Super unorganized and a logistical failure. There were no hand wash or sanitize stations! None of the staff were helpful in helping us navigate the parking lot or even where to go for the concert venue. They closed down floating early both days with no notice and we didn't get a refund despite buying a float pass. Total BS. The shows were good and there was a large variety of food vendors but that's the only good part. read more

This is going to be one of those adventures you kinda wish you knew from the get-go instead of having to jump on the bandwagon years from now. From Coachella to Burning Man, they have all grown into some major commercialized concepts but I heard the beginning years were magical. Float Fest is going to be on that list. I had a flipping blast and so glad I stepped out of my comfort zone for this. Being able to float the river both days, listen to amazing acts such as SANTIGOLD, Metric, Chromeo, and more; as well as, camping out and making new friends was a LOT OF FUN. Everyone is super friendly and floating the river and transportation to float is included! Set up camp and change into your bathing suits. You can also take alcohol onto the river but you have to make sure no glass. MAJOR NO NO The reason why it's not five stars is because there's definitely room for improvement but for a new festival they pretty much did Texas a solid. read more

I am extremely unimpressed with the Customer Service Department. I sent a polite email today asking about their refund policy and I received a condescending reply from "Ryan" implying that I should be praying for Joe (the Glass Animals drummer) instead of asking questions about refunds.  Their unsolicited morality check was immensely inspiring and uplifting said no one ever.   Secondly, my sister also emailed today to ask a question about the shuttle service that is posted all over their website/emails/newsletters.  That same "Ryan" responded back to her with the uber-helpful, two-word response, "What shuttle?".  Seriously, Ryan?!  You couldn't be less helpful if you tried.   For the record, his follow up email to her was equally rude and unhelpful. I enjoyed Float Fest so much last year that I upgraded my tickets to VIP this year.  Sadly, "Ryan" and your Customer Service Department has soured me on the entire festival so I will not be attending again.   My unsolicited advice to "Ryan" and your Customer Service Team is "Be kind whenever possible.  It is always possible." (Dalai Lama). read more

The weather is ridiculously hot. No shade at all where the camp ground is. They give you tiny spaces to fit your car and one tent so if you have a lot of people in one car and multiple tents, good luck. Food and drinks are crazy expensive. We already pay a lot for the entire experience they should make the food and drinks a reasonable price. 3 slices of pizza was $40 and it wasn't even good. They should have misting fans everywhere too, especially waiting in the long line to float the river. It was my first time and probably the last. On a positive note, met some pretty cool people. When you're actually in the water floating the river, it's a lot of fun and snoop dog was badass to see. read more

I can't in good consciousness come back to Float Fest. I know the weather is beyond control, but there is zero shade, no where to cool off and camping is a nightmare and I've been to several festivals and none are as close to a cluster fuck as this. People take up way more than their allotted space in the camping area and the sharp sticks and freaking corn made for a miserable and very tight space. The ground is not made for tent set ups and crumbled when you attempt to set up your tent. There is ONE exit and it can take anywhere from 1-4 hours to leave depending on your luck. I left the festival Sunday night after the headliner and got home an hour before my friend who lives right down the street and she left about an hour earlier than I did. The medical tents are nothing short of laughable; every single one I saw was literally empty. Not even a person to stand there. Thank goodness I did not see anyone needing medical attention. How confusing for someone who needs something and looks at a map and goes to the spot labeled "medical tent", literally needing medical attention, only to find an empty tent without direction. That's a damn lawsuit waiting to happen. They have water refill stations set up in the festival only. Because who needs water at their camp? I know to bring extra water to a place like this, but some beginners might not think to and that's so dangerous. It was around 105 degrees Fahrenheit. I also can't believe I spent the night at a festival that doesn't even have metal detectors. How unsafe! In light of recent events in crowded areas, I'm so disappointed that there was no security hardly at all. All "security" did was make sure my wristband turned green. And on my way out I had to pour out my (non alcoholic) lemonade.. At a place that doesn't even check attendees for deadly weapons. Felt like I was at Fyre Fest. Never. Again. read more

Float Fest - Festivals Near Me - San Marcos, Texas

Been to over 10 festivals and this one is probably the worst. Don't feel like elaborating on the following because it just upsets me. Things that really need to be improved include: Security Traffic management Sound engineering Shade for resting Waste management Restroom maintenance Medical response Lighting in eating area Location of water Cell service Idle police Road dust Idiotic planning overall Things that were fine: Tubing down the river/ bus transport Nice people Pricing for tickets Lasers and lights for stage read more

