Venue
Black Rock Desert, near Gerlach, Pershing County, NV 89412, United States
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Burning Man guide
Nine days building Black Rock City.
In short
Burning Man runs from Sunday 29 August to Labor Day Monday 6 September 2027 in Nevada's Black Rock Desert. It suits self-reliant participants: there is no paid line-up, almost nothing for sale, and you must bring everything you need to survive. The week closes with the burning of the Man and the Temple.
Burning Man is a nine-day temporary city built each summer on a dry lakebed in Nevada's Black Rock Desert. Tens of thousands of people arrive to make art, camps and performances for one another, then take everything away again. The week ends with two fires: the burning of a giant wooden figure, the Man, and of the Temple.
There is no paid line-up and almost nothing for sale. The event runs on Ten Principles, among them radical inclusion, gifting, decommodification and radical self-reliance, which turns every visitor into a participant. You bring all you need to survive in the desert and you are expected to contribute something to the city, whether a piece of art, a service or simply your time.
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Key Facts & Stats:
Ends: Monday, 6 September 2027
Where: Pershing County, United States
Venue: Black Rock City
Held: Every year
Type of event: Arts Festivals, Social Festivals, Community Events
Currency: US dollar (USD, $)
Time zone: Pacific Time (UTC-8, UTC-7 in summer)
Language: English (Spanish widely spoken)
Map
Getting around
Hotels near the venue fill up around the event dates.
Sun, dust storms and cold nights on the playa
The playa sits near 4,000 feet, so the sun burns quickly and the air dries you out before you feel hot. Pack sunscreen, lip balm, lotion and a wide-brimmed hat with a chinstrap for the wind, and carry a full water bottle every time you leave camp. Alcohol and caffeine speed up dehydration.
Dust storms can arrive suddenly, with winds above 75 mph and whiteouts that hide everything a few feet away. Keep goggles and a dust mask on you at all times and put them on as soon as the wind rises. Caught in the open, sit down with your back to the wind, cover your face and wait. If you are driving, stop.
After sunset the temperature can fall by about 50 degrees, so a warm layer belongs in your bag even on the hottest afternoon.
No selling, advertising or pets
Black Rock City is a decommodified zone. You may not sell anything, and that includes food and handmade goods. Advertising, product launches and photographing products for promotion are banned, and work logos on vehicles should be covered up.
Dogs and other animals are not admitted, and that includes emotional support animals; only trained service animals are allowed. Anyone who arrives with a pet is turned away at the Gate. The local hot springs are off limits under the Bureau of Land Management permit, and park rangers patrol them.
Bike lights, locks and leaving no trace
If you bring a bicycle, fit a headlight and a red tail light, because riding unlit at night is dangerous. Lock your bike when you leave it, but never to guy wires or art structures. Write your name and camp address on the frame.
The green Community Bikes are for short one-way trips and must never be locked or kept at camp. At the end of the week, take your own bike home: an abandoned bike counts as rubbish left on the playa, and the whole city is cleaned to Leave No Trace standards.
At the Temple, do not climb the structure, and keep all flames, candles, incense and vapes away from it. Ask before photographing anyone there, including the tributes people leave.
What happens on the day
- Sunday, 12:01 a.m.
The Gate opens
In 2026 earlier arrivals waited in a staging lot. Arriving early gets you nothing, so come on the Sunday or later.
- First days
Build camp, explore
Wander the open playa, where large art pieces are spread around the Man.
- Afternoons
Rest
Days often pass 100°F (38°C); the survival guide suggests resting through the hottest hours.
- Saturday night
The Man burns
- Sunday night
The Temple burns
In 2026 it closed to visitors at sunrise and burned at about 8 p.m., weather permitting.
- After the Temple
Exodus
Departure traffic stretches over about 48 hours. With a Monday flight, leave earlier in the week.
Tickets, vehicle passes and water for the week
Planning starts months ahead, because a ticket is only the first of several things you must secure. For 2026 the main tiers cost $550 or $675, with higher "Pay your Way" and "Give the Gift" prices for those who could pay more, plus a Nevada entertainment tax and fees. Anyone driving in also needs a vehicle pass, $165 in 2026, sold only alongside tickets and capped at one pass for every two tickets. Sign up for ticket updates on the official site, since 2027 sale dates had not been published by October 2026.
Next, decide how you will live. Joining a theme camp or a group of friends spreads the load of shade structures, cooking and power. Camping alone means carrying all of it yourself. There is nothing to buy once you are inside, so every meal, battery and tent peg has to come with you.
Water is the number that shapes everything. The survival guide asks for 1.5 gallons per person per day for drinking and washing, which adds up to more than a dozen gallons each for the full nine days. Reno is the usual place to stock up before the last long drive. Fill every container there, then fill up the fuel tank in Reno or at Nixon.
From a 1986 beach bonfire to Black Rock City
The event began on 22 June 1986, when Larry Harvey and Jerry James set fire to a wooden man, eight feet tall, on Baker Beach in San Francisco. In 1990 it moved to the Black Rock Desert, and since 2013 it has been run by the nonprofit Burning Man Project. The 2020 and 2021 events were cancelled during the pandemic, and in 2023 heavy rain flooded the playa and shut the gates and roads for a time.
