CRSSD San Diego Festival Guide

CRSSD is THE place to be if you love house music. Luckily, this San Diego music festival tends to happen more than once per year!

(Also luckily, live events are back and are better than ever!)

Here’s a quick guide to CRSSD, based on my experience at the 2-day DAY.MVS event in August 2021!

Where is CRSSD held?

CRSSD is held at Waterfront Park in San Diego, which lies west of the Little Italy/Downtown neighborhoods.

The location is beautiful, because not only do you have the water to the left and the city skyline in the background, you’ll see the sunset, too.

It truly was a beautiful experience to be in the energy of the crowd, listening to some of my favorite artists play, while the sun changed from blue to orange to black.

Tickets

All the info is on the crssdfest website and IG @crssdfest. The Fall ‘21 dates are September 25 and 26.

I bought a ticket from a friend-of-a-friend through Venmo and pulled up his ticket as a screenshot/QR code on my phone and that worked just fine, so if you can’t get a ticket before they sell out, try asking around to see if anyone is selling their own!

Entry

At the first checkpoint, they will check your ID. Then, you’ll get your bag inspected (on Day 2 only during August, they patted all of us down, saying they were checking everyone for “illegal substances or vape pens,” etc.

The Lineup & Music

There is the north stage and the south stage, both of which have great music playing the whole time.

Our group stuck around the north side for a majority of the time because our favorite DJs (FISHER, Nora En Pure, Lane 8) were playing over there!

I liked the music on Day 1, but I loved the music on Day 2. I think since Day 2 was a Sunday it had a slightly more chill vibe, which is my favorite kind of house music - chill, happy, sunset vibes.

This doesn’t mean Day 2 didn’t have energy, though - the crowd collectively enjoyed it all and had a good time!

Food & Drinks

As with any festival, concert, or sports event, food and drinks are not cheap. However, considering this was a festival, I didn’t think they were too crazy, and honestly, pricing was pretty similar to going to a bar or restaurant in Little Italy.

Beers ran around $10; Seltzers $12; Cocktails $16.

I had the tequila refresher and it was pretty good!

I was surprised by the variety of food options they had. In addition to greasy American fare like pizza and french fries, there were also tacos, poke, and other options.

The Vibe

San Diego sunsets + house music. Is there anything better than that combination?!

Everyone seemed to be pretty laid back and in a good mood. While I went with friends, I also met some new people, which is always fun.

What To Wear

Personally, I’d say CRSSD is less costumey than some other popular festivals like Burning Man, for example. I did see many people wearing costumes more on the subtle side, or even adding a little extra flair to their outfits.

On Day 1 I did a bubble ponytail and the girls in our friend group all sprayed colorful glitter on our hair! I wore a butterfly tube top with denim shorts and a white lace long beach cardigan, with basic flat sandals.

On Day 2 I kept it way more casual, wearing a two-piece printed top and skirt set with the same sandals, sans glitter!

My advice is to wear comfortable shoes that you can clean! My feet were expectedly trashed from all the dirt and grass and being outside all day. Wearing clothes you can dance in is also a must!

Also, don’t forget sunscreen as there is little to no shade by the north stage, depending on the time of day and where the sun is.

For bags, I brought a small purse with a shoulder strap that could be worn cross-body. I only brought the essentials: phone, wallet, keys.

Bathrooms

Obviously porta-potties are never really ideal, but it’s the best solution for huge events like this. And CRSSD had the porta-potty situation down! There was a mass amount of porta-potties, and any lines to go to the bathroom were really short.

Compared to some concerts I’ve been to, like those held at the Del Mar race tracks for example (average 30-minute wait), waiting 1-5 minutes was really nice.

2021: The Elephant In The Room

Post-2020 with things still up in the air with, you know, our global health situation…things surprisingly felt very “normal.” People were handing out masks to those who wanted one at the entry, though masks were not required. I’m not sure if any requirements will change for future events, so do your research ahead of time!