We here at The SunBreak like to live A Life of Pro-Tips. To that end, here are some tips and tricks for how to best get around the festival.
Josh: As a general tip, the Bumbershoot iphone app is ready for downloading. It still doesn’t know about sharing your schedule with friends (or, even better, tracking your friends on the Seattle Center grounds) or figuring out which acts are the most popular among app users, but it’s a start and will still help you on time and aware of the schedule when your newsprint version gets horribly smudged.
The KEXP Music Lounge, where they broadcast from an undisclosed location on the Seattle Center campus, is always a nice escape from the teeming crowds. Unfortunately, this year’s sessions are already sold out, but you can still buy your way in with a Platinum Pass, which also gets you all sorts of other crowd- and sobriety-defying perks.
Also worth noting: sunlight-averse Bumbershooters may prefer this year’s (separately-ticketed) AfterDark programming by the Decibel Festival, which brings electronic music fans into the Exhibition Hall dungeon until 4 a.m.
Audrey: There’s also the Free Yr Radio lineup, with mostly Bumber-acts (but a few local extras!) doing yet another performance at the festival. Which means you actually have three chances to see Pickwick: their stage set, KEXP set, and the Free Yr Radio set. It’s almost an overwhelming number of scheduling options.
MvB: One Reel is putting free water tents all around the grounds, so just bring a refillable water bottle (or two) and save on buying anything at all.
Audrey: Yes, FREE WATER is a pro-tip. Don’t be a chump!
Shawn: They don’t check bags at the main gates, so bring in as much water as you like. I don’t think they even care if it is in view when you walk in. However, the mainstage and most of the indoor venues DO check bags and DON’T allow outside water, so keep that in mind.
If you are hungry/thirsty, sneak out to QFC or Met Market for a reasonably priced sandwich and drink. Or plan ahead and grab stuff before you head into Seattle Center.
Audrey: My biggest Bumber Pro-Tip is MONORAIL to get you to and from Seattle Center in under five minutes. Labor Day is the only time all year I take that accursed mode of transportation, so I’m glad it’s running late this weekend (till 11:30 p.m.).
Josh:If you insist on taking the bus, you’ll probably have more luck getting a seat if you pick it up in Queen Anne instead of downstream on Denny.
Katelyn: Stay hydrated, don’t eat pot brownies made by strangers, and know where the nearest restroom is at all times.
Josh: If you’re not rolling through the festival with shiny gold or platinum passes around your neck and care deeply about the comedy lineup, be sure to show up early to get a Comedy Pass. The main stage, now in Key Arena though, doesn’t require a special token as all shows are first-come (up to 90 minutes ahead), first-served.
MvB: Best bathrooms? I think there are some that end up less “used.” If you get my drift. Generally, those in specific venues, rather than the ones on the main floor of the Center House. There be monsters.
Shawn:Also, the bathrooms in the NW Rooms are usually the least used of the ones you don’t have to wait in a long comedy line to get to.
MvB: Avoid any path lined with food if you’re in a hurry, because you will either wear yourself out playing Red Rover with multiple food lines or end up with a plate of yakisoba on your shirt.
Josh: You’ll want to get a hundred posters at Flatstock; time your purchases so you’re not hauling your merch around all day and starting accidental tube fights during particularly boisterous sets on the Fountain Lawn.
MvB: It’s going to be hot this year, so don’t forget some kind of hat and SPF159. If you forget, it would be worth running across the street to Met Market or QFC. You may want to consider buying extra sunscreen and selling it at a huge markup to people turning lobster.
Josh: On the Be Prepared front, get ready for your phone’s battery to fade. Keep a printout of the schedule handy and pick a meeting time and place to find your friends when you inevitably get split up over funnel cakes vs. elephant ears or Hall & Oates vs. Truckasaurus.
MvB: Comfy shoes. Ear plugs.