Now that it has moved to moved to August 22, Just Like Heaven is going to be incredibly hot and sweaty this year. The festival used to always take place in May, when temps were perfect. However, last year we got a random heatwave that hit 98 degrees, and it was brutal. With August being nearly all 90-degree days thus far, we’re expected to get those same temps and full sun this coming Saturday. After a sweltering hot experience, I now know what to pack for a hot music festival. Here are the non-negotiable items that I will bring to Just Like Heaven, and you should consider putting them in your festival bag.
Pro Tip: Make sure your music festival bag is clear, 12″ x 6″ x 12″ or smaller. Just Like Heaven’s bag/packpack policy is pretty strict and aligned with all of AEG’s events.
Protect the Facecard at All Costs
When at a hot music festival with sunny, 90-100 degree heat and full sun, one of the most important packing tips is sunscreen and/or a hat and sunglasses. Trust, you will get a gnarly sunburn if you don’t protect that precious facecard of yours.
Babo Botanicals’ tinted sunscreen (SPF 50) is my go-to facial sunscreen for all outdoor adventures, especially music festivals. I love that it’s so sheer and I barely have to rub it in. It’s compact and in stick form. It can even fit in your pocket! It’s moisturizing (but not greasy) and EWG Verified. Not all sunscreens protect your skin as they should because they’re made with ingredients that can actually harm your skin, but not Babo. Always look for that EWG Verified badge.
Pro Tip: And don’t forget to take breaks in the shade, preferably with misters. Here’s the map with all the shade and misting locations.
Where to buy: Grove or Amazon.
Stay Hydrated, Seriously
One of the most important things to pack for a music festival is a reusable water bottle. Whether for a hot summer music festival like Just Like Heaven or a moderate-temp fest, always bring an empty water bottle to stay hydrated. It is so important. The number of people I have seen pass out in the afternoon, or worse yet, carried out on a stretcher due to dehydration, is wild.
I love this silicone collapsible water bottle. You can clip it to your bag and/or compress it down to practically nothing. You can also opt to bring a clear hydration pack. Both types of reusable water bottles are allowed inside Just Like Heaven. Just keep in mind, the water will get warm sitting in a hydration pack. For me, a small collapsible one is the way to go.
Fill that water bottle up often at a water refill station. You can find where they are all located via the festival map. Be sure to save the image to your phone.
Pro Tip: At Just Like Heaven, you cannot bring a stainless steel, glass, or metal water bottles, and you definitely can’t bring in one of those “big dumb cups.” Keep it BPA-free plastic or food-grade silicone, like the my recommended bottle above. And make sure it’s 64oz or less.
And if you’re 21+ and consuming alcohol, drink water in between all your cocktails.
Where to buy: Amazon.
Enhance Your Festival Performance
If you plan to “dance yourself clean,” or make it to rock out to “Last Night,” you might wanna bring some performance-enhancing supplements.
I’ve always said, a music festival is a marathon, not a race. In my two decades of attending music festivals, I can’t tell you how many newbies I’ve seen burn out before the sun sets. Drink plenty of water and, most of all, always pack electrolytes. My go-tos are Liquid I.V. Strawberry (tastes sooo good) or Trace Minerals Salty Berry Lemonade.
Pro Tip: Electrolit is one of the sponsors at Just Like Heaven, so you might be able to snag a freebie on your way in, as many music festival sponsors give away performance drinks outside the festival grounds, like on the sidewalks leading up to the gates or in the parking lots.
Where to buy: Amazon.
Festival B.O. Is a No
When at a music festival, people need to recognize concert etiquette, and that especially extends to music festivals. Pack deodorant if you extra, or at least make it a priority to put some on. With the temperature expected to hit the mid-90s, you’re going to be sweating, A LOT. Don’t stank up the pit with your stanky pits.
EO’s deodorant wipes are seriously genius! And perfect for placing in your music festival bag. They smell like French lavender and are just what you need after a sweaty afternoon dancing and running from stage to stage. Not only do you get to wipe off the sweat and any odor from your armpits, but they also act as a deodorant. One package can even fit in your pocket. And if you need a solid, I completely understand. But I highly recommend you give these wipes a try at least once, maybe in the comfort of your own home. Go run around the block a few times and do some testing yourself. But if you absolutely need a solid, my go-to has always been Native’s mini deodorants.
Where to buy: Grove or Amazon.
Don’t Fall Victim To Festival Lips
Whether you’re chatting with friends or smooching new friends, you want to pack a quality lip moisturizer in your festival backpack.
I mainly cover music festivals in Los Angeles and Southern California, where the sun is bright and the air is dry. My lips get so dry between dancing, cheering, chatting, and, of course, interviewing bands. Your girl can’t have dry lips, and I can’t constantly be licking my lips either. Love these Tower 28 lip jellies! This lip gloss is light, it doesn’t stick like glue, and it keeps my lips moisturized. I’m a clear or light pink girlie, but they have so many cute tints!
I also love EOS lip balms. They are seriously the best clean lip balms and come in so many delicious scents.
Where to buy: Grove or Amazon.
