Top products from r/Lollapalooza

Hijacking this to give actual festival safety advice:

1. Stay hydrated. Yes this is the most important thing you can do. Lollapalooza has free water stations set up all over Grant park (they're marked on the map by a little water drop), make sure to bring a water bottle or a camel bak into the park (it has to be empty) and fill up, drink lots of water throughout the day (even if you're not thirsty).
   
   
2. Sunscreen: It's hot, it's sunny, you will get burned if you don't use it. Don't use spray on sunscreen, and use a kind that has broad range protection, use spf30 or higher, use a kind that's water/sweat resistant, and REAPPLY OFTEN and ALL OVER YOUR BODY.
   
   
3. Ear plugs: get a nice pair and you'll avoid tinnitus and other damage to your ears. The cheap ones from the dollar store will work fine for protecting your hearing but will make music sound like shit. Pick up a nice pair that will let you enjoy your music but also save your hearing. Believe me, when you can actually hear and your friends are all shouting WHAT and complaining about the ringing in their ears the day after the festival you'll be happy you have them.
   
   
4. Condoms: lol just kidding, this is reddit.
   
   
5. Drugs: sneak them in stuffed down your pants, or somewhere else that won't be searched. Don't buy drugs from the random people in lolla. If you plan on doing anything besides weed buy it from someone you trust or have a test kit so that you can make sure you're actually getting what you want. Consult www.erowid.org in order to know the effects, what dose to take, prices, legality, etc. Don't flash your drugs like a moron, just smoke in a big crowd or take em quickly, their are occasionally asshole undercover cops in lolla trying to bust people.
   
   
6. Alcohol: Be careful drinking during the hot summer day, it's quite easy to overdo it and get dehydrated and pass out. Save it for once it cools off.
   
   
7. Misc: Sunglasses are nice, but make sure you get a pair that is actually 100% polarized. Cheapo sunglasses are often not polarized, and when you wear dark shades with no polarization your pupils actually open wider and allow more sun in which can damage your vision. Bandanas are a good way to stay cool and keep dust out of your mouth. They can be wet and wrapped around the head/neck to make them even cooler. Make sure to eat, the food in the park is okay but can be overpriced, I usually just hit up the subway near by and then buy something when I'm headed home afterwords.
   
   Other then that stuff just relax, you're here to have fun so just enjoy the time you have in the park.
   
   Edit: I want to also add to bring plastic bags with you, it's not really a safety tip for you but if it starts to rain put your phone or wallet or money or camera or whatever in them and save their life! Instant waterproofing and you can even use the touch screen of some phones through the bag.

I have a kind of custom made operation that I've been using for the last two lollas. I have this bladder: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product//B005FVMUHU/ref=twister_dp_update?ie=UTF8&psc=1
This thing is simply amazing, first off, 3 liters and easy to fill while trying to get in and out of the water filling station line at the fest. Second, it's pressurized so that means no sucking through a hose the whole day, instead just bite on the valve and out comes some water. Pinch the valve and spray it on your face to cool off or clean something, it's awesome to have on a hot day. For the pack, it can be hard to find an economical solution to hold a behemoth 3L resevior, but this is what I've had: http://www.rei.com/product/870282/
Big enough to fit the bladder and a variety of other things throughout the day, yet tight enough to sneak in a flask or other nefarious things. Happy lolla-ing! 5th year in a row for me!

If you can sneak these in, they are AMAZING when you're fucked up, tired, and hungry. I always open the bag, take a handful, and pass the rest out to the people around me. To quote my favorite movie:

"I was the best because the crowd loved me. Win the crowd and you will win your freedom."

Jolly Rancher Gummies

It's my first year but I'm gonna try the new bottle caps so my bottle looks factory sealed. Pop in some rum or vodka and good to go! [Amazon link](Sneak Alcohol Caps Reseal Your Water Bottle Perfectly https://www.amazon.com/dp/B008AZJAVM/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_ZNVJxbTCPEVM3)

Buy an inflatable ottoman. It'll fit in a small bag, they blow up pretty easy as well.

