EDC Orlando 2023

Recently, I went to a popular EDM festival more close to home (just 2 hours away), attracting thousands from the US and across the world. The festival would be Electric Daisy Carnival Orlando or known as EDC Orlando. This would be my second time experiencing this magical festival. Let me show you what the festival is and what my personal experience was like.

Opening ceremony @ kineticFIELD (kineticAWAKENING)

EDC Orlando is a 3-day festival that took place from November 10 - 12. The festival hosted artists like Alesso, Zedd, The Chainsmokers, and a legendary b2b from Afroki (Afrojack and Steve Aoki). Featuring 6 marveling stages, both towering and tiny, there are many stages to choose from. The VIP of all stages though is the mainstage, also known as kineticFIELD. kineticFIELD typically boasts a theme every year, with this year being kineticAWAKENING, as shown in the picture above; the centerpiece model's name is Celestial. She guides you through the wonders of the spirit world through top headlining DJ's. Previous mainstage themes were kineticBLOOM, kineticZEN, kineticENERGY, and so on. The festival has been around since 2011 following its big sister festival EDC Las Vegas.

The stages there besides kineticFIELD are circuitGROUNDS, neonGARDEN, stereoBLOOM, rynobusARTCAR, and anniversaryARTCAR. Depending on your taste of music and artists you want to see, each of these stages will cater to your musical taste buds. The mainstage, kineticFIELD, however, is where the real show is to check out for a set or two if you're a frequent stagehopper.

Alesso @ circuitGROUNDS

My go-to survival pack for a festival would usually include the following: hydration pack, earplugs, handfan (raver edition!), power banks, a poncho pack if it rains, your wallet and ID, and your phone. Personally, I would usually hydrate and eat before the festival so therefore I didn't bring food. I would not stress enough about having a hydration pack and a handfan on you, simply because you can refill your pack at one of the free hydration stations throughout the festival and sip on that water anywhere. For the handfan, the crowd gets real hot; the pyros are no joke as you can feel the heat even at the back of the crowd. That fan I used was for real a lifesaver for me even after all that dancing from a drop. It's true that I'm a sweaty raver, so that fan was necessary for me and my crew.

Don't forget your power banks! Our phones would run low halfway throughout the festival if used for recording or trying to keep in contact with the crew. Knowing that you can recharge your phone to keep it juiced up, it's guaranteed that your phone would last the whole night.

I also recalled that it was sprinkling on days 2 and 3 of the festival. Therefore we brought our ponchos with us as we also checked the weather before setting off to the festival. Although it was pouring outside of the festival, for whatever reason it was just sprinkling inside of the festival. In my mind, I'm thinking EDC is climate-controlled, but who knows?

Most importantly, remember to have your ID, your phone, and your wallet. Since this is an 18+ event, security will be checking your ID before you can proceed to scan your ticket in. EDC Orlando also does not have their own currency, so bring some money with you, both digital and cash.

Day 1

It was a nice 2-hour drive from Jacksonville to Orlando, could say this feels like EDC is in my neighborhood every year. Me and my friends got to our AirBNB in Kissimmee and we got settled in a few hours before setting off to the festival. On this trip, I brought a couple of friends, which were George and Nate. George had a broken foot at the time, so we had to assist him around the festival. He was still capable of walking with the boot, but certain circumstances required us to help him.

That day, I saw deadmau5, Alok, Dillon Francis B2B Valentino Khan, Gryffin, and Kaskade.

As we set off to the festival via car, as we drove along the toll highway to get to I-4, my friend George all of a sudden had the urge to use the bathroom. I noticed that there were no exits along the highway except for a couple, so it was hard for me to stop somewhere. I don't know why George be yelling that he needs to go as he said, "I GOTTA GO!" Trying to decide, I offered to pull on the side of the road, but it was risky. That continued for a good 15 minutes, and we had to wait until we hit I-4 for an exit. We would then stop by a Chick-fil-A to let him do his thing. I swear friends are just so interesting when you take them out.

