Roger Gupta
It's no secret that FloydFest, held just down the road in Floyd, VA, is one of the most popular festivals in the region. Given its growing popularity each year, we'd be willing to add it might be one of the most popular festivals in the nation!
With acts like Brandi Carlile, Emmylou Harris, and Grace Potter and the Nocturnals (and many, many more!), plus activities for attendees of all ages, there's never a boring moment. We encourage you to visit their website for tons of useful information and schedules.
Straight from the festival's mouth, here are a few FloydFest 14~Fire on the Mountain highlights that are sure to make this the best year yet:
• Our brand-new HOV EZ Pass Bundles, which grant the purchaser 4 Adult GA tickets (4-day or 5-day options), 2 Kid GA tickets, 2 GA Tent Tags, 1 Onsite Parking Pass. An overarching theme of FF14 is that we are listening to any and all patron demands (via surveys), and the largest demand was to bring back onsite parking. To that end, and also being 'green' about it, we have devised a new ticket offering, the HOV EZ, which brings the most cars back onsite that we can fit, while offering a 'green' carpooling option to groups that would be traveling together anyway. To boot, it also represents a cost savings, and we think increases the overall experience for our beloved patrons. One of these passes allows camping beside your vehicle, and one allows camping anywhere a GA Tent Tag is allowed.
• Limited capacity: Part of our mission statement is to be a "limited capacity boutique festival" and we have reduced ticket sales in 2015 in order to grant our patrons the best experience possible.
• Expanded Glamping options and creation of The Village: Our patrons want more Glamping options, and we delivered in 2015, with the creation of an expanded Glamping Village, located in the former home of the Global Village. While still hosting acoustic sets of music, late-night drum circles and late-night entertainment has been relocated, creating a more peaceful living and sleeping situation for our many Glampers.
• Alpha Lot at Chateau Morrisette is back: Located very, very close to our venue is the Alpha Lot, where most single- and multi-day campers and parkers will be located, just a short shuttle drive from the venue.
• FloydFest Outreach/Expansion: For 2015, locals from Floyd and Patrick counties are extended a 25% discount on tickets during monthly 'Local Folkal' events. What's more, FF expanded into downtown Roanoke, Va., this year, in the shape of a new music and arts venue that for two months (April and May) has hosted battle of the bands, where winners compete for a chance to play FloydFest. Some of those winning bands will advance to June 20's Showdown Throwdown (another new event) at the FF site, which also includes a cyclocross, disc golf tourney, food trucks, and more.
• Lineup back to "old skool": Listening to patron demand and preference, we crafted a lineup that our patrons told us they wanted to see.
For more information or to purchase tickets, visit their website at floydfest.com.
