Alright you music lovers and broke college kids who can’t afford to party it up in Cancun. This article is for you all. The adventurers and voyagers, so to speak. Do I have a fun Texas Spring Break adventure for ya!

Head down to the capital city, weird ol’ Austin Texas for a week unlike any other. The Annual South by Southwest interactive film, conference and music festival will be back again this March 9 to 18.

This conference is known for celebrating the convergence of the film, music and production industries. This is an iconic global event that takes place every March, during the town’s wild spring break session.

Diversity at its finest, this festival is known for not sticking to a specific genre. The stylistic and music focus is unique and colorful, much like the rad people that live in the area.

In 2017, the festival featured over 2000 performers, coming from over 63 different countries around the world. This 2018 festival season is guaranteed to rival the previous year’s numbers, as over a thousand acts have already been announced. Big name artists such as Khalid, DMC and Cold War Kids have already been announced, along with many others. And that’s not even taking into account all of the secret, pop-up and surprise shows!

To try and start getting an idea of what you want to go do, and who all you want to see, there is an extensive SXSW Schedule that is available for viewing on SXSW.com. However, if you already know that you are for sure attending the event (whether that be with a badge or a Guest Pass) I would highly suggest getting the SXSW app. It’s super handy.

There are a multitude of differing badges and passes that an attendee can obtain, which will allow them exclusive access to events of their choosing. SXSW Music and Platinum Badge holders have primary access to venues, allowing musicians and talented industry attendees great opportunities to meet and intermingle. Film and Interactive Badges will have secondary access to the venues, and for all you money-saving Simple Sally’s (like myself) – that’s where the free Guest Pass comes in!

Obtaining a Guest Pass for SXSW is completely free of charge, with no hassle. All you have to do is sign up. When obtaining one of these passes you are then put on a first come first serve basis with all the venues, aka there will be a lot of lines and you will only get in once the primary and secondary passholders get their pick. But don’t fret, this just means a lot of day time gigs, yay! Guest Pass holders are still a really cheap and cool way to still experience the adventure of SXSW, just without spending an arm and a leg. Ballin’ on a budget.

In order to ensure you have an enjoyable SXSW experience, you have to plan, prepare and prosper. Make a plan! The likelihood of you religiously abiding by it is doubtful, but it’s always best to be over-prepared than under. The cool thing about getting a Guest Pass is that you can still get into a lot of daytime parties and concerts. The key is just RSVPS’ing online to said events. RSVP to them all if you want, better to have too many options than none. To find venues search EventBrite, Twitter and honestly just Google it. There are an overwhelmingly amount of cool things going on.

Make sure to stock up on the essentials! Nourish your body, and pack yourself some protein bars, refillable water bottle, sunscreen and some extra cash. It’s going to be hot, crowded and loud, so make sure to stay hydrated and full of energy. Delicious food trucks will also be available. Just about every couple of blocks down, there will be food trucks posted up that will offer a large variety of five-star quality dishes. Austin is known for some of the best food trucks out there (true fact).

Doing SXSW without a badge has never been so easy. So get ready for the day parties and set your alarm clocks early, it’s time to rumble! And just remember to live in the moment, the sets are short and days even shorter. Just enjoy it.