Twenty-five minutes later, we arrived in downtown Orlando. EDC traffic and I-4 rush hour traffic is no joke, I mean the way to get to EDC is mostly by car. The public transportation is usually limited to the metropolitan areas, the airport, and the parks. We parked at the Geico Garage for $15, compared to $40 parking closer to the festival. I wanted to take advantage of the free Lymmmo busses to get to the festival as the Grapefruit Line was advertised as the way there. Unfortunately there was one problem, the busses were full. One after another and another these busses are just simply full and couldn't stop for us at the garage. Thankfully, a golf cart was nearby taking anyone via tips so we took advantage of that opportunity.

As I sat in the back facing backwards on the way to the festival entrance, the ride felt like I was holding onto dear life since there was a lack of seatbelts. But what spiced up the entire ride was when this group in the golfcart behind ours pulled up and they were blasting "Losing It" by Fisher. Everyone around us were vibing when the drop hit and I found it funny, I was vibing to the beats of it. That gave us the pre-experience of EDC and made up for the mess with the shuttles.

Once we got to the festival entrance, we faced another issue before we considered scanning in. My friend George did not have a ticket as we had to work on getting my other friend (who could not come) Will's ticket transferred over to George. We went in the will-call to get George his ticket, but we got told that Will has to send a picture of his ID to validate the transfer. We got out of line and we were able to get ahold of Will to send over the picture of his ID, and we re-entered the will-call line. Finally, after a couple headaches there, we were able to successfully validate the ticket transfer to go on behalf of George to get him into the festival.

I saw the mainstage from outside of the festival, and boy oh boy, I nearly got emotional as I was processing that I'm back at the same festival site where I was a year ago for EDC Orlando 2022. I was just mainly excited to rave at EDC again. We got through the line to get in and made sure to regroup with each other before setting off through the festival.

We began going around the festival by checking out the techno stage, neonGARDEN. Through its thumping beats, I noticed a slight change to the stage design, it's sponsored by Club Space over in Miami so they had a disco ball close to the top of the stage as well as the three horizontal screen design (it reminds me of EDC 2022's circuitGROUNDS design).

After checking that stage out for some time, we went off to get some water before heading into the mainstage. We had to walk across towards the Camping World Stadium from the food vendors, ferris wheel, merchandise stand, and a picture spot. From there, the free water station was situated next to the GA restrooms. It can get crowded at peak times especially at night, so keep that in mind.

Once we got water, we went into the kineticFIELD mainstage crowd on the left side to watch the rest of deadmau5's set. Here's a couple clips:

Walking into the crowd for deadmau5

After deadmau5's set, the opening ceremony started up. The sun was fully down by then. Everything went dark. The stage began to come alive and Celestial, the centerpiece model, was introduced as she awakened her eyes for the first time. Being there personally, I had goosebumps as I know that I'm going to have the best time of my life for the next 2 nights. That show was so spectacular I could've cried, but I was also excited for Alok next. It lasted for approximately 5 minutes and 47 seconds. Now, the rave has officially commenced.

My two friends would then let me know that they are going to get drinks so they left the crowd. I was told they will meet me at the back, but where? Big mistake to not have a totem on me of some sort, but that will come next. Alok then came on stage after the opening ceremony and introduced us with a medley of his popular songs. Then the first drop came on with "Spaceman" with a hardstyle kick with fireworks accompanying it. I was alone for this set, so I reassured myself to continue to have fun despite being alone. Here are a few clips from the experience.

Close to the end of Alok's set, I decided that I wanted to go ahead and find my friends. When the outro ended, I immediately went searching around the drink stand at the back of the crowd, but there were no sight of them. I began to get on my phone and try texting and calling, but to no avail, I couldn't get ahold due to the lack of cellular reception. It's only my second year yet I'm still making rookie mistakes. No totem nor do I have a flag on me to identify myself in a huge crowd of ravers. Dillon Francis b2b Valentino Khan would come on and I'm still out there in the back finding my friends. I've also searched through areas near the ferris wheel and merchandise stands. This took like the entire set of it for me to finally find them. On the other hand though, I did enjoy some moments of the set where it mind-blowed me because of how the bass sounds in-person. At the end of Dillon Francis b2b Valentino Khan's set, I got ahold of my friends via call and told me they were by the merchandise stand. I rapidly ran towards their location and we regrouped as a happy ending to that. I said, "We are never separating from each other ever again, it's hard once we do. There's barely any reception so we can't contact each other" with a huge breath of relief. That was one interesting side-quest I made there, although we could've ended up finding each other by the end of the night.