I've been to quite different festivals and by far this is the worst festival venue I've attended with a group of friends. Here is a list of things why this was a shitshow: 1. Horrible venue location... can last up to 3 hrs. just to get into the place to park 2. Unprepared staff. Apparently their "system was down" every 20 minutes 3. Very rude staff when asking about parking structure. Giving us vague answers and no clarification of anything 4. Parking structure was poor and not organized. 5. No structure of scheduling. Didn't even know what time floating ended, where we had to go, nothing. We showed up and apparently floating had ended at 5 and no where on the website did it say that. The lineup was great but the overall experience if I would give this 0 out of 5 stars I would. This is a wannabe ACL, it won't live up to their expectations. This is the first and last time I (including everyone in my group) will be attending. Didn't sign up to be sitting in traffic for 3 hours trying to get home (after leaving an hour early at 12:12 AM) and getting home past 4 AM SAVE YOUR MONEY!!! read more

This is the most garbage piece of shit festival I have ever been to. First off, this place is located in the middle of BUM FUCK NOWHERE. You basically required some giant 4x4 land whale of a fucking vehicle to even park! The "parking lot" aka billy bobs back yard, was half a mile from the event. Mind you, it's 106 out. Every one we asked a simple question like "hey do you know where to go for the main event" they would just motion us. I don't think I ever heard a staff member speak. Of course, because of this we got to have an awesome time going to the front gate with our ticket only to be told there is a super special magical quest we must FIRST go on which is of course back where we came, to wait in line to get magical wrist bands after presenting our tickets. Nothing like another 30 minutes of fun in the sun! Then, we had to go BACK through the security check only this time, they made my girlfriend empty out her water before coming in. How is this not attempted fucking murder? Getting in, man oh MAN were people fucking miserable. They had NO misters, just a few spots for people to sit in shade. Basically know this, if you go to float fest you will sit under a large tent no where near the stage in the shade. Once your favorite band comes up to play you will think you can do it. You will say to yourself "ive been in the shade for a bit, i can deal with the heat" oh how wrong you are. Every one there basically went in the sun for 5 minutes and came back because it was so unbearable. No water stations. No misters. Water was 3$ for a bottle. My girlfriend and I saw what we had to deal with in terms of parking on our way in, and KNEW that NOTHING was worth waiting for an entire country of china's worth of cars to all try and leave at the same time after the show down a 1 lane dirt road down leading to a 1 lane highway. We left after 1 hour. I want my money back. FUCK FLOAT FEST! read more

Honestly kinda disappointed. Giving it 2 bc the river float was pretty awesome and I had a good time bc of the people I went with but that's pretty much where the good parts end. To say Parking was a hot mess is an understatement. We literally waited almost 2 hours to park. I wish I could stay that's where it ends but it gets worse. After two hours of waiting we hear an attendant say to another car if you don't have a red ticket you have to turn around and park elsewhere? WTH? Thankfully one of my friends was able to get a pass but still... none of the half dozen people working the event in the lot could have told us that in the 2 hrs we were sitting still? Once you get parked, it's not much better and no one seems to have a freaking clue what's going on. It's like they literally were like let's charge for a festival and just threw it up. Seriously come prepared and know what the f you're doing, because if you were like us, and didn't, you'll have to ask at least 10 people, who will probably be no help either. The float was def the best part, taking an old school bus (literally) out to the river and relax. They have volunteers collecting empties at random places and gave mesh bags for the floats. That was pretty freaking awesome and one of the few things I saw done right today. The vibe down the river was super chill and everyone really had a great time it seemed. I understand food trucks at festivals/anywhere can take time but this one tonight really had me and my friend mad. We got separated from our group and weighing our options we guessed pizza would be a good, quick, safe bet. Omfg. So we wait in line for about 10 min no biggie but than a girl says no you pay here and wait in that line over there. again no warning before hand of anything or any signage or nothing just her stank attitude. Waited over an hour, I had to leave, but my friend i guess got the pizza. And mine too since the rude girl taking payment didn't provide any form of receipt. It was cool though I enjoyed listening to mac millers set from the pizza line. I've been to bigger festivals and I know the crowds of people can be obnoxious but damnit at least there's some kind of order. Ive had stuff go wrong at much bigger events and still had a better time than today. Maybe I was expecting too much. I've never had this many issues... and I understand it's a young festival and had growing pains to go through but idk. Today really put a mehhhh taste in my mouth. :( read more

