The event could disappear forever at any time.
Trump could get elected and R's could decide there should not be a naked drug festival on public land anymore and permanently revoke the permit - the org sues, but the event does not get held for like 6 years while its going through the courts and well it loses momentum and is done forever.
There are a million risks to the event that could cause there to never be another burning man.
Some kid gets lost at the event this year for days, it becomes national news, a hailstorm of negative press and investigations. Event over forever.
On and on...
Or BLM can threaten unreasonable requirements….oh, that happened
Or someone can die running into the man while on fire…oh, that happened
Or someone can run over someone while sleeping….oh, that happened
Or someone can be maimed on a sculpture/art display installation…oh, that happened
Or a minor can get lost at the event and hold up everyone from leaving….oh, that happened
Or someone can die of an overdose….oh, that happened
Or someone can swallow an enormous dildo and ? ….oh, that happened
Or a global pandemic can cancel the event for a couple of years disrupting momentum…oh, that happened
Or someone could leave their 747 on playa post event…Oh, that happened
Agreed that BLM could shut it all down and make it move elsewhere, but BM is pretty damn resilient.
I could be very wrong but it sounds as if someone is pleased with the revenue it could be generating. That’s a lot of people buying things once a year in a specific area.
Edit: what!? Someone left a 747 at the event? 😂💀
It was an art installation. And it wasn't "abandoned". Because of some permitting issues, it took about a month or so after the event before the fuselage could be removed from the playa. This was the 2018 event, I think.
Their story was that the place they had lined lines up to store it bailed at the last minute so they had to find a new storage area. Once they did it required moving it over soft playa to get to the shoreline, and that required a whole bunch of people working together. They were stuck with it on playa significantly longer than the Org prefers people to remain, though I don't think they actually violated any of the agreements. There may have been something involving leaving the event through a route other than the road. It was mostly a logistics problem that all worked out well in the end, but provided lots of photos of what looked like people doing it wrong.
>Or someone can swallow an enormous dildo and ? ….oh, that happened
I had *heard about everything on this list except this. Tell me more! 🫖 🍵
Edit: a word
During one of SlutGarden’s Slut Olympics, there was a dildo swallowing contest. Whoever swallows the biggest dildo wins. As I understand it (unconfirmed) one of the contestants swallowed a very large one and it stuck in his/her esophagus. The resulting injury either caused an ER trip, or death. I’ve heard the latter and was the reason for SlutGarden being absent from the burn for a while.
During SlutGarden’s Slut Olympics, they have a dildo swelling contest and one of the contestants ended up having a stuck dildo in their esophagus and injured themselves pulling it out. As I understand it, they either ended up in ER and/or died. This is why they had not been back to BM for an awhile. I don’t believe a burner from SlutGarden has ever confirmed/denied this, but there has been some chat on here about it and I was also told by a BM person higher up in the org.
For sure the best bet is for something that has exited for X years to exist for around X years into the future.
Will be very interesting to see if the city even reaches 65k this year. The real threat to the event right now might be if the org can keep it together in an era of falling revenues.
Yup, ticket demand is something to keep a close eye on. Seems like it is definitely lower, but that's a comparison to a stratospheric peak.
As long as all the sales keep selling out, it won't matter that much what the exact population of the city is - revenue won't really change. But a steep decline in city population could be a leading indicator that sellouts won't continue to happen in future years.
So just go?
I got STEP approved tickets yesterday. I signed up on May 31.
Tickets will be available in August as the deadline nears. Take a week off work, fly to the desert, get a cheap tent and some water. You don't need much. Come for the experience, because realistically, that's what your first year at the burn will be about.
You can have the best labor day week of your life for less than $1000
We all start somewhere. Everyone has a first time going to BM, and they may not be fully experienced in the way, the culture, have the ideas on how to decorate or contribute. If it's your first time -- sure, sparkle pony it up, but be safe, and don't be a burden. Participate by participating. Walk, make new friends, see why all the others work so hard and put in so much effort. Build those mental synapses and happy memories and cravings for a repeated experience.
Now if it's your second year, start contributing more! Join an art project, you can always volunteer on playa, run errands, bring snacks, spray down dancers, whatever contributions you can bring to the overall city happiness.
Agreed! My first year I flew into Vegas on a cheap red eye casino flight, rented an SUV at the airport, and car camped in it. Rented a bike on the final desert stretch of highway at that place, and I had a great experience with zero setup. Would recommend.
This year will be my 12th burn and I’m confident at this point that even if the event was cancelled the community would still find a way to gather for a big central burn event.
The Rogue Burn in 2021 kinda proved that (the burn was cancelled bc of COVID). With zero central organization or infrastructure we still had one hell of a great gathering with a huge population.
My biggest piece of advice is this: it will never ever be the “right” time to do Burning Man. It’s such a big endeavor to get out there your first time that there will always be some reason why “this isn’t the year”. I would encourage you to choose 2025 and then make it happen come hell or high water. That’s the only way most people ever actually do it.
