Festival and Travel Planner 2025

[Chris_Yannick]

It seems they're banking on the idea that the night crowd don't appear until 2-3am anyway.

This further separates the day and night time crowds and makes them more distinct.

Curious how it will be received.

 

[Offbeat]

I just saw the schedule for Back 2 Mambo.

Workshops go until 11pm at night then prep for shows and performances which take up another 2 hours.

Official night party start time: 1am!

Are they insane?

Most don’t run on time. Delays upto an hour or more is routine. So if they don’t run a tight ship, dancing may not start till 2am. If not doing 11pm workshop catch a sleep after dinner till 2am. Those doing workshops till 11pm can skip the shows and get 3 hours nap.

 

[Offbeat]

It seems they're banking on the idea that the night crowd don't appear until 2-3am anyway.

This further separates the day and night time crowds and makes them more distinct.

Curious how it will be received.

If they start at 2am, the crown won’t appear till 3am or 3.30am. I have often gone at that time for social dancing that starts at 12am or 1am. Depending on how I am feeling I typically arrived between 1.30 and 3.30.

They could extend when it ends in the morning if they start late. It also depends on what time the morning workshops start.

The WCS festivals too don’t start social dancing till after 12am. The tango festivals will start milonga around 9pm or 10pm but they too go on till 5am.

 

[Chris_Yannick]

f they start at 2am, the crown won’t appear till 3am or 3.30am. I have often gone at that time for social dancing that starts at 12am or 1am. Depending on how I am feeling I typically arrived between 1.30 and 3.30.

This is basically forcing people to choose between daytime socials and nighttime parties only as doing both has become unfeasible.

That might have repercussions for the future if good dancers only come out during the night.

We'll see.

 

[Offbeat]

This is basically forcing people to choose between daytime socials and nighttime parties only as doing both has become unfeasible.

That might have repercussions for the future if good dancers only come out during the night.

We'll see.

Aren’t both afternoon socials and night dancing not short of dancers ?

 

[AguaDulce]

This is basically forcing people to choose between daytime socials and nighttime parties only as doing both has become unfeasible.

That might have repercussions for the future if good dancers only come out during the night.

We'll see.

I think 3 or 4 days of dancing with the same people will enable them to get more than enough dancing in. People talk about how good SalsaRave was but I heard you couldn't even dance at times in the afternoon because of inadequate space. A lot of these are the same people that dealt with issues at SalsaRave and Mambo Italiano so they'll adapt and make the best of it. Also these are folks that are used to getting little sleep during these events.

 

[MamboJazz]

This is basically forcing people to choose between daytime socials and nighttime parties only as doing both has become unfeasible.

That might have repercussions for the future if good dancers only come out during the night.

We'll see.

I already decided I'll only go to afternoon socials at B2M and skip the nights. That has proved to be good for me already at L2M. I go all in during the 4 hours afternoon dancing (until 8 p.m.), then have a good dinner and then a good sleep. I don't torture myself by putting the alarm for 2 a.m. That may mean I won't see De'jon&Clo dancing, but this way I will enjoy the most.

 

[Offbeat]

. I go all in during the 4 hours afternoon dancing (until 8 p.m.), then have a good dinner and then a good sleep. I don't torture myself by putting the alarm for 2 a.m.

some of us do both for many going out dancing at 2am is not a torture. There are many night owls at festivals. Sometimes I have been late to afternoon socials by a couple of hours too.

 

[AguaDulce]

I already decided I'll only go to afternoon socials at B2M and skip the nights. That has proved to be good for me already at L2M. I go all in during the 4 hours afternoon dancing (until 8 p.m.), then have a good dinner and then a good sleep. I don't torture myself by putting the alarm for 2 a.m. That may mean I won't see De'jon&Clo dancing, but this way I will enjoy the most.

Looking at videos of the Thursday pre-party. Already looks pretty full

 

[Offbeat]

pre-parties for the popular events are always full. I can’t remember any pre-party that was empty.

After-parties are opposite. I only been to one or two. Once in Paris on Monday, it only had less than a dozen people.

 

[WellHelloThere]

I’m more afternoon social than evening now after convid.

The days of me dancing until 6, 7am then being able to function at work are long gone ‍

 

[FranzFan]

Looking at videos of the Thursday pre-party. Already looks pretty full

It's way over crowded imo to the point of being unsafe. I'm really not enjoying the event due to this, even though the level is very high. Sad as the tickets are priced a premium compared to other events so I expected Zeid would apply more constraint.

I'm also finding the music so bad. Relentlessly high energy, generic mambo, even at 6am when everyone is exhausted and desperate for a romántica. It's so way too loud and quite unsafe. I forgot my ear plugs tonight and my ears are ringing like crazy. I won't be coming back to this event again.

 

[MamboJazz]

It's way over crowded imo to the point of being unsafe. I'm really not enjoying the event due to this, even though the level is very high. Sad as the tickets are priced a premium compared to other events so I expected Zeid would apply more constraint.

I'm also finding the music so bad. Relentlessly high energy, generic mambo, even at 6am when everyone is exhausted and desperate for a romántica. It's so way too loud and quite unsafe. I forgot my ear plugs tonight and my ears are ringing like crazy. I won't be coming back to this event again.

I was only at the afternoon party yesterday: there it wasn't too crowded, so I'm surprised it was that full in the night.

Yes, it was loud from the first song on, so I already plugged my ear plugs in when putting my shoes on. It wasn't that loud in Porto two weeks ago, I wonder why DJs have no standard. It shouldn't be like this, it's painful when one forgets the ear plugs. I have two pairs of them in case I loose one pair (which easily happens small as they are).