This was such a terrible fest. The float trip took several hours and everyone was packed into the river like sardines. The only way you moved downstream was by the people behind you pushing you forward. It was also the only relief from the heat, so there was no swimming unless you wanted to do the entire 2-4 hour river float. I couldn't find more than one water station on either the festival grounds or the campsite. They don't allow you to bring your water onto the festival grounds but there's NO water anywhere except for vendors selling it for $3?? In 105 degree heat this is a huge hazard and I'm surprised someone didn't get extremely sick from heat exhaustion. Then again, the medical tents were empty so they wouldn't be able to help anyway. Everything had a line. I mean everything. And like, a 40+ minute line for everything. When I got past the will call line I asked the guy working it for some water because i was dehydrated, and he gave me some and said "don't tell anyone I gave you this". He was really nice but it was clear to me that they were hoarding water for their volunteers but not bothering to stock enough for the actual festival-goers. Volunteers were mostly clueless and disorganized. They couldn't answer my questions and some asked me for the maps I was carrying that I found because they had no idea where anything was. Campsite was tiny, I was told by a volunteer to park our cars "as close together as possible". All of our tents were practically on top of eachother. The campsite was massive and you had to trek all the way across it to get to their general store (where a bag of ice was $5) or the singular water station. NEVER AGAIN! read more

What a poorly done set up and location. If you're considering going to FF -DONT. If u do tho, Just know that. . . A) you won't have any Cel service. So that . . B ) you can't even walk away from the Fest. We got an air bnb nearby so we could walk home. Tried to walk away from Fest and cops threatened to arrest arrested you for trying to WALK home. C) because of no Cel service you'll have to pay $50 for your 2 mile trip home. . In cash because D) Uber Driver's don't have signal either! you will get monetarily raped by Uber/Lyft drivers who knows you cant walk home even if you wanted to and that you have no negotiating power because it's in the boons and no one else can pick u up without access to cell service. Drive drunk or have that one person who has to remain sober during a FEST because no one can leave on foot E) prepare to eat dirt like your in a windy dry desert. F) no maps and no directions on where anything is. Good luck finding that water station amidst the dirt filled air at night when your parched and drunk G) try to purchase the correct thing in the confusing array of choices on the app the first time. don't f it up. They won't refund you if you do. Accidentally ordered a cooler tube instead of regular tube and couldn't get refunded. Was told to simply email the Fest about any refunds. This doesn't work. And FF customer service isn't customer service at all. Piece of advice: the FF tubes are thin and crappy. Enjoy floating in an onion ring w no support for 3 hours. WAIT and rent your tube directly from Dons fish camp. Then you can insure that what you're purchasing is what you want. . .And not a crappy thin onion ring looking tub you'll have to float in for 3+ hours And don't give FF any more of you're money. . .greedy jerks w zero customer service. Side note: Seriously sh*t customer service from Ryan @ Float Fest. But good news for anyone reading this- at least you can read an honest review and be prepared. read more

Float Festering pile of crap. If you're here to learn how to take a perfectly fun weekend event and drive it into the ground, you're in the right place. -First, make them wait. Find a way to clog the parking lot for hours, a field full of exhaust fumes is the hottest new street drug. The kids will love it! -Next, throw away any signage you might have and instead hire a bunch of high schoolers to chat with each other and give vague answers to your confused, dehydrated guests. -Definitely do NOT mow the grass, people love scratching up their freshly-shaven legs while trudging over to the water. -Don't even worry about getting extra tubes, the sad deflated ones will probably make it down the river just fine. +1 star for Zedd's sweet, angelic face. read more

First year going to Float Fest and it was a blast! The lineup was great and the fact that you didnt have to sacrifice seeing one artist over another was a huge plus. THE ONLY bad thing I experienced was the ungodly 107° heat wave we had to endure. The festival itself could've used more shade and fans, but again, we were in the middle of a heatwave. Floating was great. Took about an hour to get there between the line and the 15 minute ride. Floated for about 3 hours and went back to camp. Our camping spot was approximately 10×30, just like they advertised. I was lucky to have great neighbors, although I know some people who did not. Friday and Saturday night, there were impromptu dance parties with a really good DJ. If you're not the party all night type, bring earplugs. Depending on your proximity, it could keep you up. Some of the acts sound was hindered due to the set up being adjusted for the main acts. Modest Mouse performed on Bassnectars stage, and all that was traveling were the lows. I couldn't hear the guitar or the lead singers voice, and we weren't that far away. Snoop Dogg's voice was also very low. With that being said, the main acts (Bassnectar, Tame Impala, Run the Jewels, Cold War Kids) ALL sounded incredible. Bassnectar and Tame Impala's sets were the best I've ever seen and were worth all the money and heat alone. Overall, I'm giving the festival a strong 8.5/10. Would definitely return, but probably not when another heat wave is looming. read more