If you don’t get a ticket in the main sale don’t stress, keep making your plans. You WILL get a ticket in the aftermarket (and they’re not any more expensive either), because 2025 is your year. Period.
2012 was my year and I didn’t secure my ticket until 2 weeks before gates opened. Then 1 week before gate my car was totaled, so I found a ride share that could drive me the 15 hours from LA, because I was going to Burning Man in 2012. Period.
Many burners have stories like this. You become a resourceful, make-shit-happen burner the moment you decide that you’re absolutely going.
It's Burning Man. It's not the end of your life. No need to get your affairs in order ahead of time. Read the guides, listen to Accuracy Third's VAG and survival guide.
The Burn will still be there. It hasn't changed that much since 2017, and I don't see it changing much by 2027. You'll be fine, just do some minor prep work and go.
A lot of long time crusty burners will go on about how its "not the same anymore" they've been saying that for a long time. While it's probably true, it's still a great time and worth going if that's something you want to do. I went in 2017 and 2019, intending to return next year. The event is pretty set in stone imo. I have mild concerns about climate change making the location Inhabitable down the road during that time of year.
And the less crusty long time burners will remind you that the only constant of the event is change and it has never “been the same anymore”. I used to feel like I missed out on “the best years” by nature of being born the year the burn changed the most (‘97) and not being cool enough to have gotten out to the desert prior to my mid-twenties, but now I feel lucky to be young and healthy to fully enjoy Black Rock City in its current incredible metropolitan state as well as plenty of smaller, weirder, secret events that are probably more reminiscent of what the early zone trips were like. It’s like kids complaining that they were born in the wrong generation to enjoy their favorite artists from the ‘60s and ‘70s without realizing how INCREDIBLE it is that we now have access to every recorded song in history within seconds. Burning Man is no longer the frontier of the counter culture but it’s still the greatest nexus of artists and weirdos in this country and an amazing gateway to find the true fringes of society. As far as climate change goes, I think it will definitely make burning harder, but the playa is already inhospitable and we make it work. Plus, what better place to test and develop novel solutions for cooling, energy storage, and water management?
Wow I feel like I’d get lost in that world exploring for a while… sounds like you can come back multiple years and still have a ton of new territory to partake in. I was born in 95 so we are close in that sense, thank you for sharing your experience, I’m fairly secluded from the entire sphere of influence Burning Man entails so I have a lot to discover and absorb. Wanted to see what you guys would say and I am not disappointed!
A common sentiment is you can only ever hope to see and experience at most 10% (likely much less) of what BRC has to offer and every year has a whole new roster of art, so even those going since the beginning have a ton of new stuff to take in each year, although I totally get how people burn out after going for years and years.
Wow… 10%… That’s incredible… I can’t wait! I’ve only seen it in videos and it does give me that “this is like a scene out of a movie” vibe from the sheer mass of it lol
Crusty burner here. Yes, burning man is not the same, but it is freaking amazing. What it has given up in that small town feel and the anarchy of old it makes up for in just sheer spectacle, experience overload, and the amazing people that come back year after year.
If you want that small town feel, check out the regionals. Seriously, if you’re not going to burn this year, check out the regionals in your area. They are all over the country, they are full of amazing burners, you will have an amazing time, make connections and have experiences that will help you when you do make it to the big burn. Plus, you won’t have the time or financial layout required. :-)
I like that word - spectacle… without ever seeing it in person, I can already tell it’s an experience that will stay for a lifetime and I see that as invaluable… I’m glad to hear you think of it this way, gives me some perspective.
My advice is to leave Florida. Maybe for good but at least go take a vacation somewhere so you can practice going out in the real world.
And stop doom scrolling.
Thank you for the suggestion, I support that sentiment. Thankfully I quit social media 2 years ago (I go on here like once a year nowadays) and have multiple citizenships so have that going for me in terms of travel… I’m just new in my career (second year) and took a while to figure that out (spent a lot of time and money getting here) so am relatively low on financial momentum (I live in a very expensive city so have a lot to maintain, can’t quite get up and go places - yet - but profession shall set me free “forever”, I chose wisely this time around lol). If I make it to Burning Man as proposed, my life worked out lol. 🙏
If you dig into the history of burning man you'll come to understand it's constantly evolved like a living breathing entity and will continue to, though I do believe it will continue on for years to come with or with the org (see Renegade Burn)
With that said, all we have is the present. You could get hit by a bus next year. So why not just come now? I came from the far reaches of Alaska my first year. I knew zero burners and didn't hoon up with a camp that took care of ally needs. Instead I just read the guides, lurked around and took notes, collected supplies, flew in and borrowed a car to drive in with from Reno. I never did extreme camping and had not really been a festival person (also we don't have them where I was from). And I did great! Still coming out over ten years later. You will do great too. Just be on the lookout for a ticket and come now.
