Skip to content
Burner Supply
Shop kits

Notes

Burning Man packing guides.

Short notes for the order, and longer ones you can pack against. The gaps a single list skips: what to ask camp, flying in, rain, and a bucket.

An RV week has its own two pages: a cost split you fill in and a printable prep list. The guide feed is RSS.

Open silver shade cloth knitted like a loose fabric, with holes you can see through.

01 · 6 min read

What Burning Man week requires

Hot days, cold nights, fine dust, and a long bike ride from anything. The gear follows from that.

Read the note
Dusty splash goggles with capped vents on a wooden crate.

02 · 5 min read

Burning Man dust mask and goggles

Mesh looks breathable in the store. It fills with dust. A scarf is for sun. A whiteout wants a respirator.

Read the note
A straight-leg frame with loose silver knit shade cloth over it.

04 · 5 min read

Best shade structure for Burning Man

The cloth is the last layer. A tarp bakes the camp, and a frame that isn't lagged will leave.

Read the note
A white front bike light and a red rear light on dusty bars.

05 · 6 min read

Burning Man bike lights and a lock

Lights you charged, a lock you use, and something tall enough to see above the crowd.

Read the note
A dome tent with a full rainfly under a separate shade roof.

06 · 7 min read

Sleeping bags for cold Burning Man nights

The afternoon was hot. The ground is cold, the neighbors are loud, and a sheet won't fix either.

Read the note
Thick black contractor bags folded on a crate.

07 · 7 min read

Burning Man MOOP and leave no trace

Matter out of place includes glitter, zip-tie tails, ash, and the stake you meant to pull.

Read the note
Fold-flat respirators kept in a zip bag.

08 · 7 min read

What to buy first for Burning Man

The order, if this is year one. The complete packing list is the other page.

Read the note
A wide camp cot on pale dust under shade.

10 · 6 min read

Best tent for Burning Man

A full fly, under shade. A dome in the sun is an oven by 9 a.m.

Read the note
A rechargeable fan with a clamp, on pale dust under shade.

11 · 6 min read

Gear worth bringing to Burning Man

The small moves that show up every year, after the shade and the water are already handled.

Read the note
A box of Refresh Tears lubricant eye drops.

20 · 7 min read

What burners wish they'd brought

The small things that show up after the water and the shade are already in the car.

Read the note
Two rectangular water jugs with spigots, stacked.

12 · 11 min read

Complete Burning Man packing list

The short note is the order. This is the list you can pack against, once you know what camp already covers.

Read the note
Long galvanized lag bolts and 18-inch rebar on dusty ground.

13 · 11 min read

How to anchor shade for playa wind

The cloth is the last layer. This is the anchoring: lags, rebar, straps, and the moment you take the walls down.

Read the note
An unlabeled spray bottle and a clear gallon jug.

14 · 9 min read

Playa foot care for first timers

Goggles for the whiteout, and the slower problem: alkaline dust on skin, socks, and the tub at dusk.

Read the note
A steel U-lock and cable on a dusty bike frame.

15 · 9 min read

Prep your Burning Man bike

Charge them, mount them so dust cannot peel them off, and do the flat once at home. A rental is a frame.

Read the note
A small power station and a fan in the shade.

16 · 9 min read

Burning Man camp power and solar

A bank for the phone, a small station for a fan and a laptop, and a fridge that is a different project. Solar is a top-up.

Read the note
A small misting fan under open shade cloth on pale dust.

17 · 9 min read

How to sleep in Burning Man heat

Shade over the tent, air that moves, a mask for the sun, and a bag for the night that still drops into the forties.

Read the note
A dusty hydration pack standing in the shade.

18 · 9 min read

How much water to bring to Burning Man

The Survival Guide's 1.5 gallons, then the jugs, the bottle you carry, and the washing that must not steal from drinking.

Read the note
A lidded jug set apart from the drinking jugs, with a blank tape label.

19 · 9 min read

RV and car camping at Burning Man

Dust at the doors, nothing dumped on the playa, and a rig that stays where you put it when you arrived.

Read the note
A dusty bike with a tall orange flag above the handlebars at dusk.

20 · 9 min read

Finding friends at night on the playa

Lights so you exist, a place you named before you split up, and a compass only if each person is wearing one.

Read the note
A yellow-and-black handheld blower with a long nozzle and three tips on a dusty crate.