Float Fest, more like Wait Fest. This had to have been one of the most disappointing and unorganized events I have ever been to. Parking: We arrived at noon hoping to be parked and in a tube floating down the river by 1pm, but that was not the case. After pulling off the road into the field cars were lined up by the hundreds in some arcane pattern with no rhyme or reason. None of the staff in the parking area could answer questions about why we were just sitting there. It took 2 hours to make it into a parking spot. The organizers of Float Fest took to social media trying use the excuse of doing things safely, but it was clear they had no plan on how to park so many people. Water: When having a festival like this in the middle of the summer in Texas staying hydrated is key. There were plenty of signs around reminding people to drink water, but there was no direction of where to get water. In the line waiting for the tubing shuttle no water was available, there was a water station sitting there that had never been hooked up, people were passing out in line and that's when organizers finally started to pass out bottled water. In the concert area I only saw 2 water station, one with signage and the other with none. After waiting in line for 30 minutes to an hour to get water the stations were only trickling. The lack of water presented a dangerous situation for everyone in the extreme heat. Missed performers: Due to the long waits to get parked and the long line for the tubing shuttle we had to make a choice between seeing performers and going tubing. Even though we arrived hours before the concerts started we still missed half of the performances since we chose to go tubing. This seemed to be a common theme for many people we spoke to that day, festival goers should not have to make a choice, there would have been ample time to tube and see performers if organizers planned things out better. Staff: The whole day it seemed like no one knew anything. Every time we asked a member of the Float Festival staff a question they never had a good answer. It seemed that organizers did not do a good job at briefing the people they hired to work various parts of the festival. The lack of planning made for a dangerous and unenjoyable day. If Float Fest is to happen again the organizers need to get reevaluate everything they do. read more

Disorganized festival. The website says floating is available until 4 pm and then in another spot it said last entry at 5pm. When I got to float fest at 3:30 they said that floating closed at 3pm. The people working the event did not know where anything was and kept misdirecting me, sending me in opposite direction of the lagoon. I almost passed out from the heat. Not really worth your money unless you go with someone who knows it well bc as a first timer that was hell read more

I'm going to tell it straight. This is truly truly not worth going. I have tried twice now and I regret it. The first time I camped and years later, 2022, I tried again because I would be staying in a house. It's honestly just a terrible event. The event is held in DUSTY DIRT fieldssss and they put no money into infrastructure. Picture a dust bowl that you drive into, continue into for 5 slow mile of dust, you park, you walk a mile in 5" of pure dry dirt, and by this time you are good and covered. Once your nostrils and eyes have a nice coating of an inch of dirt you are entering the event space. There is not a single place to sit, lay, REST in any way, no lighting after dark to guide you back to your car, port o potties only which is fine I guess but where is the ticket money going??. Unless you choose to sit in pure dust and be covered in it. So spend 4 hours inside a wind tunnel of dirt and you'll have been to float fest. Xoxo. I literally and broke and chose to forgo the money I spent to get to not go back the second day. read more

Float Fest - Festivals Near Me - San Marcos, Texas

Got stung by a bee and no medical help hand swollen so fat could not close it. people passing out and camping medical said they can't help no materials there just volunteers, people looking for bandaids they had none. Had a crap load of shuttles/ golf carts running to the river and back but only one was taking campers to river others were flying bye with other volunteers on it saying we can't take y'all even though it was 105 outside. Made people wait up to a hour in line to get to river would not let anyone walk, again with only one shuttle/ golf cart taking campers. Friends got a vegan burger ended up super sick from undercooked product. This all lasted everyday Friday through Monday.. Music was good read more

I am giving it a 3 for mixed feelings. As far as the lineup, A+. I was very impressed by the performances. Now for the areas of improvement. 1. Parking: Was a little disorganized (especially when it came to leaving). 2. Trash: They were not prepared for the amount of trash, needed a more efficient system. 3. Water: They needed more water fill-up stations for 100+ degree weather. The wait was way too long so I brought my own water bottles in and bought a few for $3 a pop. 4. Tons of police, which is understandable but I thought using private security would have been a better idea. This being said, I see alot of complaints from people. But I love the fact that it is new and not too overpopulated just yet. It's easy to make your own fun and enjoy yourself. I had an extraordinary time. Hope they do this again next year and just take some advice to make this an even better experience. Especially for people who do not prepare properly. read more

