It’s that time of year again! SXSW comes to town bringing a whirlwind of crowds, parties, and events to make your head spin.

I know quite a few Austinites who don’t attend SXSW, but I think they are really missing out on a good time. When done properly SXSW can be a GREAT time for locals without a badge. Free food, free booze, and free music from hundreds of bands at every venue downtown can’t be all that bad after all. No badge, NO PROBLEM! Tons of events are free with an RSVP.

If you are confused on what to do and see, you aren’t alone. Navigating the plethora of options could take weeks. So, here is a blog post outlining some of the ways I’ve found to make SXSW more fun as a local Austinite.

1. RSVP, RSVP, RSVP!

Most of the better parties require an RSVP. However, RSVP’ing can be a huge pain with all the options available to you. Luckily, some people have made it easier to RSVP.

SX Get Will Call will AUTOMATICALLY rsvp you to over a hundred events. You just have to go their website and sign in with your Facebook login. This is pretty cool, but it can still be too nebulous and untargeted to be as useful as it could be. I prefer to do a small bit of research into bands I like first. You’ll need an Eventbrite account to make the most of this service. If you don’t have one, it’s probably a good idea to get an Eventbrite account for SXSW regardless of if you use Will Call or not because it helps you keep track of your events and RSVP information.

2. Check Do512.com and http://austin2014.sched.org/ for Event Listings

Do512 is my favorite place to find events going on in Austin. They have an amazing set of articles and listings to help you make the most of your 2014 SXSW experience! Here are a few of their listings that show you parties with free food, free drinks, and show listings. They even have one great post about the best 25 local Austin bands to hear at SXSW!

http://2014.do512.com/austinsxsw/artists

http://2014.do512.com/sxfreefood

http://2014.do512.com/sxfreedrinks

http://2014.do512.com/p/SXSW-2014-Pro-Tips

http://2014.do512.com/

Another great listing is sched2014sxsw – over 6,000 events listed for SXSW is http://austin2014.sched.org/! They compiled 6,682 parties, panels, bands + films into one long schedule. You can filter it by type and even whether or not they have free food or free booze!

http://austin2014.sched.org/

http://austin2014.sched.org/company/Free+Food#.Uxi0kfldV8F

http://austin2014.sched.org/company/Free+Drinks#.Uxi0g_ldV8E

3. No Badge? Avoid the Bigger Acts!

Part of the fun of SXSW is discovering new talent. It is tempting to go to the big established acts or biggest “breaking band”, but unless you have a badge the lines are often way too long. I waited 4 long hours to see Miike Snoow in 2012. The show was great, but only about 50 non-badge holders ended up getting in and the end result was a group of people too tired from waiting to really enjoy themselves. I would guess that about 200 people who waited didn’t end up making it in.

So, instead of lining up in the big lines try exploring some unknown acts. You could aimlessly wander and see what sounds good or check out the events from the Do512 listings! If that doesn’t sound fun, then try the next step.

4. All Day, Week Long Events with only ONE RSVP!

Some of the best parties are the ones that happen daily from Wednesday to Saturday. They require an RSVP, waiting for a pass for anywhere from 5 minutes to 3 hours based on when you arrive, but then you have access to the parties at ANY TIME!

These parties generally have short waits during the day, free food, and free booze! If you don’t work a 9-5 job and live in Austin then these parties are a must.

FADER FORT – http://www.thefader.com/2014/02/26/the-fader-fort-2014-austinrsvp/

HYPE HOTEL – http://hypem.com/hotel/

SPOTIFY – THE HOUSE – http://spotifyhouse.com/?src=splash

PANDORA DISCOVERY DEN – No more RSVPs allowed 🙁

You can hear artists for their 2014 Discovery Den Party with the Pandora playlist. http://www.pandora.com/station/play/1880622997679562808

5. Make Friends and Accept the Chaos!

Ok, so you’ve prepared and RSVP’ed to all these events. Well, guess what? You’ll end up at one of these events and make some new friends. Everyone at SXSW loves talking about what acts they love and who they want to see. Random events seem to occur at every moment. Sometimes you’ll be walking by and see a line of a hundred people. This is usually a big act that played a surprise event.

The best laid plans are often laid to waste during the chaos, so why not just embrace the chaos and go with the flow.

I’ve actually made some great connections while waiting in line.

6. Supplies.

I recommend bringing a small bag with some supplies. Even if you don’t smoke a lighter can be a good way to meet people. A backup battery for your phone is a great idea. There are lots of charge stations, but most of the people I am with at SXSW find their phone dying around 8pm and then it’s impossible to find your RSVP emails, check your schedule, or meet up with people. Avoid bringing a DSLR camera with detachable lens. Most venues don’t allow “professional photo equipment”. Also, it is ok to bring a thermos with water, but you’ll have to dump it out before going in to venues so try to drink it before you go somewhere.

7. Focus on the Positive!

Overall, SXSW does change the landscape of Austin for a short time. The traffic gets worse, downtown becomes a crowded mess and more people want to end up moving here from their experience.

According to Forbes Austin is already the fastest growing city in the US. It’s time to embrace the change and growth. The battle to keep Austin small was over many years ago. As long as high quality, music loving people keep moving here everything will turn out all right 🙂 Did you know that SXSW brings over $190 million to the Austin economy? It’s also a chance to discover hundreds of musical acts you would have never found. You can meet people from all over the world you never would have met. You can even drink and eat for free while enjoying it.

Based on all this, I’d say it’s pretty obvious that it’s better to be happy that we have access to such a great event that gives our city such notoriety, but hey, that’s just my opinion 🙂

I hope this helps you local Austinites figure out what to do this year at the 2014 SXSW. If you want to know more, or want recommendations on acts please leave a comment and I’ll post again soon!