Ok, here’s the thing… I am planning a trip to the US next year (2013) with a few mates from down under here in AUSTRALIA.
We need to plan this well in advance because of business/work commitments so we need to get things rolling in the next few months. But, we can’t plan anything until we know for sure that we have secure tickets to the festival.
Does anyone have any thoughts on how we can do that. I have no idea when the tickets would usually be released, but I suspect not until late 2012 or early 2013…
Also… while I have you… what is the best option for accommodation. I have heard that the best place to be is in the camp ground close to the festival. That would be great, but how do we organize a tent and the other bits and pieces necessary? Anyone got a spare tent they would like to pitch for us in return for some real fair dinkum Aussie hospitality?
Help me realize my dream of getting to Telluride! Please!!!
:flower :wave :cheers
In short, you can’t secure tickets until Nov/Dec. But I wouldn’t stress getting tickets, that is the easy part.
Best place to be is relative. If you want late night pickin’ you best be in Town Park, but you can’t go wrong with a condo in town either. Depends upon your endurance level, but if you party like the Aussie’s I know over in Perth you’ll prob. want to be in the Campgrounds. :lol
Set yourself a reminder to enter the lottery for tickets in November and I’m sure someone here can assist with a tent if need be…if that doesn’t work than you’ll do fine in a condo.
Cheers :cheers
Sign up for the newsletter PBG sends out. That will ensure you know when tickets will go on sale! You can sign up here: http://www.bluegrass.com/emails/.
See you next year! :wave
You could always rent a tent from REI or local outfitters:
http://www.rei.com/stores/rentals.html - stores in most major cities (Denver and Albuquerque have major airports and REI stores and are 7 to 8 hours away from Telluride)
Thanks heaps for the info guys! I really appreciate it.
I really know nothing about the town and the campgrounds etc so I hope you don’t mind if I pick your brains and suck out some local knowledge…
The guys traveling with me are mad pickers… no doubts about that. So access to late night picking is pretty important to us. BUT, a condo would certainly be easier in our circumstances… If we were to get a condo, is there an area of town/street we should be focused on which would make it easy to walk to and from the festival and also access late night picking in the campgrounds?
Another question: Is there a place in town where we could hire/borrow a banjo? We have a couple of banjo players who also play guitar & mando. They are freaking about excess baggage with the banjo! What the hell… they should have chosen more wisely at a young age… I chose the mando and now realize what a sensible choice that was! :thumbsup
Joebu: You mention ticket lottery. How does that work? Does that mean we could apply and miss out? That would be a real bummer!!! :mad
Thanks again for your help! Have signed up for the e-mails and have my fingers crossed it all comes together.
Can’t wait to catch up with some of you guys next year and blow the froth of a couple of coldies!!
:cheers
PS: I just read that Telluride sits at around 9000ft… That’s three times as high as the highest mountain in Australia! Do we pack for cold weather or summer?
If you end up in a condo you won’t have access to the campground picking. You have to have a campground pass to enter any particular campground once the festival starts. I’m not sure if the local music shop would rent a banjo or not, and if they did I’m sure they would require a hefty deposit.
As far as the lottery goes, it is quite possible to miss out (take a look at the “Telluride Ticket Exchange / Swap” area of the forum to see what’s up this year) especially if only one of your group puts in an entry. If you put in more entries and get lucky it’s easy to sell any extras.
The place to be camping is in Town Park (a camping pass includes all four days of the festival there) and it’s right next to the festival grounds.
Keep your eyes out for a response to this post by a fellow Australian “BluegrassOz” on how he worked things out. :cheers
Thanks TT.
Camping is definitely the preferred option. The lottery is a bit of a drag, but I guess with a popular event like this you need to have some method of controlling ticket sales.
I will contact local hire places and see what they can do for us. If we did camp, is there easy access to meals/coffee/“refreshments” not too far from the Town Park? We really don’t want the hassle of cooking and cleaning etc as well as organizing all of that extra gear.
As far as the banjo goes, I am thinking one of the guys will have to leave his clothes at home. Let’s face it, it wouldn’t be unusual for a banjo player to remain in the same clothes for several days at a time…
Cannot wait! My strings are a tremblin’ with anticipation already…
:cheers
Hi again TT…
:huh
Just a quick question…
Are you saying all of going (say 5) should apply for 5 tickets each in the lottery? Then, if we all win we go to the forum and sell the leftovers?