After a happy regrouping, we set off to circuitGROUNDS and checked out one of the artists playing there which was ATliens. Once we got here, Nate was feeling the vibes he would get at a rock concert and we briefly headbanged there for a few minutes or so. He told me that he does love the "dubstep" stage and wants to go back there again sometime throughout the weekend. However, since I wanted to catch Gryffin tonight as well, I suggested that we go back to the mainstage to see him.

Nate told me, "Hey guys, I need to use the bathroom. I'll be right back." He told us to wait in this area in front of the tree facing the mainstage. It was crowded so getting to the bathroom takes a bit. You got thousands of people all walking around at once. Gryffin then came on and me and George were standing around at the back where we were told to wait vibing to his music. I wanted to get into the crowd, but at the same time we had to wait until Nate came back. George was already getting tired from his broken foot so he went to sit on the curb near our waiting area. I mean, I was able to listen to the beginning of Gryffin's set and vibed along, so I can't complain much. The basic bodily needs come first before anything else. We waited for like a few songs in and then Nate came back.

Lost Phone?

"Let's go!", I said. We started to make our way into the crowd in the center and as we were slowly moving in past the back area, George suddenly started to freak out. "Where's my phone? Dude," he said. Me and Nate had to stop, retrace our previous steps, and then make attempts to locate his phone. After a bit, to no avail, the phone was never found, even if we called it. Apparently, it turns out George got pickpocketed, which is common at EDC Orlando for sure. This is the reason why I suggest keeping track of your belongings in your pockets and make sure to have deep/secure pockets. Stuff like this happens if you're not aware of that. Well, George made a rookie mistake of not keeping track of his stuff in his pockets; he's lucky it wasn't his wallet because I know that's important to have no matter what. Although George was now angry the fact that he couldn't retrieve his phone, I had to tell him that "it's a concert, just live in the moment. You don't need your phone if you know you're going to use it over relishing the festival." He still wouldn't get over that, but he's got to accept the fact that the phone's gone.

In for Gryffin

We then went back into the crowd as Gryffin still played, but George told us he wanted to stay at the back as he felt overwhelmed (he still continued to think about his lost phone). Me and Nate went "ok" and let him stay there. We told him that we would meet him by the back or the festival exit at the end of the night. Gryffin came on before Kaskade (which Kaskade is the last artist of the night), so it wasn't long before the first night of the festival ended. Me and Nate continued to slowly make our way towards the front with us saying "Excuse me!" as a consideration and as apart of P.L.U.R. (Peace, Love, Unity, Respect). We stayed in the middle portion of the crowd during Gryffin's last half of the set. The last two songs had fireworks going off and as I recorded it to go on Snap, I was impressed by the stage effects. Here's the few clips from Gryffin:

After the final closing from Gryffin, which he gave a fantastic performance, Kaskade was next to come on. I think we decided to go back out as Nate wanted to check on George at the back, and he's still at the same spot as we left him. Kaskade then would open with "Escape" by Kx5 and Hayla. I remember also filming the second drop Kaskade played with the John Summit remix of it. Hearing it through the speakers blew my mind as I liked how the bass hit my body and with that feeling of "feeling it in-person." Here's the clip of it:

After that, as George told us that he wanted to stay, me and Nate ventured into the crowd again, making our way towards the front after one to two songs. Again, me and him (I taught him to) practiced using P.L.U.R. while going through the crowd. A lot of newbie ravers were coming through and were not practicing that, so me and him had to be the minority to help make that up. Along the way, we encountered some friendly ravers which it was mainly not their first time going to a rave. We got compliments, high-fives, fist-bumps, and vibe-backs from others.

Halfway towards the set, we made it towards the center front, just a few rows out. The centerpiece was towering just right in sight of us and it was fair that we didn't try to snag a front row spot. It was for the sake of those who were there before us. "Wow, I can't believe we made it towards the front! Thank you Nate for getting me here," I said. He replied, "You're welcome, I know my ways." Nate has never been to a rave before, but he's been to concerts and knows how to navigate them. The rest of the set, we were vibing as hard as we could as we felt the music hit us left and right with people vibing along. Fireworks went off at certain drops and I was constantly amazed by the stage effects. The sound at the center front, however, was somewhat incoherent as the basslines kept on bleeding out. But it was all worth experiencing it.

