Festival Survival Guide

It’s summer, and summer means festival season! Every year, countless people gather outdoors to attend concerts. Whether it’s for one, two, three, or four days, festivals are a way of life. For those worried about forgetting the essentials before heading out, we’ve got you covered with the must-have items to (survive) a festival. Here’s your festival survival guide!

1-Protect your ears

Sure, concerts might sound better without earplugs, and yes, they can be a bit uncomfortable. But we’re not just being overly cautious – the critical threshold for ear damage starts at 85 dB. In the UK, the maximum permissible sound level at concerts is 107 dB. In Germany, it’s 100 dB, and in France, it’s 105 dB max! These limits are still well above the safe threshold! Just 15 minutes of exposure at 107 dB can cause irreversible damage to your hearing.

Earplugs

You probably already know about foam earplugs (they cut out all the highs making it hard to hear anything). Here, we have something much better! Medical-grade plastic earplugs. Their advantage is that they come with three interchangeable plugs to choose the level of sound reduction you want. At 10, 17, or 21 dB, the reduction isn’t as extreme as foam earplugs, which attenuate up to -30 dB. Here, the sound spectrum is respected, and additionally, the earplugs don’t create any uncomfortable pressure in the ear! We love them.

Noise cancelling headphones

More commonly found on the heads of children, noise-canceling headphones have also proven their worth! Not practical in a mosh pit, for sure, but the quality of the reduction is better than what you can get with earplugs. Available for both children and adults.

2-Keep your personal belongings safe

You’ve probably already tried or seen a waist bag – well, here’s an even more compact version, the neck keychain holder. At festivals, it’s important to keep your most valuable belongings secure. And beyond that, it’s not very pleasant to carry around a backpack or your phone in an open pocket! Here, we’ll offer you some alternatives to the waist bag.

Having a keychain that attaches to your neck can be useful. Even if it’s just to attach a bottle opener keychain, or even your phone in a waterproof pouch!

If you don’t want to have a waist bag on you, there’s also the chain wallet which is smaller. You attach it to your trousers or keychain – and there you go!

3-A POWERFUL headlamp

You might be staying overnight? In a tent or elsewhere, you’ll be glad to have a powerful headlamp when you need to get out of the tent… Or come back from night parties in the dark. Same if you’ve lost your keys.

4-Protect yourself from the sun

Depending on the festival weather, there might be rain – but it can also be hot. Very hot. We’re not immune to the sun. Take sunscreen to avoid sunstroke (which can definitely ruin your festival afternoon), wear sunglasses. Also, we strongly recommend a cap!

5-Some extra items to survive

Don’t forget: the survival blanket (reusable is better), the pee funnel, the anti-rain poncho, or even the waterproof backpack cover!

An endless wait under 40 degrees in the blazing sun? Not a problem. Too cold? The ground is wet? Add these basic items to your list.

6-Cool accessories

A bottle opener in shape of a drumstick– No need to go further, this is the definition of style.

A flightcase to transport beers with style !

A ukulele.It’s small, portable, and above all, it puts you in a good mood when you have to wait! And if you don’t play on the main stage, you can still do your personal promotion – “I play music too, follow me on Insta!”

7-A Bluetooth Speaker

The Bluetooth speaker is essential. If you’re not great at playing the ukulele, you’ll have music to listen to instead ! If you’re not sure how to choose your Bluetooth speaker, we’ve written a guide on our blog, right here.

A few suggestions :

A Bluetooth speaker AND an amp – If you’re torn between playing and listening to music, we’ve got you covered: an amp that is both a Bluetooth speaker and an amp. Check it out here!

Two times more powerful than the previous one, here’s the Positive Grid Spark Mini.

You’re not just attending, but playing at the festival? 🎸 We’ve got some goodies that might interest you! 👉 Click here to check out our exclusive deals for Thomann’s 70th Anniversary. 🩶

We hope you enjoyed this survival guide! What’s your essential accessory when you go to a festival? Let us know in the comments! ✍️

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