Music: it was good but yes, nearly always the same fast guaguanco etc. There was one slower song, where I started experimenting and it was big fun with my great follower. I would like more of this. Actually I start understanding why EU on2 was invented: some want to break out of constant go-go-go, want to improvise with new slow elements.

That said I enjoyed it a lot yesterday: 80% of followers were just fantastic (mostly unknown faces for me), in 3,5 hours I had only one mediocre follower. As expected super high level of dancing. Taken all costs together I paid about 100 euros for these 3,5 hours, and it was really worth it. So good, so good.

@FranzFan As said I have two pairs of ear plugs, so I can give you one at the afternoon social (you can wash them before, so don't worry). I don't plan to go for the night.

 

[MamboJazz]

I'm also finding the music so bad. Relentlessly high energy, generic mambo, even at 6am when everyone is exhausted and desperate for a romántica.

So where was the so-called reading of the crowd of famous DJs? I always doubted this really existing. DJ may feel full energy inside him, having fun with his pals on stage, while not noticing dancers must be tired. Dancers who paid a lot and travelled far will always keep on dancing and not all sit down (there are no chairs by the way around the dancefloor), so DJ may think he's doing fine while he is not.

 

[Chris_Yannick]

Taken all costs together I paid about 100 euros for these 3,5 hours, and it was really worth it.

I used to measure a successful evening when I could say that I danced 30 times or more. Quality was usually not taken into consideration since reaching that quota meant I got into a flow and had a great time.

The pressure however of dancing when trying to reach a quota made it unfun so I stopped counting. It was the same with counting steps. Fun in the beginning but ultimately it made it feel like a sport and that's not why I dance.

Interesting comments about the music. It's pretty much what I remembered about previous editions (mostly upbeat, fast but not superfast, hard hitting Dura sprinkled with some Charanga and Romantica) which I liked a lot. The romantic interludes were well spaced out and timed and with good songs. In the end, however, what I appreciate is when I don't even notice the change of DJ and the flow from to set to set is seemless so as not to be noticeable.

I can listen to mostly melodic instrumental, Romantica or elevator music at any other party so I'm quite impressed that they haven't dumbed the music down. If they do, they risk turning the event into something more commercial like Magic. ie "Why not add a Bachata room?" No, we don't want that.

 

[FranzFan]

I was only at the afternoon party yesterday: there it wasn't too crowded, so I'm surprised it was that full in the night.

Yes, it was loud from the first song on, so I already plugged my ear plugs in when putting my shoes on. It wasn't that loud in Porto two weeks ago, I wonder why DJs have no standard. It shouldn't be like this, it's painful when one forgets the ear plugs. I have two pairs of them in case I loose one pair (which easily happens small as they are).

Music: it was good but yes, nearly always the same fast guaguanco etc. There was one slower song, where I started experimenting and it was big fun with my great follower. I would like more of this. Actually I start understanding why EU on2 was invented: some want to break out of constant go-go-go, want to improvise with new slow elements.

That said I enjoyed it a lot yesterday: 80% of followers were just fantastic (mostly unknown faces for me), in 3,5 hours I had only one mediocre follower. As expected super high level of dancing. Taken all costs together I paid about 100 euros for these 3,5 hours, and it was really worth it. So good, so good.

@FranzFan As said I have two pairs of ear plugs, so I can give you one at the afternoon social (you can wash them before, so don't worry). I don't plan to go for the night.

That's so kind of you to offer, thank you. I didn't lose my ear plugs though so all good - I just left them in my apartment and it's a long way back. I should probably have gone to get them anyway.

And yes I have to agree, even though I'm not really enjoying myself, I have never seen so many high quality followers in one room. I guess this experience shows for me that connecting to the music is an essential requirement, however good the dancing is.

I did enjoy the afternoon social more too as was a little quieter so I'll make the most of that.

I'm glad you are enjoying it

 

[Chris_Yannick]

So where was the so-called reading of the crowd of famous DJs? I always doubted this really existing. DJ may feel full energy inside him, having fun with his pals on stage, while not noticing dancers must be tired. Dancers who paid a lot and travelled far will always keep on dancing and not all sit down (there are no chairs by the way around the dancefloor), so DJ may think he's doing fine while he is not.

The survivor crowd at 6am have traditionally been the ones who want high octane, higher energy sets, not slower or Romantica that could potentially put them to sleep. But maybe tastes are changing.

 

[Chris_Yannick]

Actually I start understanding why EU on2 was invented: some want to break out of constant go-go-go, want to improvise with new slow elements.

And there are plenty of events that cater to it. But then the art of dancing to anything else gets forgotten.

 

[Smejmoon]

If I pay for event that's called "back 2 mambo" and there is salsa romantica, I feel mislead. I've been to such events. Like "beats passion mambo" with no mambo.

 

[Offbeat]

I was only at the afternoon party yesterday: there it wasn't too crowded, so I'm surprised it was that full in the night.

Friday afternoon? A lot of people probably planning to arrive in the evening. Saturday afternoon might get packed.

That said I enjoyed it a lot yesterday: 80% of followers were just fantastic (mostly unknown faces for me), in 3,5 hours I had only one mediocre follower. As expected super high level of dancing. Taken all costs together I paid about 100 euros for these 3,5 hours, and it was really worth it. So good, so good.

€100 for all social dancing for three afternoons and nights with high level dancing? That sounds like a steal. I thought someone said it was expensive. But you also said for all costs for 3.5 hours of dancing. Aren’t you gong to rest of the weekend