I got this one and I bring the ottoman into the fest. The chair is actually really comfortable and I bring that when fests have car camping.

Edit: For the downvotes... I've got a bad back so standing for 4 days = Evil. Even if I got ADA approval all my friends wouldn't be able to go with me. So I bring this little ottoman and use it during the day when we're posted up in an open space for awhile. It doesn't take up any extra room and it's not a tripping hazard. When I'm done using it I deflate it and put it back in my bag (then I put my bag in the lockers at night). Obviously you shouldn't set this up in the middle of the pit at Perry's but when I'm chilling in the shade off to the side at the Grove it's pretty clutch.

Security is meh for the most part. No metal detectors or drug dogs at the gates or anything like that. They do pat you down, but the severity of that depends on who's doing the patdown. They hire out a third party security to do it, not like the Chicago police, so the security is people who aren't getting paid enough to give a shit. Try to eye ahead and see which people are patting down the hardest and avoid those lines.

Keep an eye on this subreddit and people should post about security as the festival progresses.

As for a flask, that shouldn't be an issue. Last year, my friends and I bought collapsible plastic flasks, filled them up, and stuck em in the freezer the night before. Then just took some string and tied the flask around our inner thigh/gooch and walked right in. We then went to the bathroom, took it out, and put it in our camelbak packs.

Here's a link to those:

https://www.amazon.com/Original-Disposable-Flask-Black-Funnel/dp/B008DGGW3C

Order this and you'll be golden. Add some vodka or white rum to the bottle and you can get in scott free. 8 bucks for peace of mind is worth it IMO.

These photos were all taken the awesome Canon PowerShot SX210 IS. It's got a 14x zoom so the lens extends out quite a bit and makes for some nice close up shots.

The Lolla faq makes a big deal about not bringing in pro equipment but in the last 5 years I've been going to Lolla I've always seen people with detachable lens dslrs in the crowd. I don't know if its because security is really lax about it or if people are able to sneak them in.

I bought drummer's ear plugs. Best fucking thing ever. They don't distort the sound all that much, and your ears don't ring when you go to bed at night. http://www.amazon.com/Etymotic-Research-ETY-Plugs-Protection-Earplugs/dp/B0044DEESS/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1375756070&sr=8-1&keywords=ear+plugs

I wear these. They're super comfortable and they come with a carrying pouch. You still hear ALL THE MUSIC, but it's as if someone turned it down to a tolerable level. Buy 'em.

also this one looks good here! especially since it has space to hold stuff.

In the years I've gone, they have never opened the water bottles, they just check to make sure they are sealed (so if you are able to keep the bottle caps sealed, or got those Camo Caps you should be good)

or buy these... as mention previously in this sub.

http://www.amazon.com/Plastic-Screw-Caps-Bottle-28mm/dp/B0064ODVLG/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1375119693&sr=8-1&keywords=plastic+bottle+cap

1,000 sticks for $60. If you have prime, you'll get them.

I don't see them on the permitted or prohibited items list though.

They were added by six people on the Lollapalooza website so someone knows who they are.

Edit: This is the only music that I could find with Kau in the name: http://www.amazon.com/Kids-in-Kau/dp/B0019J24Y6

https://www.amazon.com/Alcohol-Caps-Reseal-Bottle-Perfectly/dp/B008AZJAVM

AMAZING
this will help you out sooooo much.

What is “fan clapping”? When one of these devices is opened and closed rapidly to the beat of a DJ’s most recognizable track.

http://www.amazon.com/Intocircuit-11200mAh-Portable-Technology-Smartphones/dp/B00BB5GR0A buy one (or at this price even two) of these. I used it at coachella last year in combination with their charging stations and it lasted me two days. and I just recharged it out on the field when it finally died. the thing is a tank, has an LED screen and a flashlight, has two charging ports, and I'll probably get another one for my girlfriend this year.