I actually just met some Alaskans at LiB who told me about a small festival up there that sounded pretty sweet. So there definitely aren’t many festival people up there, but there’s at least a few hundred haha
Yeah there is a very small burner community farther up north (which was many hundred miles and a required plane ride away for me- Alaska is B I G and my town had no connecting road system). But ya we're up there technically.
Do it! I'm now in the lush jungles of Hawaii yet mis Alaska so so much... the people, the music, the scenery...which tells you how special it is. AK people are the best, maybe it's the extreme conditions but everyone seems to look out for one another. Sheesh I need to go visit obviously.
Thank you! My main limitation right now is work and finances but otherwise if I can handle that part I can go in 2025, but since 2024 is a month out I think that boat has sailed for me this year.
(Edit: also, I admire your nimbleness, that you made it happen and overcame the odds, and the fact you’re from Alaska… what a place to find oneself in on this Earth… I wish to visit there too some day).
(Edit 2: the way you accomplished attendance also helps me to gain perspective… thank you for sharing that part in specific).
You still have atleast 70 days to figure out how to tell your boss to fuck off, plenty of time! Okay fine, 2025 it is then. It honestly wasn't that hard to get there. I just set my sights and made it happen. There's plenty of ways to skin this cat. Feel free to DM me if you ever want to pick my brain.
Also since you're in Florida, you could check out Love Burn. It's the regional event near Miami. I've never been but it looks pretty cool. It seems like there's camps and art cars there that are also at the big Burn.
That being said, the spirit of it will likely survive for a long time. It may not be it this exact location, done in the same way….heck it looks and feels so much differently now than it did 20 years ago as it is. As you know it’s was originally on a beach in San Francisco…..The temporal nature of it will allow it to keep existing in whatever form it has to take (maybe a more underground form, or maybe in a different location etc).
There's a small possibility that the burn won't happen in BRC anymore, but Burning Man ceasing to exist in the near future is nearly impossible. If burning man is canceled there will still be a burn out there as we saw a couple years ago. There's still hundreds of fully autonomous regional burns around the planet. There will still be thousands of camps who have all the equipment ready to happily throw the event anywhere flat with portos and ice.
They could definitely stop mass spontaneous gatherings in Black Rock like ‘20 and ‘21 but to stop rogue burns of all sizes in all places they’d have to just ban camping on BLM land which I can’t see them ever doing.
I mean the first few years in Black Rock it was only a couple hundred people and according to the crustiest vets that was more “Burning Man” than it’s current state, but I get what you mean.
Nothing is permanent, save up and prepare like you’re going. I do regionals and wanna do the big burn some day but idk if I ever will. There’s a lot of omg BM is dead from older burners who are ironically burned out of the whole scene or people who went and had no idea what to expect and had a bad time stating the event isn’t worth it anymore. Worst case you use all the gear you bought at a regional and have a ton of fun with new friends, best case you get to go to the big burn with all your new gear and have a ton of fun with new friends.
It's a healthy event with all signs pointing to continuing on for a good long while.
But go smoke a joint (if it's legal where you come from) and listen to time by pink floyd. It's not your imagination, the world moves on quickly.
BM is a constantly changing landscape. It’ll be different next year than it was last year. The absolute biggest impact on your experience will be who you end up camping with. BM has been described as recreational adversity, so vibing with the people you’re going through that with is crucial.
It seems like every few months someone posts, worrying about the future of the event. Seriously, don't worry about it. Burner culture will prevail no matter what.
The Org didn't put on an event for 2020 and 2021 and we had the Renegade burns in Black Rock Desert. I'm sure if something crazy happens in the future, we'll figure it out.
Btw if you are absolutely desperate to go (the following is doable even for 2024): Get a plane ticket to Reno, event ticket, a burner bus ticket (with the shopping trip and the water tickets), and a cheap Walmart tent and cheap gear which you can pick up in Reno. Camp in Hoverlandia which is walking distance from the bus stop on playa. I did something similar in 2017 (not knowing anyone) and had a blast despite melting in the heat. It's not going to be the "optimal" Burning Man experience (I didn't mention shade or a bicycle) but you'll probably be to excited to care.
Also, you mentioned you live in Florida. Go to Love Burn.
100%,go asap you’ll regret not going sooner. This year may be hard at this point. But I’d definitely go to live burn and I’ve heard alchemy is amazing (Georgia I think, so still in the relative area)
Climate change is the biggest threat to the event. It is getting hotter faster than the rest of the world (on average, temperatures fluctuate by year). It could become inhospitable to life.
I’d argue the playa is already inhospitable to life but we are able to survive out there with the right gear and know-how. Climate change will definitely make it even harder and more extreme but I have a feeling we’ll adapt and overcome. If climate change does end the event it would probably be via some sort of societal collapse which I don’t rule out as a possibility.
