Top 5 Must-Haves for Festival Season

Festival season is one of our favorite times of year—live music, sunshine, dancing, camping, good people, and plenty of hippie style. What you bring might change depending on the weather, where you’re headed, and how many days you’ll be dancing, but a few festival essentials always seem to make the list.

Here are five of our must-haves for keeping the good vibes going from the first song to the last.

1) Your Festival Tool Kit

First things first: water! Bring a reusable water bottle and keep it filled. Then add the little things you’ll be happy to have after a few hours in the sun—sunscreen, hand sanitizer, tissues, snacks, and a portable phone charger.

We always like to tuck in some organic hemp lip balm, too. And a little roll-on perfume oil is perfect for freshening up after a long day of dancing. Patchouli at a music festival? Of course.

Just remember to check the festival rules before you pack. Nobody wants to say goodbye to their favorite water bottle at the gate.

2) Something Cool & Comfy

Our number one rule for festival clothes: you’ve gotta be able to dance in them. Soft tees, tanks, crop tops, and breezy hippie tops are easy favorites when you’re spending the whole day outside.

Then pile on the fun stuff. A funky headband, your favorite necklace, a bandana, stacks of bracelets—whatever makes you feel most like you. Festivals are no place for boring outfits.

3) Tie-Dye. Always Tie-Dye.

We’ve been hippies for a long time, so you knew tie-dye clothing was going to make the list.

Bright rainbow swirls, earthy colors, wild patterns, just a little splash of dye—we love it all. Wear one tie-dye piece with your old favorites or mix it up from head to toe. There really aren’t any rules here. If it makes you happy, wear it.

4) A Good Hippie Bag

You need somewhere to stash all your stuff without carrying your whole life around the festival grounds. A little crossbody, hip bag, or lightweight backpack is just about perfect—big enough for the essentials and small enough to dance with.

If you’re camping, leave the big bag back at your tent and toss what you need for the day into a smaller hippie bag. Bonus points for pockets. You can never have too many pockets.

5) A Sense of Adventure!

This might be the most important one. Go see the band you’ve never heard of. Wander over to the little stage. Meet your neighbors. Try some yoga. Dance like nobody’s watching. Change your plans. Stay up too late.

Some of the best festival memories happen when you stop worrying about the schedule and just see where the music takes you.

So fill your water bottle, throw on something colorful, grab your bag, and go have some fun. And if your festival wardrobe needs a little more hippie in it, you can find our current boho festival clothing all in one place.

Still getting in the mood? Check out our guide to what to wear to music festivals or turn up our Festi Favorites playlist. Then start planning your next adventure!