21 · 9 min read

How to clean playa dust off gear

Sweep the hex first. Then blow the dust outside, cut the alkali film with vinegar, and leave the electronics dry.

Read the note
A wide-brim hat with a chin strap on a dusty crate.

22 · 8 min read

What to wear to Burning Man

Closed shoes, a hat that stays on, a layer for the ride home, and a costume that does not shed.

Read the note
A Jetboil camp stove standing beside a fuel canister.

23 · 8 min read

What food to bring to Burning Man

Meals you can finish when it is hot, a stove that stays outside the tent, and ice that lives in the shade.

Read the note
A rolling magnetic sweeper with a long handle and a release lever.

24 · 7 min read

What not to bring to Burning Man

If it sheds, blows away, or you will not carry it home, it stays home. The city's list is the authority.

Read the note
A pop-up canopy with a solid roof, set up outdoors.

29 · 7 min read

Questions to ask your Burning Man camp

Shade, water, a kitchen, power, and a toilet are either theirs or yours. The email should settle which before you shop.

Read the note
A closed bucket with a seat lid, empty, in the shade.

32 · 8 min read

A bucket toilet for Burning Man

Ask camp first. If the answer is no, a seat, the bags made for it, and a lid are the system you pack out.

Read the note
A thin packable rain shell folded on a dusty crate.

25 · 8 min read

Burning Man rain and playa mud

The week is dust until it isn't. A shell, a fly, a radio, and a bucket are the gear. The city's page is the rule.

Read the note
An unmarked sunscreen tube and a dusty brim hat.

26 · 8 min read

Sun protection for Burning Man

Camp shade does not follow you. A hat with a strap, sunscreen you can see, and an umbrella for the walk are the hours outside the frame.

Read the note
Wrapped snack bars stacked on a dusty crate beside a cooler.

27 · 8 min read

Burning Man cooler and ice

Block ice, a hard cooler in the shade, and a lid that stays shut. The melt is not drinking water.

Read the note
An open first-aid pouch with bandages and gauze on a dusty crate.

28 · 8 min read

Burning Man first-aid kit

A pouch you can find in the dark, a few things in the day bag, and a medical tent for everything else.

Read the note
Four hex-head lag bolts and a washer on a white background.

30 · 6 min read

Tent stakes for Burning Man wind

The short spikes in the tent bag walk out. Shade lags and rebar are a different piece of metal. They are not the same product.

Read the note
A clear hydration reservoir with a bite valve.

31 · 7 min read

Flying in to Burning Man

The suitcase is the constraint. A bike is a rental before the gate. The day bag is still yours, and the city's luggage page is the rule.

Read the note
A synthetic sleeping bag half-stuffed on a cot.

33 · 9 min read

A first-burn kit, by price

Three shelves, using only the ranges already on the product pages. We are not adding them into a cart total.

Read the note
A headlamp glowing red on a dusty bin.

34 · 8 min read

Regional burns and festival packing

A dry-lake regional is closer to this list than a festival with taps and a signal. Read that event's page before you shop.

Read the note
A thick air mattress inside a tent, with a pump and a patch kit.

35 · 8 min read

Best tent for dust and wind

A full fly, a door you can close, and guy points that are not the short spikes in the bag. The heat is the other page.

Read the note
A small lantern glowing inside a dark tent.

36 · 8 min read

Burning Man camp lights

A red lamp in the tent, a string on the frame, and nothing that becomes moop. The bike beam is the other page.

Read the note
A yellow DeWalt impact driver with a battery pack attached.

37 · 8 min read

How to pack the car for Burning Man

Last in, first out. The stakes, a jug, and the shade come out before the costume bin does.

Read the note
A camp pillow with a removable case on a cot.

38 · 7 min read

A cot for Burning Man

Off the ground. A wide cot if you drove, or a thick air bed with a foot pump. A sheet on the playa is a cold night.

Read the note
A compact portable air conditioner with the exhaust duct leaving a tent.

39 · 8 min read

A portable AC for a playa tent

Shade first. A fan second. The WAVE 3 is a different machine, with its own battery, and the small station cannot run it.

Read the note
A dusty folding wagon loaded with water jugs.

40 · 9 min read

The Burning Man camp cart

The straight-leg frame, the knit, the lags, a cot and a bag, water, lights, a lock, and a small station. Each one is its own listing.

Read the note