Talk about a scam and a half. I will have to agree with a previous Yelper who called the event "Wait Fest" instead of "Float Fest". This festival really should be reported to the local news station to investigate because it is one big scam designed to take your money. I've been to other music festivals and never in a million years have I sat in line in a car for almost 3 hours WAITING TO PARK. Let me tell you, cattle are more efficiently corralled than the way we were navigated in a CAR. After my friends and I are directed to park all the way out to timbucktoo and having to drag a heavy cooler in 105 degree heat towards the general tubing gate, we were told we only had 20 minutes to walk all the way back to another designated area to get our wristbands to come back to tube because they were closing this activity by 5 pm. We tried to explain we had been waiting to park for the last three hours and nowhere did the emails from the event state tubing closed at 5. No signs, no direction from volunteers, nothing. Did we get any form of understanding or empathy? Nope, you guessed right! Of course not. My friend and I ran (yes, actually ran) to get our wristbands (in 105 degree heat) while two of our other friends stayed behind by the tubing gate. By the time my friend and I got back it was 5:02. Sweaty, exhausted, and dehydrated, we showed them our wristbands and then were told "sorry tubing closes at 5 pm." Not one person was willing to be flexible, nor did they seem to care. By then, the event left a sour taste in our mouths and we just wanted our money back and to go back home. Of course, talking to the volunteers at the customer service tent was not useful as they just directed our complaints to Eventbrite and to call them ourselves. Mind you, most of the volunteers all around the festival seemed to be under the age of 21. Oh my friends and I also bought "Frigid Lounge" passes so we could have a little place with AC to sit and cool down and unwind but were informed by another festival participant that the "Frigid Lounge" was actually indeed not so "frigid" and was just as hot as outside of the area. Disorganized. Chaotic. Scam. Do you sense a theme here? I am permanently etching this event from my memory and moving on. Do not waste your money. read more

Float fest is a unique experience in that it combines floating the river (a Texas ritual) with awesome music in a festival setting. This year was my first time attending, I went Sunday and had an awesome day. Do it! If not for a weekend, then at least one day. You'll have a blast. read more

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DO NOT WASTE YOUR MONEY!! This is the most unorganized event I've EVER been to. It took over 2 hours to park a mile from the event which made us miss the tubing which we paid for. No refund given. We walked miles in 105 degree heat and got the run around from everyone. NEVER AGAIN! read more

Event brite /Float Fest stole from me. They charged me twice for a one day ticket to float fest in July 2018. I had multiple emails with Ryan/customer service. And he confirmed I was charged twice for my tickets. But after he confirmed this he stopped responding. Now their phone number is disconnected and I have no way of getting my stolen money back. I'm furious, I will never use this event again and I will make sure no one I know does either. read more

This is my 2nd year and recruited some So Cal friends to join me this year. We had a fun, relaxing time tubing, and saw a wide variety of great bands. So glad we sprung for the VIP package that saved us from the heat in the Frigid Tent with bar, and the general masses with separate stage viewing areas in front and on the risers. The Indian food was very good, but wish there were other choices with the package. After 2 days, there is only so much of it you can eat. There was plenty of water available and the bathrooms were super nice. Now the other stuff....The volunteers that were directing people in the parking lots were beyond incompetent. We got there late Saturday night and sat behind only three cars to get in. For over 10 minutes the parking guy had his head in the window of the first car. (Was he getting the girls' numbers? Smoking a joint? God only knows!) Another volunteer standing next to him was on his cell phone. Finally he realized that no one was moving and went to the 2nd car to check tickets. The first car was still sitting there with the volunteer. After 15 minutes, I finally got out and asked what the hell was going on? Only then did they move the first car over to the right and let the 30 cars, now backed up behind me get in. We ended up missing the first 15 mins of the set. We also had issues getting out. The parking lot volunteer sent us in the wrong direction. The ticket check in was only slightly better.. they at least called someone on the radio to figure out where VIP check in was, as they had no clue. Suggestions: Please hire some actual parking staff that know how to direct people correctly. Also, water down that parking lot. (The dust was horrible), and level the parking area roads. I about took off my bumper hitting a ditch. Get clearly LIT signage for directions To/From Parking Lots and Ticketing, along the road and inside the gates. Please get these things together as I see many poor reviews regarding the same issues. I really look forward to this each year and would like to continue coming. read more

