Area 506 Festival kicks off in Saint John on Saturday

The Area 506 Festival in Saint John officially kicks offSaturday along the waterfront at Long Wharf, with organizers expecting more than25,000 music lovers to attend.

Festival chair Ray Gracewoodsaid the gates will open at 2 p.m., including the Canada 150 stage, Container Village and Road of Restaurants.

The main stage ticketed concert isscheduled to start at 6 p.m.

• Countdown is on for Area 506 festival in Saint John
• Area 506 festival announces big musical acts for 2017 lineup

Some people also got a sneak peek at some of the acts on Friday night during the E2L JAM on GrannanLane.

The road was closed to vehiclesaround 6 p.m., turning it into a pedestrian-only street for performances by David in the Dark, Penny Blacks and Stephen Lewis.

Gracewoodsaid there will be one main entrance for the rest of the weekend, located across from the skate park on Station Street.

Best place to park

He suggested the best place to park is at the Lord Beaverbrookarena in the city's north end, which isjust a short walk along Harbour Passage from the uptown site.

The nearby Harbour Station parking lot is unavailable Saturday, due to aWWE event, but will be open on Sunday, he said.

"And then obviously there's loads of parking all over the uptown of Saint John," he said.

The area immediately inside the site is a "free zone," he added, with "relatively open access."

Food and security

Inside the ticketed area, there will be security bag checks, he said.

People are allowed to bring one closed bottle of water each, but no chairs, said Gracewood, adding the FAQ section of the festival's website,Area506.ca, has more details about what's permitted.

'The way the site's designed, peoplewill be walking out past all the food vendors and I'm sure the smell of all of their stuff right at about midnight is going to be pretty appealing."- RayGracewood, festival chair

There will be numerous food vendors and a beer tent open until at least midnight, when the stage show ends on both Saturday and Sunday, he said.

"They'll likely stay open until most of the crowd dissipates becausethe way the site'sdesigned, peoplewill be walking out past all the food vendors and I'm sure the smell of all of their stuff right at about midnight is going to be pretty appealing," he said.

There will also be "loads of portable washrooms" in both the free and ticketed areas, he added.

"People should feel pretty confident in there being facilities available," he said.

Buy tickets in advance

Gracewoodrecommends people bring cash for any purchases, such as food and beverages, or T-shirts and posters, and a credit card as a backup.

They should buy their tickets in advance, he said, "just to make sure you're not spendinghalf an hour in the line buying tickets when you could be spending a half an hour in the beer tent."

And while people might face a "mad rush" to the exit at the end of the evenings, it will be "well worth the grand finale, whether you're there for Tegan and Sara (on Saturday) or The Strumbellas(on Sunday)," he said.

The festival wraps up on Monday, with a "hangover brunch" at various uptown restaurants at 10 a.m. and anArea 506 Recovery Matinee Movie at the Imperial Theatre.

Gracewoodsaid he's got his fingers crossed for continued good weather and hopespeople will bring "good vibes" to the event.

Security and police officers will be onsite throughout the weekend, along with paramedics.