Is that the way it’s done and the best way to “guarantee” tickets?
I certainly don’t want to do the “wrong” thing, but I do want to get those tickets!
I imagine it wouldn’t be hard to get your money back on any leftover tickets… correct?
Just wanted to clarify that :thumbsup
Thanks
:cheers
At 9000 feet in the Rockies, you need to be prepared for all weather. My first year, I suffered from a mild heat stroke and froze at night. This past year, the heat was very much present during the day and then it snowed Sunday night. Bring coats, shorts, rain gear, hats, gloves and everything else. There is no predicting the weather at this event. Although, Telluride Tom does his best every year to do just that.
Thanks for the heads up… sounds like we are going to have to pack a little more than I thought! Maybe we could buy some of the heavier clothing there in Tulleride? Is there a good selection available in town at reasonable prices?
:wave
The great thing about Telluride is it is compact! And there are free shuttles running (both municiple and TBG shuttles) all day and into the wee hours of the morning. There are plenty of great dining options, from reasonable to “I just dropped a months’ salary on a bottle of wine.” There are also several outdoor gear/clothing outfitters in town and on the hill at Mountain Village (a short, beautfiul, free gondola ride away). And you will want to prepare for everything…we went from sunburns to snow in a matter of hours last year! Also, there’s a great “new-comers” topic pinned to the top of the Telluride board. Scour that, I’m sure there are many questions you have that are addressed there.
And have no fear! You are going to have a blast! :drunk
As far as the clothes for all seasons go, with some judicious planning, you should be able to keep it to reasonable amount. I usually take too much, but I could get by with; 1) Down Jacket, 2) Rain Shell/Poncho, 3) Hat/Gloves, 4) Hiking Boots and Warm Socks, 5) Sandals, and 6) Long Underwear (wool/fleece/whatever). Also, bring a pair of long pants too. My first year I just had shorts, and it gets cold up there at night!
If you don’t want to bring any of those things with you, stop at REI in Denver after you land, and you should be able to pick up whatever you are lacking. You should also be able to rent camping gear there (tent/spleeping bag/etc).
Regarding the Town Park lottery… each person can put in for a maximum of four Town Park passes (not 5) so you would have to have at least two of your group put in an entry.
It’s not uncommon for a group your size to put in multiple entries and if lucky enough to have extras sell them back to the festivarians at face value through this forum.
You can also return any extras to Planet Bluegrass for a full refund and they will resell them later.
As mentioned previously (since you have some time to kill) browse through some of the other sections of the forum and you’ll find answers to many questions you have yet to ask. :flower
This is a good plan. It will also depend on how used to cold weather you are. Matt and I grew up in the Montana Rockies skiing every winter and backpacking every summer, so we’re a little more used to the sudden weather changes than the average festivarian.
RKG, where in Australia are you?
We are in Melbourne and did Telluride last year with the help from lots of great people on this forum. We will be there again this year.
I am glad to share the TBF knowledge I got last year from these folks and booking again booking this year.
Let me know.
Cheers
Jason
Wow, and he hasn’t even reached his 21st birthday. Man, this kid is seasoned! :medal :lol 
4.5 months away, Billy.
:cheers
Thanks for all the tips and pearls of wisdom…much appreciated! :thumbsup
I have got to admit, cold weather isn’t my best friend… i live in the sub tropics where we consider it freezing when we have to wear long pants!
Sounds like a trip to one of the local outfitters in Denver or Tulleride to grab a couple of cold/wet weather essentials.
As far as the tent goes, I am hoping to get one of the local event hire places to erect an Australian Embassy on site before we arrive… then all we need is some air beds and sleeping bags which we can hopefully leave with someone in the US ready for the next visit in 2014!
Tell me please… do they allow camp fires in the camp ground?
I am sure these questions are answered elsewhere as Tom says… but it’s time I left the computer and tuned my g’day (That’s GDAE - Mando - if you hadn’t already guessed it!).
Cheers
:cheers
Rob
No campfires. While they are erecting your tent have them add a heatlamp or two - maybe they’ll throw in some free marshmallows.
Heat lamps!? We are talking real proper cold (potentially)! 
That’s a big yes to the heat lamps then… :thumbsup
Can you tell me how big the camp sites are… ie… how big can we go with the tent? There could be a few of us and I know at least two of the other guys snore! :lol
Cheers
Rob