One of the rites of passage for many travelers is going to the famous Burning Man party in the Nevada desert at least once in their lives. The event is one part community building, one part performance art, and one part off-the-grid living – and although there are often musical or other artistic performances, the only scheduled event is the burning of the giant wooden statue that gives the annual party its name.
For the uninitiated, however, the first problem of planning a trip to Burning Man is how to actually plan your trip. It takes place in the middle of the Nevada desert, there’s no official transportation organized from any nearby airports, and since one of the themes of Burning Man tends to be “self-reliance” it’s not always easy to figure out how to travel to Burning Man.
In this series of articles, you’ll find some information to help you plan your Burning Man trip – from how to find cheap airfare to Burning Man, what airports are close by, and how to get to the Burning Man site from where you are.
>> When is Burning Man? In 2012 it runs from August 29-September 5.
Any event that takes place in the middle of a desert is going to bring up the same question for people who haven’t been before – how do I get there? – and Burning Man is no different. To make matters a little more complicated, unlike other similar summer festivals that aren’t right in the middle of an urban area, Burning Man doesn’t have an official shuttle of any kind running out to the festival site from area airports. To be fair, the nearest commercial airport is almost 130 miles away – so to have a regular shuttle would be a major endeavor. Still, it means that the question of how to get to Burning Man is a big one for many attendees.
Usually, the first order of business whenever you travel is to find out what airport is closest to your destination, and then book your flight there. But when your destination is in the middle of the Nevada desert nowhere near an airport, things get a little more complicated.
Let’s just say you’ve heard tales of a week-long festival in the desert where people enjoy an anything-goes attitude, release their inner performance artist, and cap the week off by burning a giant sculpture of a man. This event appeals to your bohemian side, but you don’t live anywhere near the Nevada desert – so that means you’ll need to book a flight. But just how do you find cheap airfare to Burning Man, anyway?
There are certain things you should never do in life. You should never accept your friend’s challenge to stick your tongue to a stop sign when it is minus 20 outside. You should never marry Kevin Federline. You should never think that it is funny or ironic to have a mullet. You should never speak in Klingon. And most of all, you should never, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever pay full price for a Las Vegas vacation.