Chub Rub Will Ruin Your Festival Experience
I was once covering a music festival called FYF in Los Angeles around 2014 and got the worst chub rub. I was wearing a cute mini dress, and it was incredibly hot out. Between sweating, dancing, and walking from stage to stage, the top of my inner thighs chafed so badly. I recall putting diaper rash cream between my thighs when I got home to help the healing process. It was so bad! Ever since then, I have sworn by BodyGlide. I put it on my upper inner thighs and the backs of my ankles, and even the sides of my big toe and pinky toe. Happy to report I have never chafed again.
Also, these barely-there shorts feel like a second skin. Perfect for under a dress or skirt.
Where to buy: Grove or Amazon.
So Many Germs
You’re going to be sweating a lot at Just Like Heaven. A lot. As I mentioned at the start of this blog post, last year’s Just Like Heaven hit 95 degrees. With so much sweating, I was constantly wiping my forehead and around my eyes, upper lip, etc. All those areas are literally highways to the entrances of your body. You don’t want the nasty germs on your hands from the porta-potty getting in your eyes. Ain’t nobody want festival pink eye. And this is why hand sanitizer is always in my festival bag. For every single music festival and just always.
I’m obsessed with Noshinku. This is the best hand sanitizer you’ll ever use. And they’re super chic and sleek. Best of all, they are refillable. Their new scents Pear Blossom White Tea and Vanilla Crème are absolutely divine. So you actually smell good and moisturize your hands while sanitizing them!
But I also love this Blood Orange hand sanitizer by Grove. Smells so damn good.
Both sanitizers won’t dry out your skin like other harsh sanitizers. They are each enriched with moisturizing elements like coconut and jojoba oils.
Where to buy: Grove or Amazon.
Because Bloody Nose
OK, this one might seem random to you, but if you are prone to bloody noses and/or allergies, or don’t fare well in very dry heat, I highly recommend you pack this nasal spray in your festival bag: Beekeeper’s Naturals Propolis Nasal Spray.
After getting a bloody nose at Coachella just as Wu-Tang Clan were about to go on stage, I have since made sure to keep those nasal passages on fleek. I’ve been using it for years, and it has changed my outdoor life tenfold. Music festivals can get very dusty, and they are especially dry in Southern California. When I do my bathroom visits, I spray each nostril and then blow to help irrigate any dust and allergens out of there. Feel like a new woman!
Where to buy: Grove or Amazon.
Stay Cool
At last year’s Just Like Heaven, I brought this hand-held misting fan, and it was a game-changer. Packing it in my festival backpack made all the difference in creating an optimal festival experience, especially when it hit hot-o’clock (1-4 p.m.).
HOWEVER! If you fancy, you can make everyone envious with this thing. It’s basically a mini air conditioner that fits in the palm of your hand. It’s called the Shark ChillPill, and it comes in some cool colors like rose gold, iced latte, and glacier.
And then there’s this bling fan if you wanna make a statement. I actually saw someone at a concert with it!
If you’d rather have something more compact, you can go manual and get yourself a gorgeous hand fan that expands. But beware, you’ll be missing out on that much-needed misting spray.
Always a Music Festival Must
This is the gold standard of packing for a music festival- hot, cold, on the beach, in the snow: Great Earplugs. Don’t be like me and lose hearing in one ear early. Protect your ears. When I was young and dumb, I would get my face blasted by speakers, whether at a punk show stacked with Marshalls or bass-in-my-face at a rave. It eventually catches up.
These are both my favorite earplugs for music festivals and concerts: Eargasm and Loop. Both work fantastically and come in cool colors, but Loop is a tad more hip with lots of speciality color combos. They even have a Coachella-branded earplugs. The colors are dope!
My Phone Died . . .
And if you’re working media (like me), or just use your phone a lot to capture all those core memories (also like me), you absolutely can’t skip out on packing a Mophie Powerstation or an ANKER Power Bank. Both are great and will charge up your phone quick and reliably.
I’ve been using Mophie’s external iPhone battery chargers since 2014, when I used to rock the “Mophie Space Pack” and “Powerstation” in all my festival gear bags. Now, I use both Mophie and ANKER.
The Best Way To Stay Cool at Just Like Heaven
And if you really want to stay cool at Just Like Heaven, I’m talking real air conditioning — I highly recommend getting a Clubhouse pass. It’s sooooo worth it, especially in crazy heat. I had a Clubhouse pass last year, and it made those peak 98-degree temperatures bearable. Not to mention, you get a slew of perks like guaranteed up-front stage viewing areas, an air-conditioned Clubhouse Lounge with complimentary food and beverages, parking, lockers, and a lot more.
Please note: Clubhouse passes are a 21+ festival experience.
Alternatively, VIP is set to offer more shaded spaces this year. And you’re going to want to maximize shade as much as possible, because it’s gonna be hot! VIP also has a few air-conditioned restrooms, which are so much better than a hot azzzz porta-potty. See all the perks you get with VIP Passes.
Want to know what the Just Like Heaven music festival looks like? See our past year’s photo galleries for what the festival grounds look like and where you can find some shade.
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