A week of music, sunshine, and parties sounds like a dream, but it's Nashville's reality every summer. We love the annual CMA Fest and all the excitement it brings to Nashville, but, with an estimated daily attendance of 88,500 people in 2016 (or a total of 619,500 over the course of the week), there are some health and safety tips you may want to consider.
In 2014, more than 500 people were treated for health related issues during the CMA Fest. Many of these people spent all day in the sun, not paying attention to their body's signs of sun poisoning or dehydration. If you are at CMA Fest, and you begin to feel nauseous, develop a headache, or become dehydrated, seek attention immediately. There are four health and safety tents at CMA Fest, you can find those here.
It's CMA Fest, so there will be alcohol. It's the biggest summer party in Nashville, so plan ahead if you plan to celebrate by drinking. Alcohol is a diuretic, which is a fancy way of saying it dehydrates you. Diuretics and sunshine are a bad combination. It can further your chances for sun poisoning, heat stroke, or severe dehydration, especially during early June in Nashville, where temperatures can soar to 95 degrees or more with high levels of humidity. A safe rule of thumb is to always have access to water, and be sure to pay attention to how you react to the environment. Nobody wants an expensive hospital bill.
Your life, or someone else's life, is worth more than the $30-$40 Uber or Lyft ride home. Carpool with friends, use a designated driver, take a taxi, wait until you're sober...whatever it is, PLEASE do not drive under the influence. Buzzed and drunk driving are the same thing - slower reaction times creates lapses in judgement and impairs driving abilities.
We sincerely hope you have a great time during CMA Fest. Be sure to enjoy all the festivities our beautiful city has to offer. We'll see y'all there!