We’re at that beautiful time of the year on the east coast where the snow has disappeared, the weather is reaching 50 degrees daily (which sadly feels warm) and people are gearing up to take planes, cars and buses to different music festivals around the world. My desire to dedicate multiple weekends to checking out countless music acts, binging on fried food and looking like I stepped out of a Top Man catalog grows with each passing year. But since my bank account isn’t growing with that desire at the moment all I can do is plan ahead for the future, so when the time comes to start festival hopping I’ll be more than prepared. So here is a list of a few music festivals that I would love to hit up before I die. Most of my choices can be found in the U.S. so if you need one place to look at a few of your top options then you my friend, have come to the right website. Let’s get started:

Now I couldn’t avoid putting in some of the obvious choices…

SXSW

Coachella

Lollapalooza

Bonnaroo

While these four festivals always have a place on the top of critiques most popular music festival lists, it’s for good reason. Each festival offers up a different vibe whether it be because of the different locations, the people who attend or the lineups you’ll find performing each year. Looking to party in the dessert with some of the hottest acts supplying the soundtrack? Book a flight to Indio, California and spend one or two weekends at Coachella attending silent discos and trying not to pass out in the sun. SXSW also goes down on the westside, Austin Texas to be exact and depending on how much freetime you have on your hands you can check out their music, film and interactive festivals over the span of ten days. On the east coast we got Lollapalooza in Chicago and Bonnaroo in Tennessee, both offering a vast amount of genres and activities to do. Outside of always being interested in seeing numerous acts at each of these festivals, I also see these four heavy hitters as an opportunity to travel and soak up some scenery and culture that I don’t get to see everyday.

People can make the argument that the price of music festivals isn’t worth standing around in crowded open spaces while people trip on different colored pills and girls show off their trendy outfits like a festival fashion week. But I think being able see an artist you love with thousands of others and truly connect to the music is an experience that I can’t wait to be a part of. Outside of the holy grail of music festivals I have four other picks that round out my music festival bucket list.

SONAR

Burning Man

Sasquatch

Afropunk

Now these events also offer up a chance to lose yourself in the music but the eclectic style of each festival makes them a little more unique in my eyes. SONAR is my only music festival choice out of the country but when you check out videos and pictures of the event I think you can understand why. The three day electronic music festival in Barcelona looks insane and I would love my first trip to Spain to be centered on music. Sasquatch and Burning Man take place in Washington and Nevada and the alternative focused music festivals seem like they need to be experienced in person to be truly appreciated. Afropunk is the final festival on my list and with it taking place in New York, it might be the most feasible choice on my list if upcoming plans work out. I feel like I gave similar reasons on why I want to attend all of the festivals on my list but at the end of the day I just want to travel and constantly immerse myself in new settings. As I check off each festival on my list, it would cool to share those moments on here, so expect to see those adventures one day. When I have a goal set, it has to get accomplished so let’s hope I knock out this bucket list sooner than later.

What music festival do you want to attend in the future? Let me know in the comments!