Firefly Music Festival: No cash? No problem!

Ryan Cormier | The News Journal

Show Caption Hide Caption Firefly: Craziest thing seen or done Ryan Cormier asks the craziest thing seen or done at Firefly.

With 361 days to plan each edition of Firefly Music Festival, organizers like to surprise fans each year with new additions and tweaks – moves that not only keep music-lovers happy, but also helps preserve Firefly's spot among the country's top-tier festivals.

This year, Firefly made a splash by announcing that 2017 would be its first "fan-curated" festival, allowing fans to go online and pick attractions, name eateries, choose merchandise and even design parts of the festival site.

Firefly's push toward fan involvement in creating this year's festival means there are plenty of changes to be found in The Woodlands from June 15-18. (Note: Early-bird campers will begin to arrive on Wednesday, June 14, to see a weekend of music featuring headliners The Weeknd, Bob Dylan, Twenty One Pilots, Muse and Chance the Rapper.)

Whether it's vendors going cashless, VIP-style showers for campers or redesigned stages, Fireflyers are about to get an eyeful.

CASHLESS

The 2017 Firefly motto could be, "No shirt? No shoes? No cash? No problem!"

To help keep food, drink and retail lines moving, Firefly has gone cashless.

Except for a limited number of vendors that will accept greenbacks, you'll need a credit or debit card unless you want to pay via a mobile payment service such as Apple Pay, Android Pay and Samsung Pay.

Leigh Ann Tona, owner of the Newark-based I Don't Give A Fork food truck, has sold her popular mac & cheesesteak sandwiches at the festival since its second year in 2013. She didn't begin to accept cards at the festival until last year and her non-cash business made up about half of her sales.

Other than the additional fees that vendors will pay to process all the additional card and mobile payments, Tona says younger festivalgoers who might not have cards could be the only group negatively affected by the change.

"It's those 16- to 20-year-olds who maybe only have their parents' emergency card that they're not supposed to use," she says.

There will still be several ATM machines on site and fans will still be able to tip with cash.

SPRUCE UP

Parking pass? Check.

Wristband? Check.

Spruce Up pass? Wha?

For the first time, a taste of the VIP lifestyle is headed to Firefly's two main campgrounds through its new Spruce Up stations.

For $79, campers can purchase a Spruce Up pass that allows weekend-long access to upgraded, private showers, and air-conditioned bathrooms and a lounge.

Christiane Pheil, Firefly's assistant director of creative programming, says the new feature is for customers who don't mind camping, but want nicer amenities when it comes to personal time. Oh – and there shouldn't be any lines.

"They want a place where they can refresh that's a little more comfortable," Pheil says. "Some people love the entire camping experience, except the hygiene side."

The passes can be purchased in advance online, but they will not be shipped. Instead, they can be picked up at the festival with a valid ID at any one of the three Spruce Up lounges. Two are located in the camping areas and one will be in the main festival grounds.

NEW-LOOK STAGES

Not only are there a record number of stages at this year's Firefly, but two of the fest's larger stages have been re-designed.

While the Backyard Stage has been completely re-imagined by internationally-known, Pennsylvania-based stage design company ATOMIC, the Lawn Stage received a smaller, yet noticeable, facelift with new banners and other tweaks.

There are a total of 11 Firefly stages this year if you count the stages in the campgrounds and The Rambler, a new roving stage for pop-up shows.

A Toyota-branded Music Den Stage will make its debut on the main grounds and like last spring, Toyota will also sponsor an online-only livestream of select festival sets. The acts and schedule for this year's livestream have not yet been announced.

BYE BEERCADE, HELLO FORT

Firefly's alcohol-themed arcade is gone. Fans voted the Beercade off Firefly Island and picked The Fort as a new theme – a theme that will be familiar to fans of Wilmington's Constitution Yards Beer Garden.

Just like Constitution Yards, large shipping containers will be stacked to create a beer garden vibe complete with lawn games and food trucks. Unlike the Wilmington beer garden, fans will be able to climb atop the multi-level container bar. (What could possibly go wrong?)

The Fort – located near the main entrance at the south side near the Lawn and Porch stages – is the largest fan-curated attraction at the festival this year.

"From the top deck, there are great views of the Lawn and Porch stages," Pheil adds.

Also gone this year: the Hammock Hangout lounge area.

Since hammocks have been placed throughout the shaded tree lines, the area is now known as The Nook. The relaxation spot will feature over-sized, wooden megaphones that can double as chairs created by the Estonian Academy of Arts.

GRUB & GULPS

The fan-curation angle of this year's Firefly also found its way into the food and drink offerings.

Fans voted for this year's signature cocktail – a Wild Strawberry Nights drink that combines Ketel One vodka with strawberry and grapefruit. They also went full hipster by naming Firefly's new taco restaurant "Nameless Taco," recalling England's 2016 online vote to name a new research vessel. The name Boaty McBoatface won and the English rejected the name. Firefly, however, is embracing Nameless Taco.

The offerings across the festival have been re-vamped with plenty of new restaurants and menus, along with returning old favorites like Island Noodles and Grotto Pizza.

Among this year's offerings: The Wise Burger with truffle burgers and duck fat fries, Bombay Love serving butter chicken "naan-chos" and Sweet Tooth with its s'mores nachos.

THE JELLYFISH ARE COMING

Each year, a new art installation takes over an area in The Woodlands dubbed The Pathway.

The cut-through, which connects the festival's two main fields thanks to a forest pathway, was another element offered up for fan vote. And fans overwhelmingly chose jellyfish for some reason.

"We never would have expected that. It got double the votes of the second-place idea," Pheil says.

So expect plenty of glowing and floating "jellyfish" and an underwater feel during late-night stumbles back your tent.

Contact Ryan Cormier of The News Journal at rcormier@delawareonline.com or (302) 324-2863. Follow him on Facebook (@ryancormier), Twitter (@ryancormier) and Instagram (@ryancormier).

IF YOU GO

What: Firefly Music Festival

When: June 15-18

Where: The Woodlands near Dover International Speedway, Dover

Tickets: Four-day passes ($309-$2,499) and single-day passes ($89-$249)

Information: fireflyfestival.com