If I could give less stars I would. If you're coming to Float Fest 2017 and float the river you should just stay home. They have sold out of tickets to float the river. This whole thing has been a joke from the 3 hour in the heat parked waiting for access to the camping grounds. No explanation or anyone checking on the thousands of people in hot cars, a bottle of water would have gone a long way. We arrived Saturday at noon was not able to set up until 5:30. This includes the 3 hour wait, setting up and eating so when we walked over to float the river they are closed for the day. Sunday we tried to go tubing got up at 8 am when the box office open to try and talk to someone. The were sold out. The explanation we got was basically sorry, not sorry there is nothing we can do about it. When asked to talk to the supervisor she said we should have planned out trip better. I'm sorry I didn't think it would take 3 hours to drive 200 yards. Most of the staff is not very well trained and they don't know how to answer questions. I feel sorry for the staff because they constantly under attack from customers because everything that is going wrong. It is not the staffs' fault who ever organized this event doesn't know what they are doing. read more

I am a mother of two daughter's, who went to float fest. It is 4am and they left the concert at 12:20am. They are still waiting in the parking lot in a ridiculous line to get out. Of course, I am concerned for their safety. I am beyond livid over how disorganized this event is and will NEVER allow them to go again. They, too, are very upset and cannot believe there was no one even there to direct traffic. I am anxiously waiting for them to get home, which will probably now be close to 5am or later. I will like to speak personally to the organizer of the completely DISORGANIZED event!!! VERY UPSET PARENT!!!!!! Kristi read more

I have NEVER written a bad review in my life but this seriously was the worst concert experiences ever. I feel like I need to write this review because I wish I had more information about how awful this could be before going. I researched float fest vigorously but had no reliable info. We showed up at 10:00 am and waited for hours before we could even park. I have asked various times if we were able to buy tubing passes the day of, no one replied/didnt want to answer the question. On the website, it says tubing is "first come first serve" so we were assuming if we showed up early enough, they would have passes. THIS IS NOT THE CASE AND YOU GUYS NEED TO BE CLEAR/HONEST WITH PEOPLE. NO ONE was able to buy tubing tickets separately. The people who were able to tube were the ones that bought their GA + Tubing the time of purchase. Unfortunately, those were sold out pretty quickly BUT so many people (like myself) were hopeful about still being able to tube b/c of misleading information. Back to the parking situation, we got in like 3 hours later and had to wait in our car because the concert gates didn't open until 2 pm. So basically, we couldn't float and paid over 200$ to have a 4 hour party in our car in the heat. We were so p/o by the time we got in, we just ended up leaving. On the way home, cops were pulling people over like crazy. We wasted alot of time and money. We bought brand new coolers, floats for the coolers, string, tubes, etc. and was not able to use anything. I wish the promoters/staff were just honest when people were asking if they could buy tubing passes at the box office. If they can't, JUST SAY NO. I know they do this b/c they know that people would not go if they couldn't float - I mean why would you go to FLOAT fest if you couldn't float down the river. MISLEADING & GREEDY AF - never coming back. read more

Like all the reviews here the first red flag was the wait for the parking, we got there at around 1 now mind you, I do admit we could've gotten there earlier but that's no excuse for the inefficiency of the staff getting people accommodated. We were there for three hours, luckily we had a/c but a lot of people around me didn't and you could see the heat was getting to them. When we finally got into the concert area we had already missed half of the acts of that day. The heat is unforgiving so you'd always see signs saying "stay hydrated" well, if they were really concerned with the peoples health they wouldve at least made sure to be serving cold water to the festival goers, instead everybody was treated with lukewarm water, not to mention the area itself is full of dust so the water hardly ever tasted normal. The only area that was full of a/c is not included with the general admission so I know for a fact that a few people spent the whole festival in the unforgiving sun. It was so bad that instead of camping there like we originally planned we went and got a hotel. The food was overpriced, the bands sounded mediocre, the lines were long, the restrooms were disgusting, all in all it was a terrible experience other than the tube floating. For a festival to be called float fest you'd think dehydration, heat exhaustion, dry land, and dust all around wouldn't be how you would describe it but... here we are. read more

We did the VIP tickets.... well worth the money! Front of the line to the float, all beverages were included, and the glorious AC lounge to beat the heat. We had viewing platforms and front row without having to hold your spot. Did I mention the AC bathrooms with an attendant to make sure it was clean? read more

Had a great time! Just keep in mind to bring plenty of liquids and prepare accordingly. Plan to start everything early to beat the crowds and you won't be dissappointed. Good times. read more

I wish I could give 0 stars! The whole thing is so disorganized. This event is a freaking joke! It takes over 2 hours just to get in to park. They have the area for tubing shuttles in one area and the wrist bands for the event and the tubing way across the parking area. They don't tell you that you have to be at the tubing shuttle at 5pm. We got there right at 5pm and we're refused entrance. We stood in line to customer service and no one there can actually do anything help you. The VIP "frigid" tent is warm, definitely not "frigid" as advertised! This event is designed to take your money and leave you frustrated. read more