After the outro, we left and went towards the direction George was standing. Kaskade was the last mainstage artist of the night and it was a spectacular closing. I've never seen him before, so I enjoyed it. George was still standing where we again left him off at and we all made our way towards the exit. Since there was one entry/exit this year, everyone had to go to that by the left side of the mainstage and food stands to get out, and it was densely crowded. Thankfully, one of the staffers opened the gates adjacent to neonGARDEN along that concrete road to let additional people out.

We eventually went to catch the shuttles to go back to our car, and that's a wrap for day one.

We saw that on the way back that there was a Raising Canes since we don't have one in Jacksonville yet. All of us were like- we might as well grab some while we're here. We took that to-go and took it back to our AirBNB. It was my first time trying it, and I liked it. Then we called it a night. Nothing like Raising Canes to end a festival night.

Day 2

Saturday rolled along the next morning and I slept alright. Slept late as usual and the weather today seemed like it's going to rain in the afternoon, so I had to prepare what I needed for the festival that today. Since we didn't have ponchos, we had to make a run to Target to get some in case of the worst. The artists I saw today were James Hype, Loud Luxury, Armin van Buuran, and Zedd. We stayed at the mainstage for the most part.

When we left in the late afternoon to start heading to the festival, we ran into some ridiculous traffic on I-4. Nate was driving us. It was not just rush hour, it was full of EDC festival-goers. Due to George's broken foot disability, Nate decided that we went to go find parking closer to the festival. We rerouted multiple times near the festival grounds due to heavy traffic, and we did find a gas station to try to park in as signs offered. There were numerous parking attendants and property managers offering ravers a place to park, whether it was a gas station, separate convenience store, their house, or on the curbside. The gas station we tried to park in, however, was a tight squeeze to get into and it would be hard for us to drive out. We then found out that it was $40 to park, and it just didn't fit our budgets. I had to recommend Nate that we go park downtown and park in a garage next to the Grapefruit Lymmo bus line for $15 since it was cheaper. It may be a walk and a burden for George, but it wasn't worth paying over $40.

Traffic, traffic, and traffic! So much traffic. I can say that we kinda went on a wild goose chase to find parking, and we did eventually retreat to the downtown area to park. This time, we parked in the Bank of America parking garage, which is next to the Grapefruit Lymmo bus stop.

We took the next available shuttle to the festival grounds, and while we were at it, George decided to act silly and put on his grey poncho over his face and put his hood over it. He also put on his sunglasses to accompany that silly look. It was so funny that we snapped a picture of him and everyone else around us shared some comical laughs.

Coming back into the festival per usual, we went to fill our water packs. We got in right when James Hype was playing and gosh, we came in during the peak again with everyone filling up the festival. James Hype was playing at the mainstage, and we went to go into the crowd in the middle back. I can say that the middle part of the crowd was not the best part to reside in, especially on a Saturday (or day 2 of the fest!). It was bottlenecked to the point it was slightly hard for us to move, so like after a few songs, we got out of the crowd to go slightly left to get out of the tight area. After we got comfortable towards the left in the crowd with the pressure alleviating, we danced until James Hype played his last song. Man, James Hype can DJ as he did have mad skills with all those tricks he put in as a skilled DJ. Here are the media from James Hype:

We got to a good spot in the middle of the crowd where it wasn't packed as Loud Luxury took the stage. Loud Luxury brought in a mix of pop, pop remixes, house, and some mashups. Not only did the duo bring the vibes to us, some interesting things happened in the crowd too. George, he couldn't get enough of himself. My mans was into it! Not only he acted like a DJ where he would move his flat hand back and forth like one, he pushed me in a moshpit because he thought I was too shy to get into one. I mean, I was in the mood to party and I'll go into one, but he pushed me in when I least expected it. I went- "dude at least let me know lol." He is still learning about the PLUR culture as I had to remind him a few times to still be considerate of other people, he's still a baby raver! Towards the end of the set, George said, "I need to refill my water bottle." I was like- "does this mean I have to leave the crowd? Too much mental effort though...". He did not have a hydration pack even though I encouraged him to get one before the festival, but that's on him. But as I'm still taking care of a new raver, he didn't ration his water intake (he must've been easily thirsty) and he ran out of water in about one go. I try to recommend that people ration their water intake and let their water last throughout the night, but of course not everyone is the same. This is just so that we don't have to get in and out of the crowd too much and miss precious moments. We agreed to leave the crowd to get George to fill up his water bottle at the nearby water station and I said goodbye to those around me. As we were leaving the crowd, some of my favorite songs from Loud Luxury came on and I filmed a few moments where I wished I was taking in the moment facing the stage. I was a little sad, but we did also agree to stay together as regrouping with each other can be hard. Here are a few highlights from Loud Luxury:

