Introduction – Last weekend, USC Events hosted a beautiful festival called Paradiso, located in George, Washington at the Gorge Amphitheater. It was a 2-day festival full of EDM music to dance to and memories to make with friends that will last a lifetime. The phrase, “pictures don’t do it justice” is the most applicable to the Gorge. Looking at pictures of the Gorge, then actually seeing it with your own two eyes are two completely different things. Sitting on the lawn at the top of the amphitheater and staring out at the hills and the Columbus River was one of the prettiest views I have ever seen. The Gorge and Paradiso is unlike any other festival I have attended and was very unique. Great crowd and great vibes all weekend!
Photo by Hayden Fischer
Quick Facts
Music genre – The main genres of Paradiso were dubstep, house, drum and bass, trap, and electronic. It ranged from the insane headbanging to dubstep from Barely Alive b2b Virtual Riot and Zomboy, to the funky sounds and groovy dancing to Troyboi.
Camping: Yes to camping! Camping is pretty popular at Paradiso because the weather and scenery are perfect for it. The view of the Gorge itself makes it all worth it too. The best camping experience at a festival I have had so far. They also had free shuttle service that would bring you to and from the campsite, very convenient after a long day of raving!
Capacity: It is a good sized festival, not too overpacked. Paradiso had about 20,000-30,000 people attend.
Crowd type: Everyone was dressed pretty casual with comfy wear, there were a few people dressed in cool costumes. Paradiso brought in fellow EDM lovers of all ages!
Water stations: Yes
Photo by Paradiso
For The First Timers – Make sure to dress accordingly for the warm weather during the day (80-95 Degrees) and bring a light jacket for the night (65-75 Degrees). For campers, the trick I found was to leave 10 minutes before the last closer finished, grab your necessities, and head straight to the showers. The first day, I didn’t have to wait at all and the second day was only a 10-minute wait.
Standout Food – When I say I had the best corndog of my life at Paradiso and that is a big factor on why I’m going again next year, I’m not kidding. It was the freshest, crispiest, most perfectly cooked corn dog I had ever tasted. Due to the weather getting warm on the second day, the Slurpee truck was the most refreshing thing to buy. It was like having a 7-eleven at Paradiso.
Musical Highlights – On the second day, I decided to go in early and check out Quix because I’d heard of him, but didn’t know what to expect. When I say Quix blew my mind, my jaw actually dropped during his set. His set was so unique and filled with popular songs that I love, transitioning into drops that I was not expecting at all. He started the crowd off on a high note for the day and was for sure one of my favorite sets all weekend.
Things To Do — The best part about the Gorge is if you ever need a break, you can go sit on the lawn and stare out at the Gorge for hours. If there weren’t Dj’s playing, I could’ve been content sitting on the lawn for hours with friends, relaxing, and taking in the view.
VIP or Nah — VIP was 100% worth it. This year at the Wreckage Stage, there was an elevated standing area for VIP straight across from the stage, with an eye level view of the DJ and a great view of the crowd. At the main stage, the VIP area was also placed in a great spot, giving VIP attendees space and a gnarly view of their favorite DJ’s.
Story Corner – The Wreckage Stage is the spot for bass music. The production was a 10/10 with an island plane crash vibe. They also elevated the DJ booth so that the crowd was 20 feet below, which was pretty cool to me. The lights and visuals they had were also out of this world and Troyboi’s set was the coolest production I had ever seen for a set. The Wreckage was where I spent most of my time for the music and because of how well put it was. I highly recommend attending and if you do go, remember the Wreckage Stage is where it’s at.