Though it's still a couple of months away (October, to be exact), people around the world are already gearing up for this year's Austin City Limits Music Festival. In honor of this month's travel theme, we talked with Beth Krauss, who's the Media Relations Manager for the Austin Convention & Visitors Bureau. She gave us some great insider ACL travel tips—for those familiar and new to the festival!
Insider Austin City Limits Travel Tips!
Austin
Beth says the the best bet when traveling to Austin during the festival is to get a downtown hotel or one near campus, which tend to offer quick and easy access to the festival. She also recommends that folks stop by the Visitor Center on Sixth Street to find out where to go when they’re no longer on festival grounds. And her biggest and most favorite tip is to encourage people to visit the new website to buy the festival's three-day pass at a discounted rate.
Beth's ACL insider tips:
- Use the festival planner at aclfestival.com to plan which bands you want to see. It will help you avoid conflicts with friends over where to go. Also, food and drink lines are shorter during big-name artist's sets, so if you know when there’s one you won’t mind missing, it will be a great time to grab some grub.
- Bring a bandana. When it gets late-afternoon hot, you can pour cold water on it and wrap it around your neck or head. It’s like a mini-air-conditioning system.
- Drinks. You’re allowed to bring in two sealed one-liter bottles of water, but that’s it. It’s a good idea to freeze your water bottles the night before the festival—your water will stay colder, longer. As for booze, there’s plenty of beer and wine on site. Avoid it until the sun goes down. You’ll last longer (i.e. won’t be partied out already when the headliners come on), save money and be less likely to dehydrate.
- Don’t just put on sunscreen and deodorant, bring them with you. Just trust me on this one.
- Wear or bring your swimsuit—Barton Springs Pool is just a few steps away.
- Dress comfortably Knowing you may be in the front row in Jack White’s direct line of sight, it’s tempting to bust out your most stylish attire. But this is not the time. You’ll probably be sitting on the ground at some point (and Jack White can’t see you that well, after all)
- Park near an entrance to the Hike & Bike Trail and take the trail to the festival if you must drive. It’s much nicer than walking along a crowded sidewalk.
- Bring cash. The on-site ATM lines are crazy long, and the fee’s like $6.
(Image: Flickr member [Huntre] and [wednesday181] licensed for use under Creative Commons)
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Another sanity and money saver is to remember that you can leave the festival and come back in. If there is a hour or two block of bands you're just not that interested in seeing, or one of your friends is starting to get that glassy-eyed overcooked look to them, leave the grounds and walk four blocks down Barton Spring Road to one of the restaurants. Cheaper, better food and *air conditioning*. This daily break has saved us every year of going to ACL and left us with energy for the headliners.
Lastly, there are free shuttles from Waterloo Park northeast of downtown that will take you to the ACL grounds and back.
view ditchwitch in ATX's profile
Also, bring a towel or blanket to stake your claim... this doesn't work for the headlining shows though, it just makes people mad.
Another note about the water, only sealed when coming in, and MUST throw away when leaving the grounds. I have no idea why this is a rule, but it's good to know.
And totally agree with ditchwitch, it is a very good idea to take breaks! Food and beer is very expensive in the park.
One final thing and I suppose I shouldn't deem this as "good" advice, but in past years, it's actually been pretty easy to sneak things in. I wrapped a flask of vodka in a towel and they didn't notice and they don't check pockets, so yeah, pocket sized things get through easily. Of course, this is at your own risk!
view jessbink's profile
Taking a break is a great idea. Getting to your spot early for the big bands is a must, as is protecting it from the droves of people that will try to take your space if you aren't ready for them. For the smaller acts sitting back a ways and just watching them on the monitor is nice, and a lot more relaxing .
The one thing that we were shocked by last year were the low prices of the Food and Beverages served. Compared to other large events I have been to, I could actually afford to eat a good meal at ACL.
view southwick's profile