The nearby water station was at the side of the stadium past the merchandise tent. Crowds of people would fill their water packs there, so we try to find a shorter line. We all filled our water packs as Loud Luxury's set ended. George mentioned that he was tired from his broken foot and said that he needed to sit down for a bit. Armin van Buuran would then come on next and his intro started playing. The least I could do is film that intro and its drop just because I wanted to document it for others to see. When George was ready to get up, Armin was a few songs in. We then made the trek to go back into the crowd but on the right middle side. Of course, we lost our spots as the crowd got thick in that area and it was hard for us to continue going in. Thus, we parked at the middle right past the back speakers; it's out of consideration for the people around us. Armin did put me in a "state of trance" for sure, felt like I was transported to The Netherlands for a good 45 minutes which is while we were in the crowd. Here are a few highlights:

When his set started to reach towards the end, George said that his foot's ready to give out and he went to leave the crowd to find a place to sit. Me and Nate told him, "Meet us at the Merchandise tent at the end of the night." He didn't have his phone, so we had to make sure he does go there, as it'll be hard to find him if he goes elsewhere. Me and Nate slithered towards the left side of the crowd and found a random moshpit as people near us got hype. Just knowing myself, I joined in. Fireworks went off, and we moshed. Nate stayed outside of it, but that's just because he didn't want to join, and I was ok with that.

After the moshpits, we continued to move closer for Zedd as he was next to play. We eventually ended up on the left side of the mainstage, moving slightly towards the center front. We then parked on the left side of the DJ booth, and me and him were at the second to third row of the crowd. Since the crowd kept on packing in tight, I didn't bother to go to the rail. I was shoved to begin with if I did, and it was not a pleasant feeling.

Alas, Zedd came on stage after the "Positive" intermezzo. As his intro was playing with his famous "Where You Are" remix of John Summit and Hayla, my heart was pounding with excitement. I felt overjoyed to be able to see Zedd after waiting all those years as a child. Next thing I know, we sang the lyrics of "Where You Are," the drop came, and the fireworks went off on cue. I jumped for joy with this highly energetic remix and I can feel the bass hit me. It's just that in-person sensory experience that feels like no other.

I continued to vibe for a few more songs with "I Want You To Know" and his infamous "Rude" remix from MAGIC!. Nate, on the other hand, was just experiencing him for the first time and just started to learn about his music, so he was chilling out with me.

Nate told me, "Hey, I'm going to check to see how George's doing." I went, "Ok" as he left the crowd to check on George near the merchandise tent. He did not return for the rest of the set as I vibed alone for a few moments. When the "One More Time" remix came on and after the first drop, I saw a familiar face behind me. I took a closer look to discern who it was. To make sure it was him, I called out his name. "Matthew?", I called out. "Caleb?". he called out back to me. Oh my gosh, that was him! I screamed, "Matthewwww!!!" and I was filled with joy to see him. I hugged and joined him for the rest of the set.

Previously...

Now, a couple days before EDC, I met Matthew at a UNF ASIA event over at the University of North Florida and many of us were talking about EDC Orlando. Matthew mentioned that he was going as many of us asked around. For that night, I just met him. Because he likes to rave too, I instantly became friends with him.

Back in the Moment

I met his group of 4. I felt shy at first, but I was welcomed. Throughout the set, we all relived our childhood. I nicknamed the set "my childhood in one set."

The last song, "Clarity" came in and as I know it, it marks the last song of Zedd's set. Oh my goodness, the nostalgia I felt as that song dates back to 2012. I was simply 7 when that song first came out and playing on top 50 radios everywhere. Us and another group were singing the lyrics with pure joy and jumped along at the first drop. Before the second drop, Zedd looped the first build-up before the second one and asked everyone to put their phone lights up. It was a beautiful sight seeing a humongous sea of people flooding the mainstage, and it's in the thousands! As Zedd let the rest of the song play, the build-up played and then... there's the drop. The fireworks went off continuously throughout the second drop and I was living it. The set ended and I was like "wow, that was my childhood."