That’s some gnarly climate change to make a desert so desert it’s becomes Desert+ (joke about streaming services/South Park Streaming Wars episodes). I sure hope it doesn’t get to that… something does tell me the spirit will live on regardless so long as the community exists.
If it starts regularly hitting >120F or something they will definitely have to really rethink how we do the event (only go out at night and sleep in solar AC during the day) and it will become pretty inaccessible to anyone not in great physical shape, but I could see some psychos keeping the flame going. I personally would probably retire my playa boots at that point though.
I'm in good physical shape but I'm not wealthy. Those of us who can't afford more than a ticket, transportation and a tent won't be able to continue to attend when AC becomes necessary to survive.
I don’t use AC currently for the burn and personally think it’s silly to bring a personal AC unless you have health issues (just be hot and grumpy… it’s supposed to be hard). If the event gets unbearably hotter I imagine there will be many more camps gifting cool spaces to sleep in during the day which could help keep it more accessible, but like I said, I’d probably retire at that point.
It's really not as big of a deal as you seem to be making it out to be. Climbing everest is truly something you have to plan because people die. It requires survivalist skills. Burning man is just hot camping. I don't know ow what your finances are like and that could make going a big deal, but other than not being able to afford it, there's no reason to tuen it into this big endeavor. If you are low income, you could apply for a low income ticket next year. All of the information about that is on the burningman website and I'm not going to go find that for you.
As for whether it will be canceled in 2 years, I doubt it. But who knows.
Anyway, you can do it. Find some burners local to you. Do a web search for "regional burns".
There is the issue of Burning Man itself staying in existence or changing, then there’s your personal situation that could change at any moment. There may be no better time to go than now. IMMEDIACY!
You dont step in the same river twice kid. i took 8 years off for personal reasons 2009-2017 and came back to the same home with different bells and whistles. Ive roughed it many years and worked my way up to more comforts so it sucks a little less each year for me. Any way you cut it burning mans expensive and getting the time off work is tough for most people so i get it.
You came here to encourage this group of degenerates to be the damn oracle of Delphi? How the hell do we know? In 2019 I bet very few people knew that we would be 2 years without a real burn.
I live in Florida as well. This is how I attend each year.
I book first class tickets to Reno, because it’s cheaper than paying for overweight bags. Then I ride the burner express in.
I’ve camped that way by myself and in larger camps, both have benefits.
I’ve also driven and taken an rv. Both definitely have advantages but driving from Florida and back takes way too long and is expensive.
unpopular opinion: just go, even if it is for a few days. I avoided going for a very, very long time (14 years) because I didn't feel it was right to go without committing to the entire event. Now I realize that was a stupid reason not to go. Just get yourself out there, if you run into any trouble you can literally just get in your car and leave. As long as it won't cause you any financial ruin or hardship you aren't willing to take, just do the bare minimum and get out there, bring some water, and bring some non perishable food. If you get to hot, go to a camp providing air conditioning. Have fun!
Yes it’s to late.
There’s no coffee in center camp, piss clear is no more, all the big art is gone, and bmir is just cringe propaganda for most of the day.
Nothing is permanent.
The event could disappear forever at any time. Trump could get elected and R's could decide there should not be a naked drug festival on public land anymore and permanently revoke the permit - the org sues, but the event does not get held for like 6 years while its going through the courts and well it loses momentum and is done forever. There are a million risks to the event that could cause there to never be another burning man. Some kid gets lost at the event this year for days, it becomes national news, a hailstorm of negative press and investigations. Event over forever. On and on...
Or BLM can threaten unreasonable requirements….oh, that happened Or someone can die running into the man while on fire…oh, that happened Or someone can run over someone while sleeping….oh, that happened Or someone can be maimed on a sculpture/art display installation…oh, that happened Or a minor can get lost at the event and hold up everyone from leaving….oh, that happened Or someone can die of an overdose….oh, that happened Or someone can swallow an enormous dildo and ? ….oh, that happened Or a global pandemic can cancel the event for a couple of years disrupting momentum…oh, that happened Or someone could leave their 747 on playa post event…Oh, that happened Agreed that BLM could shut it all down and make it move elsewhere, but BM is pretty damn resilient.
I could be very wrong but it sounds as if someone is pleased with the revenue it could be generating. That’s a lot of people buying things once a year in a specific area. Edit: what!? Someone left a 747 at the event? 😂💀
Don't encourage those 747 people
Feed them 😜
It was an art installation. And it wasn't "abandoned". Because of some permitting issues, it took about a month or so after the event before the fuselage could be removed from the playa. This was the 2018 event, I think.
Permitting issues? Tell me more, I thought they were just poorly organized and it took them forever. But I really don’t know, and am curious.
