Welcome to CAMP!
We’re so glad you’re here!
-
👉🏼 we love you
👉🏼 plz familiarize yourself with our values
👉🏼 join the chat
👉🏼 get involved, it’s important
👉🏼 read the freakin’ FAQ before asking questions!
Hi New Camper!
If you’re reading this, you’re officially coming to CAMP for the first time, and we couldn’t be more excited to have you join this band of magic makers!
We’re also delighted to welcome you to our inaugural CAMP Counselor Program — where you’ll be paired with a veteran CAMPer to help you prep 👯♀️. In the coming weeks, you’ll receive an email with more info. In the meantime, use this Welcome Guide to get you up to speed!
CAMP is first and foremost a participatory and values-driven gathering, and community is our beating heart. The vision from the start was to co-create the most wildly participatory, interactive, creative, playful and wacky event we could collectively dream up.
We couldn’t do it without the hundreds of hands that come together to make this thing possible. So as you embark on this adventure, we encourage you to find ways to get involved!
For all the logistical information that your heart could possibly desire (food & drink, accommodation, parking, tickets, art, volunteering, & more) pretty please with a cherry on top check out our FAQ. If you can’t find the answer, then ask your CAMP Counselor - they’re a great resource for all your need-to-knows. 😊
CAMP is more than just a festival. It’s a family we’ve worked hard to lovingly sculpt over the years. It’s our top priority to preserve its heart and soul, and we hope this Welcome Guide will serve as a warm embrace and give you everything you need to thrive at CAMP 2025.
Thank you for trusting us and for choosing to go on this ride with us.
Our Origin Story & How We Got Here
Our roots stretch back to 2017, when 30 of us wanted to avoid yet another NYC warehouse party on New Year’s Eve. We didn’t set out to throw events. We craved quality time, home-cooked meals, and community that felt more like family. And it’s grown into something that’s exceeded our wildest dreams and changed our lives in innumerable ways.
We threw the first ‘summer camp’ in 2020, and accidentally created a 65-person festival. Four years later, we’ve grown to more than 1000. We’ve watched relationships blossom, new careers take off, families form, business partnerships bloom, community houses get launched. We’ve watched singers find their voices, DJs discover the decks, musicians find new instruments, actors play their first roles, closeted artists dream up elaborate spaces that transported us all into other-worldly realms.
These are our roots, as well as the vision for our future. Above all, community is still our north star.
The Values & Agreements That Drive How We Gather
Our values, shared below, are intentionally woven into every aspect of life at CAMP. So as we welcome you into the family, we ask that you take time to familiarize yourself with them, and with how you can tap into your own magic to help uplift the heart and soul of our yearly homecoming.
We also expect all community participants (all guests, sponsors, organizers, and contributors, paid or otherwise) to abide by our Code of Conduct in all spaces throughout the duration of CAMP. Consent is mandatory, and reporting inappropriate behavior keeps everybody safe. We define consent as FIRE (Freely given, Informed, Reversible and Revocable, and Enthusiastic).
Community & Interconnectedness
We support each other, we respect each other, and we celebrate the fuck out of each other.
Curated Co-Creation
At CAMP, the people who create every element of this event—from music and workshops to art installations and activations—are the same people you’re connecting with throughout the festival. It’s a place for you to share your magic and revel in the magic of others.
Active Participation
At any given moment, you have the power to participate in a way that changes the trajectory of the entire event — for a single person or the entire community. Remember to say, “Yes, and…”
Fearless Creative Expression
This is a place to test your edges, to boldly express yourself in ways you might not have had the courage to in the past.
Personal Accountability & Self-Awareness
Respect yourself. Respect each other. Respect the venue, the staff, and the neighbors. Leave no trace.
Play
Jump into the sandbox. Build a castle. Make a mess. Get silly AF.
Gifting & Contribution
Contribution—giving more than you consume—is what makes a community greater than the sum of its parts. But please—leave the plastic necklaces and wooden tchotchkes at home. Instead, contribute your time, energy, and acts of service. Share your talents—the gifts that are inside of you and are uniquely yours. Create and share experiences that can change people’s weekends–or lives.
How to get Involved & Co-Create the Magic
By now, you’ll (hopefully) have a good sense of who we are, what we’re doing and why we’re doing it. Now, it’s time to talk about getting involved! As mentioned, co-creation is a foundational pillar of CAMP. It’s one of the defining features of what makes this gathering different from the rest, and we want to empower you to have all the information you need so you can find ways to participate that feel meaningful and exciting for you.
So many CAMPers report that these interactive and co-created experiences were by far their MOST rewarding moments at CAMP. Here are some of the many ways you can get involved:
DJ & Play Music
Help create the soundtrack for our most magical weekend together! Whether you’re a veteran DJ or a newbie sitar player, we’d love to hear what you’ve got. We also highly value giving new talent a platform where they can try new things, so don’t let a lack of experience scare you away.
Volunteer
Got special skills or just have lots of energy and want to lend a hand? Join our work exchange program.
Host a Workshop or Game
Have an idea for a workshop or other offering you’d like to host? Past offerings have included movement classes, sound baths, field day games, authentic relating workshops, men’s and women’s circles, improv games, twerking 101, and so much more.
Apply for Art Grants
From large scale installations to space design to a finger puppet lemonade stand, there’s no art too ambitious or too silly.
Perform
Want to sing a song, twist yourself into an acrobatic pretzel, join a troupe of fire dancing swans, or otherwise mesmerize the magical people with your amazing feats or hidden talents? Don’t be afraid to try something new.
Come Play with Us
Play an essential role in making CAMP the weirdest, wackiest, most interactive event on the East Coast. Get involved in someone else’s project/theme camp to help activate an existing space (serve treats as a sexy speakeasy fairy, work the saloon’s trading post, and more) or create your own.
Serve Tasty Treats at the Community Kitchen
Want to serve up grilled cheese with a side of dad jokes? Or host a full-on Italian pasta joint complete with a line, waiting list and snappy servers? Are you plotzing for Bubby’s chicken soup at sunrise? Activate the CAMP Community Kitchen with foodie gifts for fellow campers by signing up to serve your culinary delights.
Do Your Own Thing
Your participation does not have to be through official CAMP channels! Want to bring your guitar and serenade passersby? Want to dress up as sexy cows with your friends and hand out milkshakes? Want to do some other creatively weird & fun thing we’re not thinking of? We’re here for it!
Everything you need to live your best life at CAMP
Camp Ramblewood, where we gather every year, can be hot and muggy, and sometimes rainy in the summer, and we want to make sure you have what you need to be happy and comfy. Make sure to pack for rain or shine!
You can find our full packing list, complete with the essentials, clothing & costumes, and additional items you’ll be happy you brought with you, by clicking on this link!
Lastly, if you’re not sure what to wear, checkout this Pinterest Board for outfit inspo (shout out to CAMPer Alden Wicker for making it).
Congrats! You made it to the end, now what?!
Thank you so much for taking the time to read through this guide and making it all the way to the end.
In the lead-up to CAMP, we’ll continue to share important updates and resources to help you prep, like our yearly 🚀THRIVAL GUIDE🚀 (check out last year’s, here).
In the meantime, your CAMP Counselor will be reaching out to you to help get you up to speed and to start connecting with other CAMPers. If you haven’t heard from them within a week please let us know. Your Counselor will also be your go-to resource for any questions, but if you feel stuck on something (after you’ve checked the FAQ!) please don’t hesitate to reach out to us via DM on Instagram or email us at info@callingallmagicalpeople.com.