After attending my first festival I looked back on it fondly, but also realizing that I spent WAY too fucking much! I couldn’t believe it! And what did I spend it on mostly? Food. So, this post is all about how you save at festivals when it comes to festival food vs bringing your own food! I’ve taken my total from my first Bonnaroo and compared it to my 2nd Bonnaroo. Sadly, I don’t remember what I bought in 2017 but I saved my list for 2018 so you guy can see some of it! Disclaimer: I pretty much only ate from the festival the first year. Learn more about Bonnaroo here!
After attending my first festival I looked back on it fondly, but also realizing that I spent WAY too fucking much! I couldn’t believe it! And what did I spend it on mostly? Food. So, this post is all about how you save at festivals when it comes to festival food vs bringing your own food! I’ve taken my total from my first Bonnaroo and compared it to my 2nd Bonnaroo. Sadly, I don’t remember what I bought in 2017 but I saved my list for 2018 so you guy can see some of it! Disclaimer: I pretty much only ate from the festival the first year. Learn more about Bonnaroo here!
Food
Below is a comprehensive list of all the food supplies that I bought for my second Bonnaroo. My first year I didn’t really bring any food aside from alcohol and snacks- let me just say these things WERE NOT sustaining. Check out my list from 2018 though! It’s great and I tell you about how I used it too!
Supplies List:
Eggs: Pre-whipped and added to a water bottle. Draw a tick mark for every 2 eggs.
Tip: I go for 2 eggs every morning with toast bread along with Pedialyte/ water.
Pancake Mix: Pre-portioned out to “just add water” baggies
Tip: Add flax seeds for an added source of unsaturated fats.
Sandwich Meat: Turkey, ham bologna, etc.
Tip: Make sure you don’t forget about the sauces and toppings! Don’t forget to put them in the cooler!
Fruit: Pre-cut and packaged
Tip: These are especially great if you don’t drink as much as you probably should. A few fruits in particular that are good for staying hydrated (according to Health.com) are Watermelons, Strawberries, Grapefruits, and Cantelope.
Granola bars & Trail mix
Tip:Snacks are essential for making meals stretch and keeping enough energy to go go go throughout the day. They’re the perfect campsite snack when you’re waiting to go to the music/adventure
Beer/Liquor/Alcohol
Tip: Depending on the festival, you can always throw your alcohol over the fence/barrier to the stage venues. Make sure you have someone on the other side though to snag it or you probz won’t see it again inside.
Refrigeration
So you’re probably wondering well this all sounds great, but how exactly are you going to keep all this food good for a couple day, middle-of-the-summer-heat music festival? Good question, there are a couple different choices- check it out below
Supplies List:
2 frozen water gallons
Tip: Make sure you pour a little out before you put it in the freeze, water expands when frozen!) The gallons will stay frozen for about two days, give or take. So make sure you take that into consideration as well!
Dry Ice
Tip: Buy this item on your way out so it’ll last the full length of the fest!
Regular Ice
Tip: I wait to buy these at the festival- I only need them for the last day or so!
Utensils & Cleaning
Make sure you keep it clean while you’re at the festival too. I’ve quickly come to realize that it’s easiest to clean the utensils right after you’re done using them (and letting your food cool off anyway). I use the aluminum foil method (below), however, you can also always use a splash of water, soap and paper towel to clean it off quick. Make sure you have something to eat your food with & on though.
Supplies List
Hot Plate
Tip: I snagged this one on Amazon and it’s great! It’s survived several festivals with me.
Aluminum foil
Tip: I use the hell out of this. I wrap my pots/pans while I’m cooking with them and then toss it once I’m done!
Spatula
Fryer Pan
Mini-pot & cups
Small pot
Paper plates & utensils
Solo cups
Summary
So, there’s a decent amount of things here, and I’m sure you’re wondering if this really works or not. I took all the money that I spent at 1 festival last summer (2017) with more or less buying food within the festival for the majority of my meals, and compared that amount to the same festival that I attended this year (Bonnaroo 2018). Check it out below:
Bonnaroo 2017: $438.56
Bonnaroo 2018: $242.53
So as you can see, I managed to save like 230 bucks and that wasn’t even trying my hardest to be frugal about spending (sometimes you just need your drunk-chies right?). So I can only imagine how much more money I could have saved if I had made it more of a point to not go get that the funnel cake AND the corndog. But hey, it’s a festival, we can indulge ourselves a little, right?
What do you do to save money on food at festivals? I feel like food is one of the easiest things that we can control ourselves, so why not do the most you can (while still keeping it healthy too?)