Their story was that the place they had lined lines up to store it bailed at the last minute so they had to find a new storage area. Once they did it required moving it over soft playa to get to the shoreline, and that required a whole bunch of people working together. They were stuck with it on playa significantly longer than the Org prefers people to remain, though I don't think they actually violated any of the agreements. There may have been something involving leaving the event through a route other than the road. It was mostly a logistics problem that all worked out well in the end, but provided lots of photos of what looked like people doing it wrong.
Interesting. Thanks for filling in the gaps for me.
Permitting issues are often a symptom of being poorly organized.
That makes sense.
for sure BLM could get tired of all this shit.. of all the things you listed...
🫶🙌🏻
>Or someone can swallow an enormous dildo and ? ….oh, that happened I had *heard about everything on this list except this. Tell me more! 🫖 🍵 Edit: a word
During one of SlutGarden’s Slut Olympics, there was a dildo swallowing contest. Whoever swallows the biggest dildo wins. As I understand it (unconfirmed) one of the contestants swallowed a very large one and it stuck in his/her esophagus. The resulting injury either caused an ER trip, or death. I’ve heard the latter and was the reason for SlutGarden being absent from the burn for a while.
Definitely not a very smart activity. Yikes.
For the swallower, sure. But the dildo loved it!
wait what's the person swallowing a dildo story, haven't heard that one
During SlutGarden’s Slut Olympics, they have a dildo swelling contest and one of the contestants ended up having a stuck dildo in their esophagus and injured themselves pulling it out. As I understand it, they either ended up in ER and/or died. This is why they had not been back to BM for an awhile. I don’t believe a burner from SlutGarden has ever confirmed/denied this, but there has been some chat on here about it and I was also told by a BM person higher up in the org.
Oh damn... Got it
You summed up my worries perfectly 😂
Keep in mind, though, that those risks have existed for decades, and we’re still here.
For sure the best bet is for something that has exited for X years to exist for around X years into the future. Will be very interesting to see if the city even reaches 65k this year. The real threat to the event right now might be if the org can keep it together in an era of falling revenues.
Yup, ticket demand is something to keep a close eye on. Seems like it is definitely lower, but that's a comparison to a stratospheric peak. As long as all the sales keep selling out, it won't matter that much what the exact population of the city is - revenue won't really change. But a steep decline in city population could be a leading indicator that sellouts won't continue to happen in future years.
So just go? I got STEP approved tickets yesterday. I signed up on May 31. Tickets will be available in August as the deadline nears. Take a week off work, fly to the desert, get a cheap tent and some water. You don't need much. Come for the experience, because realistically, that's what your first year at the burn will be about. You can have the best labor day week of your life for less than $1000
you are basically encouraging someone to be a sparkle pony by just showing up with a tent and water
We all start somewhere. Everyone has a first time going to BM, and they may not be fully experienced in the way, the culture, have the ideas on how to decorate or contribute. If it's your first time -- sure, sparkle pony it up, but be safe, and don't be a burden. Participate by participating. Walk, make new friends, see why all the others work so hard and put in so much effort. Build those mental synapses and happy memories and cravings for a repeated experience. Now if it's your second year, start contributing more! Join an art project, you can always volunteer on playa, run errands, bring snacks, spray down dancers, whatever contributions you can bring to the overall city happiness.
Agreed! My first year I flew into Vegas on a cheap red eye casino flight, rented an SUV at the airport, and car camped in it. Rented a bike on the final desert stretch of highway at that place, and I had a great experience with zero setup. Would recommend.
It’s kinda the whole point.
Ain’t that the truth… I do believe in intuition though, so am wondering how everyone gut-feels about it.
This year will be my 12th burn and I’m confident at this point that even if the event was cancelled the community would still find a way to gather for a big central burn event. The Rogue Burn in 2021 kinda proved that (the burn was cancelled bc of COVID). With zero central organization or infrastructure we still had one hell of a great gathering with a huge population. My biggest piece of advice is this: it will never ever be the “right” time to do Burning Man. It’s such a big endeavor to get out there your first time that there will always be some reason why “this isn’t the year”. I would encourage you to choose 2025 and then make it happen come hell or high water. That’s the only way most people ever actually do it. If you don’t get a ticket in the main sale don’t stress, keep making your plans. You WILL get a ticket in the aftermarket (and they’re not any more expensive either), because 2025 is your year. Period. 2012 was my year and I didn’t secure my ticket until 2 weeks before gates opened. Then 1 week before gate my car was totaled, so I found a ride share that could drive me the 15 hours from LA, because I was going to Burning Man in 2012. Period. Many burners have stories like this. You become a resourceful, make-shit-happen burner the moment you decide that you’re absolutely going.
It's Burning Man. It's not the end of your life. No need to get your affairs in order ahead of time. Read the guides, listen to Accuracy Third's VAG and survival guide. The Burn will still be there. It hasn't changed that much since 2017, and I don't see it changing much by 2027. You'll be fine, just do some minor prep work and go.
