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Any tips on going to Fuji Rock alone? Just for a day.
I'm on the spectrum so I'm always having a difficult time in packed places. As much as I enjoy live music, huge music festivals scare me. But man… I live and work in Tokyo, without a driver's license.
I'm on the spectrum so I'm always having a difficult time in packed places. As much as I enjoy live music, huge music festivals scare me. But man, the Saturday lineup strikes me as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to experience my favorite musician's live show performance.
Any tips? I see that the last Shinkansen train departs before the the show wraps up.
one thing nobody mentioned yet, the site is a ski resort so there's a gondola up the mountain. the top area is way emptier than the main stages, and you can still hear the sound bleeding from below. if you need a real escape, ride it up and just sit for a bit, it's a whole different vibe up there.
day ticket means you'll be standing most of the time, so get a camping chair or at least a picnic blanket. the ground is gravel and grass, sitting directly on it gets old fast. they sell those inflatable cushions inside but they're overpriced.
for the return, the night bus is the move but i'd also check the fuji rock official app for the exact pickup spot, it's not always obvious. last year they moved it near the entrance gate, not the main exit, easy to miss if you're tired. also bring a power bank, the charging lockers sell out by noon.
The shuttle from Echigo-Yuzawa station is the real bottleneck, so get there early even if it means waiting around. Saturday gates open at 8:30am, and if you arrive around 7:45 you'll beat the worst crush. The queue moves fast but it's tight, so if that's a sensory trigger, consider the paid shuttle from the station that runs directly to the entrance, it's a bit more money but you skip the main line.
For the after-show, the night bus is your best bet, but also check the local trains to Nagaoka or Takasaki, sometimes you can catch a local line to a bigger station and then grab a later Shinkansen from there. That adds an hour but gives you more flexibility if you want to see the encore.
On the spectrum thing, the sun and heat will hit harder than the crowds, the site is a ski resort so there's no shade on the main paths. Get a locker early, they go fast, and stash a hoodie and water. The Red Marquee stage has a raised platform on the left side where you can stand slightly above the pit, it's less claustrophobic and you can see over people's heads without being in the middle of it.
for the sensory side, headphones are the real game changer rn. not earplugs, actual over-ear headphones with noise canceling. you can wear them under a hat or just let the music bleed through, but the crowd chatter and shuffling is what gets me, not the volume. i use them for breaks between sets, walk to the next stage with them on, and take them off for the actual show. night and day difference.
also the shuttle back to the station is a mess at closing, but there's a quieter route: walk to the toki no mori bus stop, it's past the main exit toward the camping zone. the local bus from there goes to the station too, runs less often but way fewer people, and it's like 500 yen cheaper. you might wait a bit longer but you're not shoulder to shoulder with a thousand people.
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Where can I find crispy, pan-fried bacon similar to a certain international style?
if u have a costco membership the kirkland thick cut is the move, 4 packs of 500g for around 2500 yen and it crisps up proper in a cold pan. for smaller runs, precce in azabudai hills & the basement at isetan shinjuku both carry imported US & danish brands in the chilled case, just read the label for "thick cut" or "smoked" and not "loin". also worth knowing japanese bacon is often wet-cured so pat it dry before frying or it steams instead of crisping
kaldi coffee farm is hit or miss but their smoked bacon from denmark shows up pretty regular, the 200g pack runs about 600 yen. what actually works better for me is asking the butcher counter at peacock or life to slice the block bacon thick, like 5mm, they do it for free and it crisps way better than the pre-packed stuff. also fwiw cheap bacon crisps faster, the fatty supermarket kind at 300 yen a pack works fine if u cook it from cold in a dry pan and pour off the fat as it renders.
tbh the gyomu super store brand bacon is surprisingly decent for crisping up, its not thick cut but if you cook it low and slow it gets pretty crunchy. the key is the dry cure vs wet cure thing, wet cure steams. also check hanamasa if you have one nearby, they sell big packs of american style bacon thats actually smoked and firm.