Camping

Camping at NEAR-Fest

  STAYING ON THE GROUNDS OVERNIGHT

 

You may stay directly on the festival grounds for the entire NEAR-Fest event.  Campers are also granted early access starting Thursday at 3:00 PM before the event!

 

All vehicles, including passenger cars, may be parked on the grounds beginning on Thursday at 3:00 pm. The gates will open for participants staying overnight at 3:00 pm on Thursday (you must have all required passes and tickets at this time). You WILL NOT have to move on Friday morning. You may come in and set up for camping ONLY! NO FLEA MARKET activity is allowed on Thursday. NEAR-Fest Staff will police this, and you will be asked to cover/put away any items you have placed on tables for sale. The flea market does not open for business until Friday morning. Please respect this.

 

  Overnight  Passes

All persons staying overnight on the grounds  MUST prominently display a valid pass on their dash or side window so it can be scanned from outside the vehicle. If you have a tent, please make it obvious which pass corresponds to the tent.

Overnight guests must buy the appropriate pass before 5:00 pm each night and display it as outlined above. People sleeping in vehicles are responsible for the applicable overnight fee, whether they plug into the electrical system or not. Passes are available at the information building.

 

  Overnight Camping Classifications & Rates:

We use the term “camping” loosely; it applies to anyone staying on the grounds before, after, or overnight during NEAR-Fest. Two classifications determine your overnight pass type. See Tickets & Passes for current pricing.

  1. RV – Staying on the grounds in Motorhomes, travel trailers, conversion vans, and pop-up tenting trailers. Any vehicle whose PRIMARY purpose is for recreational use or in which to sleep.
  2. Camping – Staying on the grounds in a tent or vehicle that is not an “RV”.

– NEAR-Fest staff will ultimately decide what definition fits your equipment/situation if there is any question.

 

  Arrival Times & Check-in:

  • Thursday – 3:00 pm:
    The gates open for camping guests at 3:00 pm on the Thursday before the event. Staging on the grounds and waiting until the gates open at 3 pm is NOT permitted. Effectively, Hilldale Lane will not be open onto the grounds, and you will be turned away and will have to find another place (off the grounds) to park and wait. Also, camping passes will not be available for sale until 3:00 pm.
  • Friday – 6:00 am through Saturday 2 pm:
    We will start accepting arrivals at 6:00 am on Friday. Arrivals should follow all signage. Attendees who placed online orders that include all tickets and passes will be able to do a drive-through check-in and will not need to park and purchase tickets on arrival.  If you need to purchase tickets and passes, please follow the signage to temporary parking, then purchase them from our ticket booth.  All participants arriving before gate opening will be staged and lined up in order of arrival for entrance at opening.   Tickets and passes will be available for sale at the ticket booth at 6:00 am.  Arriving before 6:00 am is not recommended, as we may not be able to process you then.

 

  Where is Camping Permitted?

If you have a tailgating pass and a camping pass, you can camp in the flea market or the camping area. However, you may not occupy space in the primary flea market area unless you are actually selling from that space. At the discretion of the flea market area director, we may require you to move to a more appropriate location or alter your position.  The intent is not to block off access to or take up tailgating spaces with an RV, tent, camper, or vehicles.  Please keep this in mind, and if you have a BIG rig, keep it off to the side or otherwise out of the way.  If you are unclear about anything, please ask the flea market area director for assistance (go to the information building, and they can get him for you).

If you do NOT have a tailgating pass, you must camp in the designated camping area. 

/  Hookups:

Electric and water hookups are included with your overnight pass. Not all areas have hookups or are nearby, so we recommend bringing long hoses and cords. Electrical hookups are mostly 120V 20A (standard wall-socket type), so don’t plan to run electric heat.

 

  NO Campfires

Campfires, propane fire pits, and similar devices are not permitted. Please review our rules for more information.

 

   Departure Time:

All participants shall depart the grounds after each event by 4:00 PM on Saturday. Please review our rules for more information.

 

  Dump Station

A dump station is *NOT* available on site. Dump stations are located at:

 

  Enforcment & Non-Compliance

The staff will check all participants and vehicles for valid passes and tickets during the event, including evenings and early morning hours. If they cannot find a valid pass displayed, you risk being awakened at an inconvenient time and being asked to present one.

If you cannot present valid passes and/or tickets, staff will ask you to immediately obtain the required passes and tickets, plus a $10 service fee, from the information building. After payment, staff will issue the required pass(es) and ticket(s). Failure to pay is considered “theft of service.” If you refuse to pay, we will remove you from the grounds, and you will not be permitted to return.

– An example we have had some questions about is that if you are found on the grounds after closing or before our published opening time, it will be treated as if you are staying on the grounds for the ENTIRE period.  For example, you arrive early on Friday at 4:15 am and park on the grounds (it does not matter where).  A NEAR-Fest representative notices you don’t have a pass at  5:45 am and asks to see your overnight pass and your event ticket.  You have an event ticket because you planned to attend, but not an overnight pass.  You will then be asked to pay for the needed pass plus the $10 service fee.  We do this because we cannot know your arrival time, so we assume you were present all night, regardless of how long you were on site. Please come at the published times or pre-purchase the required passes and tickets to avoid this.  

 

All parties must have valid admission tickets while on the grounds.