Thousands gathered Thursday through Sunday at Great Stage Park to witness the comeback of Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival in Manchester, Tennessee — an anticipated return after the waterlogged 2025 event caused much fan discourse and organizers announced infrastructure improvements.
In its strongest years, Bonnaroo has attracted around 80,000 people to rural Coffee County for the annual music festival. This year, around 45,000 people were expected on The Farm for the event, according to the Tennessee Department of Transportation. Those who did attend faced rain, slick grounds and high food prices.
“It’s a hit-or-miss with food,” said Ashlyn Rogers, a 32-year-old concertgoer, adding, “thirty dollars for a hotdog and Tater Tots is crazy.”
In 2025, organizers ended the festival on the evening of Friday, June 13, after an afternoon of severe storms and lightning caused flooding and campground damage. Thousands of attendees retreated to their tents and cars for hours only to receive a cancellation announcement.
“I think last year really traumatized people because they weren’t prepared for the, like, tsunami that came through here,” said Lindsie Oden, 23, a first-time attendee.
A month after the 2025 event, Bonnaroo organizers announced plans to adjust several aspects regarding the festival’s lineup, layout and infrastructure. Changes included reduced camping capacity, later camping entry, improved drainage, pathways and added acreage. These moves aimed to prevent flooding from damaging grounds and equipment in the event of stormy weather, a statement on Bonnaroo’s website said.
“We’re constantly monitoring the weather,” the statement said. “Keep an eye on the radar before heading to the festival so you can dress accordingly.”
This year, complications struck Sunday afternoon when festival organizers closed Centeroo due to lightning and heavy rain in the area. Attendees were told to shelter in their camps and cars, reminiscent of last year’s Bonnaroo.
The delay resulted in the cancellation of sets from artists like Aly & AJ and Blondshell while cutting short Buffalo Traffic Jam and Little Stranger’s sets. Centeroo did not reopen until around 5:30 p.m., and many guests left The Farm early.
Artists returned to the stage soon after the grounds reopened, with all remaining performances delayed by one hour.
Bonnaroo also saw light rain Friday morning and early afternoon, and a night of muddy concerts in its wake. Areas near food and merchandise vendors were riddled with puddles, and several tents caved in after rain threatened to collapse some ceilings.
“We had told Bonnaroo staff that it (rain) was starting to pull down on the tent Thursday evening,” said Remi Lazo, 20, a manager at food vendor Flaming Wok. “They were like, ‘We’ll handle it.’ And then it all collapsed.”
But Lazo said she believes that improvements made to drainage systems aided with the rain and flooding.
“They did a lot better than last year,” Lazo said. “From what I can tell, there’s a whole lot less flooding on the campgrounds.”
Employees at the seafood vendor Kokomo Joe’s also fought against flooding in the shop after Friday’s rains, along with a collapsing ceiling.
Flaming Wok and Kokomo Joe’s also faced slower business during peak hours. Workers from these vendors attributed the lull to the relocation of That Tent.
“The That Tent used to be here, but it was moved across from the What Stage,” said Kokomo Joe’s worker Anthony Johnson, 36. “We haven’t been seeing as much foot traffic this weekend.”
Kokomo Joe’s and Flaming Wok rest between Bonnie Roo’s Brews and The Tower Entrance in Centeroo. Organizers moved That Tent east — sharing a field with the What Stage — to quell overcrowding concerns and allow for smoother traffic flow.
Bonnaroo’s programming lasted until late Sunday, with Noah Kahan’s anticipated performance wrapping up the wet weekend.
Fans and vendors had varied opinions about Bonnaroo’s future — some hopeful and excited, while others were hesitant about being involved in 2027.
Flaming Wok’s lack of customers led the local Nashville business to reconsider its return.
“I’m not sure how we’ll do in future years,” Lazo said. “I don’t know if we’ll be coming back next year.”
Other vendors like Kokomo Joe’s remain hopeful that the festival will keep going strong, striving for its pre-pandemic and pre-2025 numbers.
“As long as they keep getting good headliners and continue working on the layout and infrastructure, I think it’ll be a good year,” Johnson said.
From several fan perspectives, Bonnaroo will always be a good investment. The festival brings together thousands of people every year to listen to music crossing multiple genres, from rock and pop to rap and electronic music.
“I had family come in from Florida, and it was really cool to meet up here,” Rogers said. “We have different music tastes. They’re more EDM, and I’m more alt-rock indie. Being able to experience each other’s worlds at the same time with a variety of music is really cool.”
In regard to rain, Rogers believes that when you’re on The Farm, you’re a “farm animal,” she said.
“You might as well get used to it,” Rogers said.