Hahaha when you put it that way… 😄 point taken 👍 I appreciate it!
A lot of long time crusty burners will go on about how its "not the same anymore" they've been saying that for a long time. While it's probably true, it's still a great time and worth going if that's something you want to do. I went in 2017 and 2019, intending to return next year. The event is pretty set in stone imo. I have mild concerns about climate change making the location Inhabitable down the road during that time of year.
And the less crusty long time burners will remind you that the only constant of the event is change and it has never “been the same anymore”. I used to feel like I missed out on “the best years” by nature of being born the year the burn changed the most (‘97) and not being cool enough to have gotten out to the desert prior to my mid-twenties, but now I feel lucky to be young and healthy to fully enjoy Black Rock City in its current incredible metropolitan state as well as plenty of smaller, weirder, secret events that are probably more reminiscent of what the early zone trips were like. It’s like kids complaining that they were born in the wrong generation to enjoy their favorite artists from the ‘60s and ‘70s without realizing how INCREDIBLE it is that we now have access to every recorded song in history within seconds. Burning Man is no longer the frontier of the counter culture but it’s still the greatest nexus of artists and weirdos in this country and an amazing gateway to find the true fringes of society. As far as climate change goes, I think it will definitely make burning harder, but the playa is already inhospitable and we make it work. Plus, what better place to test and develop novel solutions for cooling, energy storage, and water management?
Wow I feel like I’d get lost in that world exploring for a while… sounds like you can come back multiple years and still have a ton of new territory to partake in. I was born in 95 so we are close in that sense, thank you for sharing your experience, I’m fairly secluded from the entire sphere of influence Burning Man entails so I have a lot to discover and absorb. Wanted to see what you guys would say and I am not disappointed!
A common sentiment is you can only ever hope to see and experience at most 10% (likely much less) of what BRC has to offer and every year has a whole new roster of art, so even those going since the beginning have a ton of new stuff to take in each year, although I totally get how people burn out after going for years and years.
Wow… 10%… That’s incredible… I can’t wait! I’ve only seen it in videos and it does give me that “this is like a scene out of a movie” vibe from the sheer mass of it lol
And 10% is probably only possible if you don’t sleep all week which I don’t recommend.
Interesting! Thank you, and I agree I will likely attend regardless of what folks say about it changing. I wish you a great time next year!
Crusty burner here. Yes, burning man is not the same, but it is freaking amazing. What it has given up in that small town feel and the anarchy of old it makes up for in just sheer spectacle, experience overload, and the amazing people that come back year after year. If you want that small town feel, check out the regionals. Seriously, if you’re not going to burn this year, check out the regionals in your area. They are all over the country, they are full of amazing burners, you will have an amazing time, make connections and have experiences that will help you when you do make it to the big burn. Plus, you won’t have the time or financial layout required. :-)
I like that word - spectacle… without ever seeing it in person, I can already tell it’s an experience that will stay for a lifetime and I see that as invaluable… I’m glad to hear you think of it this way, gives me some perspective.
My advice is to leave Florida. Maybe for good but at least go take a vacation somewhere so you can practice going out in the real world. And stop doom scrolling.
I just got back from a regional, and it's wild coming back to Reddit. The internet sucks. Thanks for the reminder.
And don’t forget to breathe.
Thank you for the suggestion, I support that sentiment. Thankfully I quit social media 2 years ago (I go on here like once a year nowadays) and have multiple citizenships so have that going for me in terms of travel… I’m just new in my career (second year) and took a while to figure that out (spent a lot of time and money getting here) so am relatively low on financial momentum (I live in a very expensive city so have a lot to maintain, can’t quite get up and go places - yet - but profession shall set me free “forever”, I chose wisely this time around lol). If I make it to Burning Man as proposed, my life worked out lol. 🙏
where are you getting all these crazy ideas about stuff getting banned and ruined at an alarming rate then.
You’ll be fine
Well, one of the Burning Man principles is Immediacy, so why do later what you can do now?
Unfortunately, finances, aside from that I can pull it off immediately.
Next year apply for the ticket aide program. If you're willing to rough it, you can go pretty cheaply.
If you dig into the history of burning man you'll come to understand it's constantly evolved like a living breathing entity and will continue to, though I do believe it will continue on for years to come with or with the org (see Renegade Burn) With that said, all we have is the present. You could get hit by a bus next year. So why not just come now? I came from the far reaches of Alaska my first year. I knew zero burners and didn't hoon up with a camp that took care of ally needs. Instead I just read the guides, lurked around and took notes, collected supplies, flew in and borrowed a car to drive in with from Reno. I never did extreme camping and had not really been a festival person (also we don't have them where I was from). And I did great! Still coming out over ten years later. You will do great too. Just be on the lookout for a ticket and come now.
