(Editor’s note: Did you read our in-depth profile of the upcoming BottleRock Napa Valley festival last week? Here’s some info that didn’t make it into that piece that’s important to know if you’re thinking about attending the fest.)
Tickets for BottleRock Napa Valley are selling briskly, said Gabe Meyers, festival co-founder. Music fans will be coming from as far away as Japan, Australia, Germany and Great Britain. Those who have not already booked a hotel room in the region will be in for a surprise.
“There is not enough hotel space for everybody that attends this festival; there’s absolutely not,” he said. “Not only are there only 5,000 hotel rooms in the county, but they’re expensive, and that’s just reality. They’ve already filled up a lot of those.”
Meyers recommends budget-minded music fans from out of the area stay in or near San Francisco and commute. He also suggests that Napa residents invite their friends to stay with them during the festival.
“You can stay in Sonoma or Novato, which is only 25 minutes away, and pay $100, as opposed to staying in Napa and paying four or five times that,” he said.
Parking will also be an issue. Official festival parking will be off-site, similar to how it is handled with the Treasure Island Music Festival. Shuttles will ferry commuters from lots to the festival grounds.
Parking costs will be determined on a sliding scale, Meyers said. To encourage car-sharing, those with one to three per car will pay $30 each day; four people will only pay $4; and five per car will get to park for free.
Public transportation agencies will increase the frequency of their routes, and the festival will run shuttles from colleges including Sacramento State, Sonoma State, Davis and Berkeley.
“Local attendees are being asked to take public transportation, bike, walk or skateboard,” Meyers said. “Given the time we have, we feel we can educate people about the reality. There’s very limited parking in downtown Napa. There’s no getting around that.”
Follow writer Roman Gokhman at Twitter.com/RomiTheWriter and RomiTheWriter.Tumblr.com.
