for it to start. Bags over pictures, photo portals inoperable, water stations inoperable. I understand these things break, but the just clean up after its over attitude is kinda lazy.
After my fifth year, it's gotten kind of annoying. Almost like they are only concerned a little bit. Make sure we park them and there is music playing, after that its whatever.
The which-what gap is a disgrace. I mean, it just takes some underground pipe. French drains. They take the water below the surface and move it. Water that hits the ground above it is able to soak in because the underground area is soakin in more as well.
First time going in a couple years so my perspective may be a different, some things are better, some are worse, and unfortunately some shiz has stayed the same.
Worse: 1) The lines going into Centeroo are frittated now. Never noticed a line at all before. 2) Which Stage? lol Couldn't hear a damn thing 3) The VIP sections in the tents, I don't remember these before but they are quacking stupid.
Better: 1) The traffic getting in. Congrats bonnaroo, you have finally figured it out. 2) I didn't notice near as much of a police presence this year.
Nothing has changed: 1) The food is still expensive and mediocre at best 2) I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw the mud pit between Which and What.... Really? 3) Please put screens on the goddamn tents.