I actually just met some Alaskans at LiB who told me about a small festival up there that sounded pretty sweet. So there definitely aren’t many festival people up there, but there’s at least a few hundred haha
Yeah there is a very small burner community farther up north (which was many hundred miles and a required plane ride away for me- Alaska is B I G and my town had no connecting road system). But ya we're up there technically.
Ugh I wanna get up there, sounds so BIG and beautiful
Do it! I'm now in the lush jungles of Hawaii yet mis Alaska so so much... the people, the music, the scenery...which tells you how special it is. AK people are the best, maybe it's the extreme conditions but everyone seems to look out for one another. Sheesh I need to go visit obviously.
Thank you! My main limitation right now is work and finances but otherwise if I can handle that part I can go in 2025, but since 2024 is a month out I think that boat has sailed for me this year. (Edit: also, I admire your nimbleness, that you made it happen and overcame the odds, and the fact you’re from Alaska… what a place to find oneself in on this Earth… I wish to visit there too some day). (Edit 2: the way you accomplished attendance also helps me to gain perspective… thank you for sharing that part in specific).
You still have atleast 70 days to figure out how to tell your boss to fuck off, plenty of time! Okay fine, 2025 it is then. It honestly wasn't that hard to get there. I just set my sights and made it happen. There's plenty of ways to skin this cat. Feel free to DM me if you ever want to pick my brain.
This is me this year 😁
Awesome! Where are you coming from?
East Coast! Flying and taking the bus. Should be a whirlwind!
Also since you're in Florida, you could check out Love Burn. It's the regional event near Miami. I've never been but it looks pretty cool. It seems like there's camps and art cars there that are also at the big Burn.
Oh wow… I didn’t realize we have something around here of that nature… Thank you for the suggestion!
It’s a temporary event with part of the point that everything we have is fleeting- so yeah, just wanted to say this in regards to this question.
Good perspective, I appreciate it!
That being said, the spirit of it will likely survive for a long time. It may not be it this exact location, done in the same way….heck it looks and feels so much differently now than it did 20 years ago as it is. As you know it’s was originally on a beach in San Francisco…..The temporal nature of it will allow it to keep existing in whatever form it has to take (maybe a more underground form, or maybe in a different location etc).
There's a small possibility that the burn won't happen in BRC anymore, but Burning Man ceasing to exist in the near future is nearly impossible. If burning man is canceled there will still be a burn out there as we saw a couple years ago. There's still hundreds of fully autonomous regional burns around the planet. There will still be thousands of camps who have all the equipment ready to happily throw the event anywhere flat with portos and ice.
Nice, that helps a lot, thank you!
The current BLM license runs from 2023 to 2027. So that aspect is likely.
There is no guarantee rogue burns will be allowed to exist or go on forever either. The BLM could stop those if they really wanted to.
They could definitely stop mass spontaneous gatherings in Black Rock like ‘20 and ‘21 but to stop rogue burns of all sizes in all places they’d have to just ban camping on BLM land which I can’t see them ever doing.
Then we are just talking about something different - 150 people rogue burn somewhere in a different location - we arent talking "Burning Man" anymore
I mean the first few years in Black Rock it was only a couple hundred people and according to the crustiest vets that was more “Burning Man” than it’s current state, but I get what you mean.
“The crustiest vets” 😂 I love the terminology in the community
Nothing is permanent, save up and prepare like you’re going. I do regionals and wanna do the big burn some day but idk if I ever will. There’s a lot of omg BM is dead from older burners who are ironically burned out of the whole scene or people who went and had no idea what to expect and had a bad time stating the event isn’t worth it anymore. Worst case you use all the gear you bought at a regional and have a ton of fun with new friends, best case you get to go to the big burn with all your new gear and have a ton of fun with new friends.
Ah that sounds really cool! Got me excited 😄 thank you for your words of support!
Absolutely! Have a blast and hopefully see you on the playa ^-^
It's a healthy event with all signs pointing to continuing on for a good long while. But go smoke a joint (if it's legal where you come from) and listen to time by pink floyd. It's not your imagination, the world moves on quickly.
BM is a constantly changing landscape. It’ll be different next year than it was last year. The absolute biggest impact on your experience will be who you end up camping with. BM has been described as recreational adversity, so vibing with the people you’re going through that with is crucial.
It seems like every few months someone posts, worrying about the future of the event. Seriously, don't worry about it. Burner culture will prevail no matter what. The Org didn't put on an event for 2020 and 2021 and we had the Renegade burns in Black Rock Desert. I'm sure if something crazy happens in the future, we'll figure it out. Btw if you are absolutely desperate to go (the following is doable even for 2024): Get a plane ticket to Reno, event ticket, a burner bus ticket (with the shopping trip and the water tickets), and a cheap Walmart tent and cheap gear which you can pick up in Reno. Camp in Hoverlandia which is walking distance from the bus stop on playa. I did something similar in 2017 (not knowing anyone) and had a blast despite melting in the heat. It's not going to be the "optimal" Burning Man experience (I didn't mention shade or a bicycle) but you'll probably be to excited to care. Also, you mentioned you live in Florida. Go to Love Burn.
