There are two things I know about the upcoming concert season. First, there are a ton of shows I want to see, and second, there’s no way I can afford to attend as many as I’d like.

The price for a concert ticket has increased among every genre, that’s no secret. According to some estimates, the price of a concert experience has increased by 30-40% above pre-pandemic totals. When I scoured the Internet for ways to see shows on the cheap, most of the advice was about how to afford it-not get it more affordably. Some of the suggestions I found included: getting a credit card that gets you pre-sale codes, and one site even recommended getting a part-time job to offset the cost of concert tickets. Personally, I don’t intend to work extra to pay for my (at that point diminishing) time-off.

That made me wonder if I should spend my time and money more wisely by knocking out several artists on my list by attending some festivals. The most obvious pro is that you can see a handful of your favorite artists over the course of a day, a weekend, or several days. Also, a really great trick is that if you live nearby a festival site, they are always looking for volunteers. I know many people that take advantage of this when the “Sea. Hear. Now Festival” comes to my neck of the woods in nearby Asbury Park, New Jersey. However, not everybody wants to work a fest just to attend, and that’s ok. The beauty of the festival is that you can go when and however much you choose.

Through festivals alone, I have plotted out a good part of my summer concert wish list. My thought is that I may bookend the summer months with festivals and see some artists I love. Kicking off my summer, I’m thinking of a vacation/concert experience and head south to Panama City, Florida and catch some of my country favorites at “Gulf Coast Jam”, June 1-4. This way I don’t have to pick between seeing Morgan Wallen, Hardy, and Miranda Lambert, to name a few. They’ll all be there along with many others. Yes, multiple-day passes can be pricey, but combining seeing all of the artists makes it a better deal. I think I’ll stay close to home at summer’s end and catch the aforementioned “Sea. Hear Now”. This way I check some artists like The Killers, Foo Fighters and even the Beach Boys off my bucket list.

The bottom line is, for fans like me, festivals are a great choice. I can catch as many artists as I want at a leisurely pace since it is over time rather than one evening and I also get all the fun perks of a festival set up.