After Zedd left the stage, the stage went dark and the "Destiny" intermezzo began to play as the final intermezzo of the night. Me and the group left the mainstage and I mentioned that we need to find my friends. Since thousands of people were leaving at the same time, it was a bit difficult. We went around the ferris wheel and looked around the merchandise tent where my friends were supposedly at. There was again too many people for me to see if my friends were around. Then, I looked ahead at the photo-op tent by the merchandise tent and saw my friends. "There you guys are," I said. I introduced them to my new group of friends that I hung out with throughout Zedd.

One of the group members mentioned that they want to go to an afterparty. It was after midnight, and it's not like EDC Las Vegas where the festival goes all night long. I was also invited to join along, even though I originally planned something different that night had I not ran into them. It took me a bit to decide, but since I wanted to bond with the new friends I met in that group, I said yes. Plus, the Excision tickets at the Vanguard were sold out that night and I didn't necessarily plan in advance to get them beforehand anyways.

Sidequesting

Who doesn't like a late night sidequest? Of course, it never starts off without the gridlock traffic leaving the parking lot next to a residential neighborhood in the ghetto. Then a hundred years later we finally got through the traffic and went off to go find a place to party. Our group was (let's say) hangry. We all wanted food and something to drink. I was out of water. So we drove around until we looked up a fast food place nearby that was open late hours, which is Taco Bell. Taco Bell is more of something to get if you're hangry late at night and there's no where else to go nearby. We got some Taco Bell, ate, and decided to go to the Home Bass afterparty at Wyngate on the famous International Drive. Can't get there without of course adding a 5-minute walk to the hotel as parking was full there and we parked by Icon Park.

It didn't turn out the way I thought after entering the line. Turns out the admission for those who didn't pay in advance was $75 a person. For those of you that have a fulfilling career right now, it might not be bad or it's nothing. But for the college kiddos like us, it's a lot. And we already spent most of our money on the accommodations and basic necessities for the EDC trip. I was like- I got other stuff to pay for that I could use that money for, such as food and parking. But man, I was just also tired by then and felt like I wanted to retreat back to my AirBNB. Besides that one person who wanted to check it out and get high, we ultimately decided to leave and head home. The fellowship with each other afterwards was just enough for us that night.

It took an hour to get back to Matthew's car at his friend's place and another hour to drive back to my AirBNB. By the time I got back home, it was 3:30 in the morning already, and it was too late to go out. I was just out of it. Nate was still awake when I got inside and I went to settle in for the night. That was an interesting night.

Day 3

Sleeping that late got me sleeping in until 10 am. I woke up to breakfast already prepared by the other chef, Nate. On the menu was eggs, bacon, pancakes, and coffee. Me and Nate run on coffee, so it's necessary to have that or we would not function in the mornings. George then woke up and joined along with us at the dining table downstairs.

That morning, we had a conversation about who doesn't want to go to EDC tonight. Nate mentioned that his knees were giving out due to his medical condition, while George mentioned that his healing foot has given out for the weekend and needs to rest it. Thus, both told me that they did not want to go and wanted to sit it out. I was still eager to go to Day 3 though as I felt like I still have the energy to. Thankfully, the group I met the other night befriended me and I was lucky enough to be offered to go with them as I didn't want to be alone.

The artists I saw that day were ARMNHMR, Alesso, Meduza, Alan Walker, Afroki, and The Chainsmokers.

Matthew picked me up later that afternoon and took me to the festival. An hour later, we found a parking lot where the owner was offering parking at his business closer to the festival. Parking situation seemed better than the last 2 days since we went early at 3 and there was no traffic. The weather was overcast as rain is forecasted to move in later on into the night. But I'm happy to be back home at EDC.

It's true that leaving your mind and ears open to new music experiences can get you to like those artists you've never heard of before. On the way to the entrance since we had to walk around the festival perimeter (including the mainstage), I heard some thumping beats and I checked the timetable. It turns out that Bonnie X Clyde was playing at the mainstage right now. As the bass hit me, I went- "oh wow they are good! I like Bonnie's voice." Since then, I've thought about seeing them again despite not knowing them previously. Fast forward to Cinco de Mayo, I saw the duo back at my hometown of Jacksonville! Never did I realize that I would be able to be given the chance to fully experience them. That show was packed out full of ravers. Lowkey I do thank EDC for introducing me to that duo.