We bought tickets for Sunday Float and concert, drove 3.5 hours, and were told we were unable to float and to email them to discuss refunds. Floating was 80% of the reason we went. The food sucked and was basically a lot of same trucks different names and after emailing them twice and trying to ask on FB what they're planning on doing with refunds they have continued to ignore me. Just go float the river on your own time. Not worth the money!! read more

Awesome Festival!! Couldn't have had a better time... incredible lineup! Can't wait til next year! read more

Float Fest - Festivals Near Me - San Marcos, Texas

The parking situation was a complete disaster, imagine 8 lanes of traffic merging into one funnel, manned by several employees who had little to no communication between each other. We sat there and waited to park for approximately an hour and a half and counted ourselves lucky, as we met others who waited two hours or more. After that we waited an hour and 10 just to refill some water bottles at a station, which was not being manned by anyone and it was a "fend for yourself" kind of deal. Not to mention that there was only one water station for the entire event. People were overall rude, no one bothered to say "excuse me" after bumping into you etc. We also paid for "The Frigid Float" room, which was supposed to be an AC inclosed room, and while the reprieve from the sun was nice, the room was really not cold and all of the fans/AC outlets were pointed more at the employees than the people who paid to be there. Additionally, no one checked our wrist bands at the door, and people kind of came and went as they pleased. The food from the food trucks was okay, and the wait was decent. ( A very surprising and pleasant surprise) and the music was fun and put on a good show. We did however leave early, anticipating further complications leaving the ranch and other encounters that we just decided we did not want to participate in. read more

I wasn't at the Festival but want to clarify a point made below in a review. If festival goers encountered super friendly people in blue shirts assisting along the float on Saturday - taking up trash, guiding folks at obstructions - that was a local volunteer group called the Eyes of the San Marcos. They are NOT affiliated with or compensated in any way by the Float Fest organizers. The Eyes are deeply committed to environmental protection and education, and was founded a few years ago in response to the degradation along the San Marcos river from over use and irresponsible tubing company practices. What the Eyes were out there doing this weekend *should* have been handled by the Float Fest promoters. In fact, they promised the State that they *would handle it....and obviously failed, on many counts. read more

we spent 3 hours in one spot of traffic, taking a total of 4 hours just to leave the venue. we got out by 4am. a one way in, and one way out was the worst!! never ever attending this event again! read more

This year's show was awesome the artists were bad ass. It was hot as shit outside but we spent enough time in the river to beat the heat! Cage the Elephant and Weezer killed and Zedd blew my mind. I can't wait for next year's show read more

Based off the comments and my experience, it feels like Float Fest is trying to jip as much money as they possibly can from their customers. It feels like they don't have much longer which is a shame because I like the idea but it's almost all executed very very poorly.. I really wanted to give this place 4 stars, but the parking was actually trash. It was the worst parking I've ever experienced in my life. Terrible traffic.. the third lot we were in took us 3 1/2 hours before we were able to leave. The line didn't move for like 3 hours it was ridiculous. Oh and this happened both days by the way. Almost all the staff had left by then leaving all the guest to themselves. Luckily the people around us were friendly so we chatted up and had a few drinks. Imagine if someone had an emergency out there? You're screwed. You'd have to get a helicopter to come in.. the traffic was that bad. Hardly any shade, no big industrial fans in 100* weather, it's same stuff different year but with better artist. read more

