5 ways to get the most of your day 1. Limit your cross-festival trips

There is more to the festival than headlining acts

There’s a lot to see, hear, eat and drink at Outside Lands. And a lot of potential ground to cover. So it’s a good idea to have a plan when you get there. Here are five tips that can help you maximize your enjoyment of the festival.

Outside Lands covers a massive area of the park and you can rack up quite an impressive number of steps on your Fitbit if you keep moving from one side of the festival to the other. In particular, it can get quite tiring continually walking between the Lands End and Twin Peaks stages.

To save on steps, focus on going back and forth between the more closely grouped Lands End and Sutro stages or the Twin Peaks and Pan limiting handle stages, the crossfestival excursions for can’t-miss acts. Your feet will thank you.

2. Go early in the day

Of course, the bigger-name acts go on later in the day. Take that factor out of the equation, however, and our favorite time to be at the festival is during the first few hours after the gates open. It’s vastly less crowded, which translates to shorter lines for the bathrooms and concessions as well as easier access to prime viewing areas of the stages.

The weather can be nicer at that time as well — although, let’s face it, you never know what you’re going to get in that regard at Golden Gate Park (in other words, bring layers of clothing). Plus, there are usually some cool acts playing earlier in the day. For example, Mikky Ekko opens Lands End stage at noon Friday; Kikagaku Moyo is on the Sutro stage at noon Saturday; and Dick Stusso takes the PanSunday. handle stage at noon

3. Laugh it up

A few laughs are always good. And you’ll likely find more than just a few if you attend a set at the Barbary, which is the festival’s spot for comedy and improv. This year’s lineup is particularly promising, with Michelle Wolf, Jonathan Van Ness, Paul Scheer and more. So don’t just show up at the Barbary a few minutes before the set assuming you’ll get in. Instead, comedy fans will want to plan ahead.

Tickets are made available two hours prior to each show at the Barbary Reservations Tent in Marx Meadow. So, swing by early and pick up your tickets (note: there is a two-ticket limit per wristband). Then head back to the Barbary at least 15 minutes prior to showtime. Those without tickets/reservations can wait in the standby lines up to 30 minutes before the set. But enguaranteed try is not for those in the standby line.

4. Feast in the Trees

Want to take your Outside Lands experience to the next level? Well, here’s just the ticket for Chase Sapphire PreReserve ferred and card-mem have bers, who the exclusive opportunity to get tickets for the Feast in the Trees. Events include a four-course fam-meal ily-style with beer and wine pairings. You’ll find the Feast in the Trees schedule on the Outside Lands website.

5. Have a plan

The festival features more than 80 acts performing on multiple stages. And that’s just in reference to the music. There are also plenty of comedians and other entertainment op-Outside tions at Lands. To maximize your time at the park, and not miss the best acts, it’s wise to have a plan before entering the gates. You can check out the schedule on the festival website, or download the festival’s phone app, and then form your own daily itinerary in advance.