We settled in inside the festival and waited for our group to catch on. Then we headed to circuitGROUNDS stage to await Alesso's performance. When we got there, ARMNHMR was playing. After vibing to the last 15 minutes of the set, the real stuff was in. The intro began to play and I was filled with sheer excitement. There's Alesso! Right in front of my own eyes.

Alesso playing his intro

Alesso brought the stage down! He got me singing to his famous hits, brought me back in time, and got me vibing hard. I love a childhood refresher, and Alesso's one of those OG DJs that still bring you back to those days. Just speaking from experience, definitely go experience his set as the in-person experience is nothing like listening to it at home. You will feel emotions too. Towards the end of the set when Alesso started to tease his and Sentinel's "Interstellar" remix of Hans Zimmer, my group notified me that they wanted to dip to head over to see Allison Wonderland. Allison Wonderland was apparently set to play at the anniversaryARTCAR stage, which is a smaller stage.

We left the circuitGROUNDS stage and made our way towards the anniversaryARTCAR via the famous Daisy Lane. Crowded, but I got to look at other sets from other stages we passed by. stereoBLOOM definitely had a makeover compared to the previous years.

It was a mile and we made it to the anniversaryARTCAR stage. As we awaited Allison Wonderland's set, me, Matthew, and Cadrian checked out the shop tent nearby. The shops had custom-made handfans, clothing, pins, and some festival accessories. All of these vendors were of course, local businesses. It feels like walking through a con at the same time if you're wondering how the vibes were there. I've never did this much exploring of the festival until this day. I thought it was cool checking out all those different vendors who put this out all for the ravers. Seeing anime merchandise also intrigued me as anime is definitely common among ravers.

We walked out of the tent and vibed to Allison Wonderland for a bit at the artcar. The crowd was small. She played a techno set, and I thought it was good. The sound though, could be better. I simply noticed how much the sound bled. It just could've been better in my opinion.

After that, me and group headed on over to refill our waters and replenish ourselves as the time for Alan Walker to play draws closer. Meduza was currently playing at the mainstage. Even from afar back, the sound was nice and clear enough for me to feel the music. Me and Matthew went to the food stands for a snack, and I got the cheese-covered fries. The food prices were pricey as it's the standard prices for festivals like EDC, which mines turned out to be at least $8. At the end of Meduza's set, we all met up and went inside of the crowd to our same spot as yesterday as Alan Walker took the stage.

For my second time seeing Alan Walker, that man did not disappoint. He played some classics, remixes, and an unreleased song. I would say he did get everyone jumping 70% of the time, and it was a highly energetic set. If you've been keeping up with the trends lately, you may have seen the "smurf cat" meme with Alan Walker's "The Spectre." More specifically, the lines of "We live, we love, we lie..." are the most recited and recognized lyrics based off of the meme's originality audio. Alan Walker did acknowledge how popular it was and made it his intro; he played it twice in his set! He's definitely an artist to not miss if you haven't seen him yet.

After Alan Walker's set, the back to back (b2b) that everyone was waiting for all weekend, Afroki! It was Afrojack and Steve Aoki's first time playing back to back in a long time, in over a decade; this is music history I am witnessing in front of me. A couple of my friends on the other hand left to see San Holo at circuitGROUNDS. And Afroki here, these two destroyed that mainstage. From their new IDs to their classics, it felt like they brought the golden era of EDM back here again. It was legendary.

After Afroki, our group regrouped for the final act of the night, The Chainsmokers. The last time I saw them was back in March of 2020. It was a few days before COVID shut everything down. They performed at the TPC Sawgrass over in Ponte Vedra Beach right by the infamous Hole 17. Seeing them 4 years later gave me the nostalgia when everything was not affected by COVID back in the day.

The Chainsmokers for my second time seeing them, they threw down harder than they did 4 years ago. I know they have been around for a long time, but seeing them at EDC, they curated that set specifically for that festival. Furthermore, the stage effects enhanced that experience. They played the heavy stuff, their hits, and the remixes. I was either jumping, singing along, or headbanging. Honestly, The Chainsmokers threw a monstrous set to conclude the 3-day weekend at EDC.

