Unitopia at Burning Man 2026
Burn with us in Black Rock City.
We're an inclusive, full-service Unitopia camp on the playa — bringing art, ritual, and radical hospitality to the city for a week each summer.
What is this?
Burning Man is a temporary city of around 80,000 people built each year in the Black Rock Desert of Nevada. For seven days, participants gather to create art, ritual, and radical community — and then leave no tracebehind.
The Unitopia camp is a year-round community that also shows up at the burn. We bring infrastructure, programming, and the same ethos of warmth and welcome that runs through everything we do back home — to the playa.
Who is this for?
If you're curious, you're welcome. We host both seasoned burners and first-timers, and we make a point of taking care of the latter. You don't need experience in any particular thing — what we ask for is presence, willingness to contribute, and a basic commitment to the 10 principlesthat hold the whole city together.
What does our camp do?
A Unitopia camp typically anchors around:
- Daily programming — workshops, sound, art experiences, late-night gatherings that the broader city can drop into
- A welcoming home base — a shaded, comfortable space for our campmates and guests to recharge between adventures
- An offering to the city — every theme camp gives something back; ours is generally music and events.
You'll have plenty of unstructured time to explore the city, too. Our camp is the basecamp, not the agenda.
Cost & ticket overview
The honest answer: it's not cheap. Realistic ranges below; the ticket section goes deeper on how the lottery + camp fees work. Many people stretch to make it happen, and we help where we can.
Timeline
The signup window is the first step — let us know you're interested. Once it closes we work through the list, confirm camp slots, and the real planning begins (ticket support, logistics, packing, transport). We'll be in touch from there.
Tickets
How tickets work for camp members
Burning Man tickets sell out in waves through a lottery system — most attendees enter the main sale lottery in spring, with a smaller low-income program for those who qualify and a limited number of directed group sale (DGS) tickets allocated to established theme camps like ours.
As a Unitopia camp member you can usually get a ticket through one of those paths even if the main sale doesn't go your way. Once you're confirmed for the camp, we'll walk you through the right channel for your situation. Don't buy a ticket until we've talked — DGS tickets are non-transferable and we want to make sure you get the right one.
A Burning Man vehicle pass (one per vehicle entering the city) is separate from a person ticket. Bus options out of Reno also exist; they sell out fast.
Common questions
Things first-time burners ask
I've never been to Burning Man. Can I really come?
Yes. We've brought first-timers every year and it's one of the most rewarding parts of running the camp. We pair you with an experienced campmate, run pre-burn prep sessions, and pack a survival guide. You'll be ok.
How much should I budget?
Most people spend roughly $1,500–$3,000 all-in including ticket, transportation, food, gear, and camp dues. The biggest variable is gear — if you have to buy a tent, bike, lights, and costumes from scratch, the high end of that range is realistic. Returning campers spend much less.
What's the time commitment?
The burn itself is 8 days (typically the Sunday before Labor Day through the following Monday). Add 1–2 days of travel on each side. Plus a few hours of pre-burn meetings + prep over the summer.
Do I have to volunteer at the camp?
We ask everyone to contribute 2–3 shifts during the week — bar duty, greeting, gate, cleanup, etc. It's how a camp this size works and most people love it. Shifts are short (~3 hours) and you pick what fits you.
What about lodging? Do I bring my own tent?
Most campers bring a personal tent or shade structure. The camp provides shared kitchen + lounge infrastructure. RVs are welcome with advance coordination (placement is tight). Hex domes / yurts are camp favorites for first-timers.
Is the camp sober / 21+ / family-friendly / …?
We're a 21+ camp. We're not a sober camp but we keep an alcohol-free space available and we look out for each other. Kids attend Burning Man broadly but our camp is adults-only.
What if I have dietary restrictions or accessibility needs?
Tell us on the signal form. We accommodate vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, and most major allergies, and we work with you on accessibility (shade, mobility, sensory, medical). The earlier we know, the better we plan.
When does signup close?
Watch the date at the top of this page. After that we shift into ticket logistics + camp prep mode. Late signups occasionally happen if someone drops out — get in touch directly with the camp leads.
Ready?
Let us know you’re interested in camping with us in 2026.
Signaling is free and non-binding. The camp leads will reach out once we start working through the list.