What to Bring List

DO BRING
Item Notes
Disposable Shoes The playa will pretty much destroy any shoes. Bring a pair of comfortable shoes that you are willing to throw away.
Socks Bring at least 1 pair of socks for each day. You should change socks often to avoid getting playa foot. Playa foot is caused by the alkaline surface on the play that can create cracked and bleeding feet.
Clothing

You should be prepared for weather from 30 degrees to 100 degress. Do not bring too much clothing. I would recommend

  1. 2-3 tee shirts (you wind up wearing no shirts or the same shirt every day)
  2. at least 1 pair of underwear per day. Showers are hard to come by and the easiest way to stay semi-clean is to keep your underwear clean!
  3. shorts/skirt/bathing suit/bikini. minimal wear is the standard outfit on the playa. You generally wind up wearing the same thing every day.
  4. Pants. Bring 1 or 2 pairs of pants in case it gets cold and for the night time. Generally during the day you dont wear pants, but if it is cold, you will be glad you have this
  5. Jacket. bring a crappy jacket that you dont mind getting ruined. Usually you will NOT need this, but if it turns out to be one of those years where it is 30 degrees, you will be glad you have it.
  6. Long underwear. I have only wished I had this one year, but boy did I need it, it can get COLD out there!
Hat A hat goes a LONG way on the playa. And you can get crazy and have some groovy costume hat.
Medication There are very limited services on the playa. You must bring all your own medication (allergy, eye, cold, aspirin, band aids, etc)
Saline Nasal Spray rinsing your nose several times a day really helps with the dust, and provides some outstanding brown snot for your friend's entertainment.
Baby Wipes A good alternative to showering and a good way to clean those stank-ass places.
Costume Not mandatory, but having a costume can help you break the ice and feel a little more comfortable. Again, please do NOT feel outcast if you dont have one, I just recommend having some crazy stuff to wear in case you get the urge!
Water (1.5g/day) At least 1.5Gallons/day. People often warn against bringing too much water, but I dont believe that. It is better to have to much than not enough. If you have too much you can always give it away or take a long shower or something. The only problem with too much water is you have to transport it up there and bring the containers back. Not a serious issue.
Bike

The best way to get around the playa is on a bike. The bike will be HAMMERED by the playa so if you have a bike you LOVE, dont bring it, or at least be prepared to do a complete tune up when you are done.

  1. Dont forget to bring a lock for your bike. Bikes disappear on the playa all the time (some are stolen and sometimes people jsut get confused)
  2. Bring a light for your bike and lights for you bike. Make your bike visible so you dont get run over
  3. A costume for your bike! Fur seat? Fur bike?
  4. Make sure your bike seat is soft and comfortable; if you're not used to riding it, your crotch will really suffer.
Food Bring light food to each each day. I recommend canned food, and easy to prepare food that needs minimal cooling.
Snacks A snickers bar after 5 days on the playa can be the best thing you have ever had. Bring some chips, some candy, some nuts etc. Do not bring stuff that creates MOOP (such as sun flower seeds in the shell). You must not leave ANYTHING behind, including shells etc.
Drinks

Bring your drinks in coolers. Beer/Soda/Juice are excellent on the playa, keeping them cool can be difficult. Here are some cooler tips.

  1. Ice the stuff down before you leave home. This will bring all the cans/bottles down in temperature. When you get to Reno, Dump all the ice out and replace it with new ice. The new ice will keep longer because it does not have to be used to cool the bottles/cans down and because it is not wet. Wet ice melts faster.
  2. Put the cooler in the shade off the ground. Bring some wood or something to get the cooler off the ground.
  3. Open to cooler as little as possible. If you want a beer, take out 3 or 4 at a time, so you dont have to open the cooler 3 or 4 extra times.
  4. Block ice lasts a VERY long time. Consider putting 1 or 2 pieces of block ice in your cooler.
  5. Drain your cooler, water makes ice melt faster.
  6. If you are bringing bottled water open the water at home and poor a small portion out, recap the bottle and freeze at home. This will give you ice cold water on the playa and help keep your cooler cold.
  7. If your cooler has a tray, put your food in a tray in the cooler, do not let it sit in the water at the bottom of the cooler.
  8. You will be able to buy ice at center camp, but it can be a pain in the ass to haul this home. It is better to try to keep your stuff as is without buying new ice!
  9. consider bringing an extra cooler for dry ice and freezing water bottles, then switch the bottles into your food cooler: you can keep it cold for over 5 days if you're careful: reduces the need for ice-runs to center camp.
Ticket Dont forget your ticket!
Suntan Lotion MANDATORY!
Flash Light You might want to bring a small one one a chain around your neck so you can keep it with you while you are wandering the playa, and have another bigger one at camp for scruffing around in your tent. Having a flashlight on you in the middle of the night while partying is really nice. The porta-potties are not lit and sitting on a nasty toilet seat that you cant see is disgusting.
Batteries Dont forget batteries for your flashlight
Blinkies/Glow Stuff Every year people get run over on the playa because they are not wearing visible stuff. Blinkies look cool at night, but can also increase your safety
Backpack You will want to cruise around the playa during the day and night. However, you have to bring water, costumes, food, gifts, whatever. A backpack is a great way to carry this stuff.
Dust Mask When the wind blows it can get very dusty. A standard cheap painters mask works.
From rAVE dAVE: For dust masks, I like to wear a bandanna around my neck: good for wiping things, and if a duststorm comes up, wear it like the lone ranger and it's instant dust mask.
Goggles Cheap goggles or sun-glasses go a long way to protect from the dust
Tools Any power drills or power drivers with a socket set can be helpful during dome building and dome deconstruction. Other basic tools such as a screwdriver and cutters also can come in handy to fix bikes and other misc. things.
Toilet Paper (the special kind!) The only toilets they have on the playa are porta-potties. They have had many problems in the last few years with people putting stuff in the porta-potties. You should put nothing but piss and shit in them! Oh, you also are allowed to put in the special, easy decomposing, toilet paper. This is supplied with the toilets, but often these toilets run out! I like to bring my own supply, BUT as mentioned above you must ONLY bring the special camping toilet paper. Do NOT bring the regular kind.
DONT BRING
Dogs They get lost, thier feet get destroyed, they become dehydrated
Fire-arms NEVER allowed during burning man
Fireworks Due to too many people being hurt, all flamable stuff is disallowed. If you want to use fireworks, you have to get a permit from bman.
Illegal substances Burning man respects all local laws. If you walk by a cop with a J, expect to be busted.
Glass Glass is really hard to take home. Dont put glass in our garbage. If you have to bring glass, you must take it home with you