What makes the city strange to newcomers is the absence of trade. Participants may not sell goods, services, handmade items or food to one another. Companies are not welcome to advertise, and logos on rental trucks and RVs should be covered. People give instead, offering food, drink, music or a hand with a shade structure without expecting anything back. The idea is that you arrive able to look after yourself and leave having added something.
The Temple carries the event's emotional weight. Through the week people fill it with photos, letters and other tributes to those they have lost, and it hosts memorials and even weddings. It all burns on the final night. The land itself is the ancestral territory of the Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe, who ask that human ashes are never scattered on the playa.
Getting there
Flying in
Reno-Tahoe International Airport is the gateway. During the event the Air Playa Info desk near the baggage hall helps with maps, bikes, rides and traffic news.
By road
East on I-80 to exit 43 for Wadsworth, then Highway 447 north about 75 miles to Gerlach and 8 miles on to the city. The alternative is Pyramid Way and Highway 446 through Nixon, which has fuel. Stay on paved roads.
At the Gate
Gate Road is 10 mph and patrolled. Every vehicle is searched, and one passenger without a ticket sends the whole car to the Box Office.
Burner Express Bus
From Reno and San Francisco, faster through the Gate; you can pre-order up to 20 gallons of water to collect at the depot. Seats go on sale in mid-May and are non-refundable.
Where to stay during the festival
The next edition runs from 29 August to 6 September 2027. Book your room as soon as your dates are fixed, since rooms close to the festival are the first to go.
Weather and what to pack
Late August on the Black Rock playa is hot, dry and dusty. At Gerlach, the nearest town, August averages a high of about 93°F (34°C) and a low of about 59°F (15°C), with almost no rain (1991-2020 normals), and whiteout dust storms can blow up at any time.
Worth packing
- Goggles and a dust mask
- A warm layer for cold nights
- Lights for yourself and your bike
- Everything you need to live: nothing is for sale inside
Car hire in Pershing County
Airport transfer to Burning Man
Met at arrivals and driven door to door to Black Rock City.
Restaurants and food in United States
Places to eat in United States before or after the celebrations.
Joe's Stone Crab
11 Washington Avenue, Miami Beach, FL 33139, United States
Cuisine:SeafoodAmerican
- Dine-in
- Takeaway
- Bar
Alinea
1723 North Halsted Street, Chicago, IL 60614, United States
Cuisine:ModernistAmerican
- Dine-in
- Counter seating
Franklin Barbecue
900 East 11th Street, Austin, TX 78702, United States
Cuisine:Texas barbecueAmerican
- Dine-in
- Takeaway
Commander's Palace
1403 Washington Avenue, New Orleans, LA 70130, United States
Cuisine:CreoleNew Orleans
- Dine-in
Katz's Delicatessen
205 East Houston Street, New York, NY 10002, United States
Cuisine:Jewish deliAmerican
- Dine-in
- Takeaway
- Counter seating
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Need help?
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
General
The 2027 theme is Spellbound, built around the playa's sense of wonder and the odd coincidences people meet there. Artists and camps use the theme as a starting point, though nobody is obliged to follow it.
From 2023 to 2025 the cap was 87,000 people in total, with no more than 80,000 on the playa at once. In 2019, the last year before the pandemic break, attendance was 78,850.
Yes, if you register in advance. Black Rock City Municipal Airport (88NV) is a private general aviation field set up by pilots who have flown in since the 1990s. All commercial flights go through Burner Express Air.
Not on the playa. Packages for participants cannot be delivered into the city. Post sent by USPS can go to General Delivery, Gerlach, NV 89412, but do not send anything to the Burning Man office in Gerlach.
BMIR on 94.5 FM and GARS on 95.1 FM carry current Gate and Exodus wait times, weather warnings and other event news. Tune in as you approach on Highway 447.
The Placement team holds online office hours in November, and an online Participation Fair for 2027 takes place on 14 November 2026. Both are good places to meet theme camps looking for members.
Booking
Yes. Children aged 12 and under get in free with a ticketed parent or guardian, but each one still needs a free Kids Ticket printed at home. Kids Tickets can be requested up to the day of the Man burn.
Yes, the Secure Ticket Exchange Program (STEP) resells genuine tickets first bought from Burning Man. Any ticket or vehicle pass resold above face value plus fees can be cancelled without refund, so avoid inflated private sales.
Prices & payment
The Ticket Aid Program offers tickets at $250 and vehicle passes at $75, plus taxes and fees, to applicants who qualify. Applications are reviewed in order of arrival. A separate Resilience Program offers a limited number of $550 tickets to people hit by disasters or conflict.
Collecting tickets at the Black Rock City Box Office costs $30. In 2026 the Box Office opened on 24 August for early-arrival pass holders and closed at noon on 5 September.
Getting there
No. A vehicle pass lets you bring a car in and park it at camp, not drive around the city. Inside the city, people get around on foot or by bicycle.