Just like my fellow Yelpers before me, I too experienced a day from HELL!...First off, I purchased a shuttle tickets for my boyfriend and I to and from the event on Sunday 7/22/18, but was not able to use them as I did not get a receipt of payment or email about our shuttle ride. -Tried contacting customer service and ofc, no one was available. (How convenient) - Strike 1..So my boyfriend and I took my car down to the festival which was an hour drive. Then once we got to the parking area around 3pm, we realized the brevity of the situation and also noted the disorganized chaos that was taking place, with no help or direction from the venue staff -which was our first indication of the hell that was about to ensue...once we got to the concert entrance, I was told by a bag checker that I had to pour out my water that I had brought in an aluminum container (which was shown as an allowed item on the main concert website)..Like are you F*CKN Kidding Me!!! It's a 106 degrees outside! That should be a crime!...Strike 2! Once we got inside, (finally), there were no visible water stations and they charged 3$ for water!!! Talk about 'CROOKS!' (Strike 3!)...We then went to a shaded area under one of the tents and when Joywave came on, I could only stand watching in the sun for 15 minutes after the band began their set before I went back under the tent with the rest of concert-goers, who were all pretty much spent and miserable from the unrelenting heat...(The singer from Joywave was also commenting on the heat and the microphone burning his hands!)..After about an hour at the concert, my boyfriend and I seriously weighed the pros and cons of staying at the concert to see our beloved Glass Animals and Tame Impala, but with 5 hours left to go until the main headliners played, we realized that the sun's wrath and the lack of organization was too much for us to handle, and staying to see our beloved bands at the end of the night would be in vain, due to the fact that we were not enjoying ourselves already and were mindful of the hours that we still had laid out before us...Although part of me thought I could be a big girl and dig my heels in and suck it up for the rest of the concert, we were also both VERY aware of what was going to be in store for us at the end of the night, when we would have to deal with the treacherous traffic from the million of cars parked sporadically in the fields, and also did not want to be stuck for hours in a car irritable and tired waiting to go home...and by the looks of the comments from below, it looks like we made a good call! (Glad we escaped that blow)...I am honestly NEVER going to this concert again, which honestly was an insult to the artists that were playing there...Like what a great lineup but the event organizers didn't even make it enjoyable or manageable for the concert goers. I paid 200$ dollars for nothing and had been looking forward to this event for some time, since this was my first festival/concert since moving to Texas. One word to describe this experience - CLUSTERFUCK! (I will be complaining and fighting for a refund)! read more

Unsafe, unclean. Fantastic lineup of music, but the organizers are in way over their heads. I had a wristband for all weekend, but my Saturday experience soured me from going Sunday. First negative was trying to park Saturday afternoon. My group got a hotel and decided to drive. Not my first choice, but who wants to camp in 100 degree heat? There seems to be no uber/lyft pickup either, and none of us had signal out there anyways. The staff is rude and frustrated. Poor direction on flowing traffic. Next is the near complete lack of security. Mind you, I don't want over-aggressive security either, but there were no metal detectors, and my backpack wasn't really checked. Very easy for somebody to sneak something dangerous in. The results of this were evident by the amount of teenagers vomiting and overdosing all over the place. I don't think I saw a single police officer in the festival grounds. By the time the big acts came on, the crowds were really becoming overwhelming. Difficult to navigate through all the bodies. Good luck if you lose your group, because there's no cell signal out here. Garbage everywhere. The final nail was leaving though. It took three hours! We were parked in the back lot with probably a couple hundred cars being bottle-necked through one lane with another large lot. There was no staff directing either. What if there was a fire or medical emergency? This was so frustrating. I really wanted to see the Sunday shows. I paid for all weekend, and a hotel. I just couldn't put myself through that stress again. read more

Easily the worst festival experience I've ever had. I bought a weekend GA ticket with Saturday tubing, and we made it there early so that we could tube before the concerts started. The parking situation was extremely unorganized and terrible. They had us sitting in lines with running cars in a field of dry grass, in 103 degrees, for nearly three hours. My friend and I were running out of gas in our car so we had to turn it off, and we were beginning to feel sick from the heat and had to bail after 2 1/2 hours of waiting. We explained this to several staff members, one who was intoxicated and told us that he didn't believe us and that we were lying. Another staff member was extremely rude, he yelled at us saying if we were running out of gas to just turn our car off, and we told him that we did and that now we felt like we were going to pass out, in which he replied, "everyone here feels that way, there's nothing special about you". People who got there later than us were getting in before us and people were cutting in line and not getting stopped by anyone, making those of us who had been waiting for hours have to wait even longer. A truck even slammed into the back of a small car that was trying to cut in line. We finally had one staff member show us to the exit and we left, since at this rate we were not going to have time to tube anyway, even though we had gotten there early. We came back to the festival in the evening (around 5:30) to give it one last try, and were able to park and finally get in. The festival has two stages, with only one band playing at a time so the entire festival crowd is at one stage the whole time. The hydration station provided to fill up your water bottles had luke-warm water, and they ran out of water in the time that I was there. The "frigid float lounge", AKA the air-conditioned lounge they provided for those who paid for it, was warm and miserable. Nobody got patted down upon entering and security was hardly present; never saw a single police officer in my time there. Heard another story from a girl there that there was a lot of people being loud and dangerously drunk driving around the campsite all night and nobody stopped them at all. People were posting about their issues on the Float Fest facebook page and Float Fest was deleting all of the posts that were negative, and not responding to anyone. I sold my ticket because it wasn't worth going another day. The only reason I can honestly give this festival a star at all is because I did get to see Passion Pit perform, and they were awesome (even though they thought they were in Houston and not San Marcos). read more