Guidance

Waking Life is meant to be a warm, welcoming space for any gender, racial, ethnic, sexual, age, class identities. To create a truly vibrant, safer environment, we must respect each other’s boundaries, seek consent and be mindful about how we interact with others. Respect each other’s space and support whenever necessary. React or talk with one of the Caretakers in case you see discriminatory behaviour, be they sexist, homophobic, or any other form of bigotry.

We don’t want to put stickers on your phones, but cameras and filming on the dancefloors is nevertheless prohibited. We want privacy for liberation and expression. People have to be able to surrender to trance, to an undocumented ephemeral moment, without the invasiveness of a camera. If you cannot respect this simple rule, please don’t be crazy surprised if you get asked to leave the festival. In all circumstances respect people’s privacy, be mindful and read the room.

Keep an eye on each other and yourself. Locate the first aid, emergency meeting points and emergency exits on your map upon arriving in case you or a fellow traveler would be needing them later on. Bring a small first aid kit if you can. Our medical team will be of assistance for people with physical or psychological issues at any time. There are quiet places to relax and have a rest.

Don’t litter! Please help us keep the land and its surroundings clean. Don’t leave stuff behind, dispose of your waste and cigarette butts properly, respect nature, pick up waste if you see some, even if it’s not yours. Waste is a collective responsibility.

Don’t throw them on the goddam ground.  One cigarette butt contains 700 toxic substances, can contaminate 40 liters of water and takes up to 10 years to decompose. Please, use your portable ashtrays and when you see cigarette butts lying around, help us by picking them up. In case you see someone living their best cowboy fantasy and throwing a ciggie on the soil or in the lake: find a constructive way to address that. The environment is not our ashtray.

Portugal alone accounts for more than half of all forest fires in the EU. It’s strictly forbidden to make fires of any kind (bbq, camp fires, candles, …) on site. If you see anyone making a fire, please inform them about the risk and ask them to put it out. Be extremely careful with cigarette butts too, put them in your portable ashtray. Locate the nearest fire extinguisher to your camp in case of an emergency. It’s forbidden to use camping gas for by now obvious reasons.

The lake is not a washing area, and certainly not a toilet! Those who decide to carry out their biological needs in the lake will be asked to leave the festival. Use biodegradable sunscreen only, and even better, rinse off before swimming. We want to refresh ourselves in a clean lake – not an oil spill. Swim safe, sober, and only by daylight. Our Baywatch team will keep an extra eye too. For safety reasons, it’s forbidden to swim at night. Don’t dive.

Drinking water is available for free at the water points spread across the site. However, we often take water for granted. We gather upon desertification-threatened land, we need to be mindful, temporary custodians of this ecosystem. Water is valuable, and especially scarce in this region. Take short (revigorating) showers and refresh in the lake. Use it wisely, be considerate of your consumption.

When humans are likely to enter altered states it is important to have a calm, cosy, protected space, with people who know how to care for you. Avózinha is the place to seek advice, and receive support during tricky psychedelic experiences or altered states of consciousness. Warm, grandmotherly vibes is what you’ll find in our risk-reduction, psycare place.

The Caretakers are performers, tripsitters, or simply empaths with an eye for anticipating the needs of others. The essence of this squad is to help curating a spirit of collective care, and showing how a mindful community tends to its members. If you see or experience anything uncomfortable, or just need a listening ear, don’t hesitate to approach one of the Caretakers.

Refuse > reduce > re-use > recycle.

Be aware of how your consumption and travel impacts the environment and try to take action accordingly. Avoid plastic and useless gadgets. Consider carpooling, buses, trains and hitchhiking trails.

All initiatives concerning sustainability are most welcome.

Our first 10.000 baby trees and shrubs have been requiring a lot of care, and most of them are growing where soon will be your camping grounds. In this new cohabitation, we need to cultivate a sense of collective responsibility and care. Please watch out where you walk, prance and pee, your attention and mindfulness will be an important variable in determining how many trees will make it through the summer.