This one girl who was next to me liked how I was vibing, since I'm known to have high energy. She did have a boyfriend, so I was concious about how I was vibing with her. I did interact with her during some parts of the set and we both vibed together. I thought this was magical as she was happy, carefree, and welcoming towards me. This added to the magic of seeing The Chainsmokers. A core memory like this is one of the reasons why I like EDM festivals.

All things do come to an end just like any other festival or concert. The Chainsmokers closed their set with "Closer" and all the fireworks went off at the drop. After they hopped off stage, the Destiny intermezzo began playing to conclude the weekend. A lot went on in 3 days, and I was glad I went to EDC again. To me, it felt like 5 days. That intermezzo playing already made me think "man I wish this festival still went on another day" because it was such an amazing experience. What's better was that I made core memories. It will be 365 days before I would be back.

Overall Honest Review

From my experience, EDC Orlando is a 3/5 rating. The vibes were immaculate, except that we had new ravers that came in and they don't understand about P.L.U.R. (Peace, Love, Unity, Respect). Sometimes, I would be pushed and shoved, but I did experience the same thing the previous year. However, I either ignored it or vented it out to one of my friends who was going through the same. Those that were familiar with the rave scene and understood P.L.U.R., I felt welcomed and free to express myself.

Please do keep in mind that pickpocketers are common, and therefore you should exercise caution when walking around or slithering in the crowd. I would recommend getting the ClutchLoop to clip your phone by your waist. If someone tries to snatch that phone out of you while attached, rest assured that your phone will be retracted back to your waist. Alternatively, if you can't afford one, wear some bottoms that have pockets deep enough or just hold your phone. Keep your most valuable possessions in your pockets and not in your bag if it's not anti-theft. Don't be like my friend George who got pickpocketed. For extra protection with my cheap hydration pack, I used karabiner clips from my last European trip to lock up my bag. It works, but still be conscious.

The food there was expensive, and it's a standard for most festivals. When I got my fries, it was $8. For the drinks, I had to pay over $10 for certain ones. Staying hydrated, I preferred to refill my hydration pack over at EDC's water refilling stations as it was complimentary; bottled waters were at least $8. If you want to purchase any food or drinks there, just know that it's not cheap, but it's something to keep in mind about if you're on a budget.

I saw two merchandise stands, one at the circuitGROUNDS stage and the other by the food stands close to kineticFIELD mainstage. The one I went to at the kineticFIELD on day 3 during Meduza's set had lower wait times, and the staff there were respectful and nice. They made sure that you got what you want. Merchandise prices are mid-high, which is also considered expensive depending on what you are getting. They sold from keychains to hoodies and flags.

If you tend to go outside of the festival, go in groups. The area EDC was placed in is in a sketchy neighborhood and has a high crime rate, so don't wander alone. Watch your back.

For the parking, I chose to park downtown at the garages adjacent to the Lymmo Grapefruit Line, which the bus transportation is through Lynx. On average it's $15 and cheaper to park in. On the contrary, parking closer to the festival can set you off from $40 or higher. If you don't have that kind of money, then it's best to stick to the downtown parking and take a shuttle from there. On the first day, if you try to get to the festival closer to sunset, the busses can get full, so plan on finding an alternative transport option to get there or just simply walk. For the return trip back to your parking (you should still pin where you parked), take the Lymmo shuttle to the left of 7-11 outside of the festival and take it until you are close to where you parked. Always pin where you parked so you don't have to spend countless minutes looking for your car.

When it came to the cellular reception, it was spotty, so communicating with your group can be a challenge especially if you lose them. I got separated from my group for one set on day 1, and it took an hour for us to regroup. I had to rely on using low signal to regain contact with my group again. If anything, I would use a totem or use the Crowd Compass to find your friends/group.

I didn't do everything of course, but honestly EDC Orlando is a festival I would consider returning annually as long you heeded the advices I gave above. That festival is not without its flaws, and that's expected. But I will be back when it comes around again. I would give it a go if one, you can't attend the EDC Las Vegas edition (Orlando's is cheaper!), two, you live on the East Coast of America, and three, you want to attend EDC on a budget (it's popular among the college crowd).