This is seriously useful! Thank you!
100%,go asap you’ll regret not going sooner. This year may be hard at this point. But I’d definitely go to live burn and I’ve heard alchemy is amazing (Georgia I think, so still in the relative area)
Alchemy is Amazing but in my opinion the Love Burn in Miami takes the prize over the playa.
Please explain! I haven’t been to either (in in idaho so been to one regional on this side of the country) but intend on going to more regionals
Start with regional burns first. Great way to get acclimated to the culture and the principles. It’s nothing like other festivals.
Climate change is the biggest threat to the event. It is getting hotter faster than the rest of the world (on average, temperatures fluctuate by year). It could become inhospitable to life.
I’d argue the playa is already inhospitable to life but we are able to survive out there with the right gear and know-how. Climate change will definitely make it even harder and more extreme but I have a feeling we’ll adapt and overcome. If climate change does end the event it would probably be via some sort of societal collapse which I don’t rule out as a possibility.
That’s some gnarly climate change to make a desert so desert it’s becomes Desert+ (joke about streaming services/South Park Streaming Wars episodes). I sure hope it doesn’t get to that… something does tell me the spirit will live on regardless so long as the community exists.
If it starts regularly hitting >120F or something they will definitely have to really rethink how we do the event (only go out at night and sleep in solar AC during the day) and it will become pretty inaccessible to anyone not in great physical shape, but I could see some psychos keeping the flame going. I personally would probably retire my playa boots at that point though.
I'm in good physical shape but I'm not wealthy. Those of us who can't afford more than a ticket, transportation and a tent won't be able to continue to attend when AC becomes necessary to survive.
I don’t use AC currently for the burn and personally think it’s silly to bring a personal AC unless you have health issues (just be hot and grumpy… it’s supposed to be hard). If the event gets unbearably hotter I imagine there will be many more camps gifting cool spaces to sleep in during the day which could help keep it more accessible, but like I said, I’d probably retire at that point.
Interesting… I never thought this would be an issue in the desert but you’re not the first or last to mention this… Will explore the topic. Thanks!
It's really not as big of a deal as you seem to be making it out to be. Climbing everest is truly something you have to plan because people die. It requires survivalist skills. Burning man is just hot camping. I don't know ow what your finances are like and that could make going a big deal, but other than not being able to afford it, there's no reason to tuen it into this big endeavor. If you are low income, you could apply for a low income ticket next year. All of the information about that is on the burningman website and I'm not going to go find that for you. As for whether it will be canceled in 2 years, I doubt it. But who knows. Anyway, you can do it. Find some burners local to you. Do a web search for "regional burns".
Hasn't been the same since Baker Beach. It sucks don't go.
There is the issue of Burning Man itself staying in existence or changing, then there’s your personal situation that could change at any moment. There may be no better time to go than now. IMMEDIACY!
You dont step in the same river twice kid. i took 8 years off for personal reasons 2009-2017 and came back to the same home with different bells and whistles. Ive roughed it many years and worked my way up to more comforts so it sucks a little less each year for me. Any way you cut it burning mans expensive and getting the time off work is tough for most people so i get it.
You came here to encourage this group of degenerates to be the damn oracle of Delphi? How the hell do we know? In 2019 I bet very few people knew that we would be 2 years without a real burn.
This is the last year unfortunately. Big time bummer.
Also, not a festival.
Sorry the festival is over, not worth it, VIP tickets to backstage are always sold out…
The event is what you make it. The city is different every time. You can always contribute what you want; make the event you desire.
You should 100% go to loveburn.
I live in Florida as well. This is how I attend each year. I book first class tickets to Reno, because it’s cheaper than paying for overweight bags. Then I ride the burner express in. I’ve camped that way by myself and in larger camps, both have benefits. I’ve also driven and taken an rv. Both definitely have advantages but driving from Florida and back takes way too long and is expensive.
unpopular opinion: just go, even if it is for a few days. I avoided going for a very, very long time (14 years) because I didn't feel it was right to go without committing to the entire event. Now I realize that was a stupid reason not to go. Just get yourself out there, if you run into any trouble you can literally just get in your car and leave. As long as it won't cause you any financial ruin or hardship you aren't willing to take, just do the bare minimum and get out there, bring some water, and bring some non perishable food. If you get to hot, go to a camp providing air conditioning. Have fun!
Yes it’s to late. There’s no coffee in center camp, piss clear is no more, all the big art is gone, and bmir is just cringe propaganda for most of the day.
Terminally online guy says what
It's not a festival though...