Before you go, earn your waste deposit back by handing in your full (and recycled) bags of waste you generated. Make sure to bring along your waste deposit ticket. Didn’t produce much waste? Great! You can also fill up a bottle or container with cigarette butts. Collective treasures, collective trash : ) Here, you’ll also find the confiscated items and a donation point. If you have food, a tent (we hope this won’t happen) or other useful materials you won’t be taking home again: bring them there, so they can come in handy for other people.

Temperatures in Alentejo in June fluctuate between 25 and 40 degrees Celsius. Wear (biodegradable) sunscreen to protect your skin from sunburns and drink enough water to keep yourself hydrated. Alentejo is a hot area, germs dig that and can spread quickly. Wash your hands regularly and be careful sharing drinks or smokeables. If you feel like you might be getting a flu, rest, tell a friend and be smart about it, i.e. don’t go making out with whoever agrees.

We aim to reduce our environmental footprint as much as we can. One of our ways of doing this is offering a wide variety of fresh veggie food, locally sourced if possible.

Waking Life wishes to offer a unique, accessible experience to all participants, including people with disability. We offer an extra ticket to any person with disability to bring along one person to assist you, free of charge. If you wish to apply or receive information on guidance dogs, parking, camping or anything else, please get in touch via info@wakinglife.pt.

The currency at Waking Life is Klingeling (€1 = 1KL). You’ll be able to acquire Klingeling at a discount via pre-topup, at one of the ticket counters on site in exchange of cash (at the info point), or paid by card. After Waking Life, you have two weeks to reclaim any remaining value. We have no ATM, be sure to bring enough cash and your bankcard.

After Waking Life, you have two weeks to reclaim any remaining value. You can also donate your leftover Klingeling, they will be directly invested in the land regeneration project. Click here for FAQ.

Please don’t bring glass to the grounds, it increases risk of injury and fires. Bring a stainless-steel water container if you can, or get one at the Kiosk

Sun, dehydration, noise and people can increase stress and health problems of your pets. Therefore it’s not allowed to bring them to the festival. Those who do arrive with a pet will not be able to enter the festival.

Bring anything you wish to share with fellow participants, we’re creating this experience together! Note that it’s not allowed to sell anything at or around Waking Life, unless you are a registered vendor. Pirate shops will be taken down and removed from the terrain.

It’s fun to play with confetti & glitters, but they are not environmental friendly and a real pain in the ass to clean it all up, literally. Therefore: please leave them at home.

Own sound systems on the campsite or at the parking lot are prohibited.

You enter the site at your own risk and responsibility. The organization cannot be held accountable for any material damage that may occur on the site. Make sure to read the ticket terms and conditions. You agree with these terms when buying a ticket.

We highly encourage carpooling to those who have the possibility to do so! In our Hitch a Ride group you can offer empty seats to or from Waking Life to fellow travellers or ask them to share their ride with you.

The closest major airport is in Lisboa. It’s a smooth drive from Lisboa which will take about 3 hours in normal traffic. Other possible airports are Porto (4h), Faro (4h), Madrid (6h) or Sevilha (4h).

Waking Life shuttles drive between Lisbon (3h), Porto (4h) and Madrid (6h) airport and Waking Life. For all departure and arrival times, have a look at the transport overview page. For tickets, go here.

Daily buses drive between Lisboa Sete Rios < > Crato and Portalegre, which will take you about 3 hours. For all departure and arrival times, have a look at the transport overview page. Get tickets at www.rede-expressos.pt.

There’s a daily train driving between Lisboa Santa < > Crato, which will take you about 3 hours. For all departure and arrival times, have a look at the transport overview page. Get tickets at www.cp.pt.

Shuttles drive regularly between Waking Life < > Crato and Portalegre. For all departure and arrival times, have a look at the transport overview page.

If you’re looking for some adventure, come to Waking Life by bike! We’ll make sure that good ol’ two-wheeler of yours receives a warm welcome.

Portugal is a fascinating country with a diverse culture and a unique personality; including its rich history, exquisite cuisine and its people’s love for music and art. Alentejo, one of the most authentic regions in the country, is known for a heritage enriched by a variety of cultures and landscapes of unique beauty, its local traditions, timeless villages, rewarding walks and good wines. If you can, we’d highly recommend sticking around for some time…