It’s been a month since Wonderfruit 2019, making this post long overdue. In my defense, there were a lot of things going on in the past few weeks.

Anyways, YES, I can finally say I have been to Wonderfruit. It all feels a bit strange. Lots of people have been asking how was it? And, well, to be honest, it was OK.

Sure, plenty of things stuck out and I have fun memories of it, but the festival never made me feel how some other events do. I want to leave a festival wanting more or even a bit sad over the fact that I didn’t want it to end. I guess because it is a four-day event, you kind of get tired of it. At least I did.

Here is a gist of what Wonderfruit was like for me. Some great, lots of good and a few not so great experiences.

Same same but different

If there is one way to define Wonderfruit, it’s that every day seemed like it was the same…but also different. We would wake up, get dressed (more on this later), catch the free shuttle bus, arrive at 4 pm, explore the Wonderfruit fields, watch some performances, dance, drink and eat till we got tired (usually 3 am). Rinse and repeat.

How different each day was from the previous was totally up to us. Sadly, for me, it wasn’t because I pretty much did the same thing. I could have taken part in more workshops, talks or even do some yoga but I just could not be bothered. I do regret not doing more even though I was there for four days and had every opportunity.

During the day it was just too hot to want to do anything. I would just find a shaded area with a bean bag or a chair, a beer in hand and have conversations with friends. This was probably the best thing – hanging with good friends and making new ones.

In the evening, the vibe would change. It would get cooler so we would walk around more (lots of walking – an average of 18,000 steps a day). The rest of the time, it was a bunch of drinking and dancing.

The vibes of the day vs night were surely surreal and different.

Day – health, sustainable, yoga/meditation, intellectual talks, family-friendly

Evening and dawn – intense raves, drugs, alcohol, and thumping music

I found the stark contrast quite interesting and ironic.

It’s all about the outfits!?

Wonderfruit is just as much (probably more) about the outfits than the festival (music, food, art) itself. I mean sure, the majority of the people would just come in shorts and a T-shirt but there were plenty of people who would go all out. They really put a lot of effort and thought into it. It was like Halloween meets Burning Man meets Coachella. Check out some of the outfits from #wonderfruitoutfit or simply #wonderfruit.

I planned my outfits too but I didn’t go overboard with any of them as I had planned. It was fun dressing up differently for each day of Wonderfruit 2019. I tried to mix up the styles.

3 things I loved about Wonderfruit

The stage designs especially Polygon. Wow, what a magnificent structure.

Although I didn’t enjoy the music much at this stage, I couldn’t help be in awe and appreciate it. It was a massive spiderweb-like structure made of steel with attached LED or laser lights that constantly changed colors with the beats. Truly awesome.

Iconic structures and setups for photo ops. Every year there are a few structures or art installations that Wonderfruit puts around the field. This is where people hang out or take their Instagram photos all day. These are some of the ones that were quite popular.

The cool structure (no idea what the name was) at Solar Stage was one of the busiest spaces for photography. At sunset, it was impossible to get our turn to sit or even take photos. This structure was put together like a jigsaw puzzle, which you could climb at different levels and then sit (or stand) for beautiful views of the Wonderfruit field.

Partying like a local with a Thai band. This was probably the highlight of Wonderfruit for me because it was so real and unexpected.

People were the friendliest here and everyone was having a really good time. It didn’t seem fake or pretentious.

Also, the overall setup of the Wonderfruit field was quite interesting. There was always something new to see even if you were here for 4 days. I don’t think 1 or 2 days would have been enough.

There was a vibe or activity for everyone – from kids to adults. Wanted to relax? There were plenty of spots for that. Dance? Anywhere and everywhere that had music. Food? It’s all over the place.

You could even go for a swim, get massages or do absolutely nothing.

It was clear that Wonderfruit 2019 was in good spirit and a lot of work had gone into it. It was definitely worth coming to.

What I did not like

Wonderfruit 2019 was great. Like I said, worth going to at least once. That being said, there were certain things that need work or I did not like.

I’m just going to list them without going into too much detail. You’ll get the idea.

• There was so much dust at Wonderfruit that I ended up getting sick in between. it was getting really hard to breathe at the end of it.
• The music was OK. Nothing really stood out except for the local band and the hip hop concerts at SOT stage. Everything else pretty much sounded the same to me. I was hoping for some old school trance and/or some hard-hitting bass music.
• While my friends had awesome food (according to them), I, on the other hand, did not. Everything I ate was mediocre or not good at all. There was a lot of variety, maybe too much, but I just ended up unlucky with my choices.
• The app had some glitches and it wasn’t updated in real-time, which is a shame. That is the whole point of it. For example, a couple of artists had changed their set time but we were never notified. This definitely needs work.

Would I go again?

That is another question I get asked and also have been asking myself. I’m not sure, really. I would go for just 2 days and I would consider camping so I could rest when I wanted and get up when I felt like it without feeling rushed to catch the shuttle bus. I would also try to take a more interactive part in Wonderfruit 2020 instead of a passive one in Wonderfruit 2019.

Right now early bird tickets are all sold out (not surprising). I’m sure there will be some good deals close to the festival. Let’s see!