Warped Tour kicked off as it always does: the gates opening, the crowd running toward the inflatable board to see all of the different set times. As someone who went to the original Warped Tour back in the day, it’s nice to see that some things never change. 

As much as I love the inflatable board, I figured out something really great this year: the Warped Tour app. Not only does it have all of the artists, set times, and stages listed, but you can create your own custom lineup so that the app will only show you the bands you want to see that day. You can also favorite artists that you hear and want to check out later. 

Bands started playing at 11:30 on multiple stages, so there was music from the very start. I decided to spend the first part of the festival walking around to see all that was on the festival grounds. One of my favorite things I saw was the skate ramp.

Something I love about Warped Tour that I haven’t seen at other festivals is that all the bands have merch booths. Not only can you buy cool Vans and Warped Tour merch, but you can also pick up merch from all of your favorite bands playing the festival. There were also more food vendors than I could count, with amazing culinary options to choose from. I’ve got my fingers crossed that Birria fries will be offered again next year. 

I spent the second half of Saturday and all of Sunday running around to see different bands on different stages. Some of the highlights were The Home Team, Waterparks, Vana, Crown The Empire, and Coheed and Cambria. 

It’s good to have been back at Warped Tour again, exactly one decade after my first Warped Tour experience.