You spoke.
We listened.

The results of the SWFF 2024 participant survey are in!

Here’s what you loved, what we can improve, and how we’re leveling up for SWFF 2025.

SWFF 2024 was our chance to create something truly magical, and it’s clear from the feedback that many of you felt the spark. Most of you rated your experience as "Absolutely magical," and a few of you had "a good time" (Hey, we’ll take it!). Either way, we're thrilled that so many of you came with the collective intention to live peacefully amongst new and old friends for a few days, and to connect, learn, and flow together in the desert. Let's get into the survey results.

 

What Hit the Mark
When we set out to create this festival, we wanted to foster a sense of community, connection, and creativity—and according to your feedback, we mostly nailed it. The expanded fire circle was a big hit, with many of you highlighting it as the heart of your experience. Workshops brought their A-game too, with extra props (pun intended) to clowning, buugeng, aerial pole, and the tech hoop sessions. We’re loving that you felt the passion we put into curating diverse offerings. 

 

Speaking of staff, you were all very generous with your accolades toward the team that keeps this thing running. It’s great to hear that our staff was approachable and helpful—we were aiming for that perfect mix of chill and on-point.

 

Where We Can Improve

We heard you loud and clear on a few things. Restrooms—yep, we’re on it. You want more of them and better upkeep, especially by Sunday. Food options? We’ll make some adjustments next year to shorten those lines and keep your bellies full; perhaps bringing in some reinforcements based on how attendance is shaping up. Fire safety got some feedback too—don’t worry, we’ll plan for extra towels and work on making the safety system smoother. Everyone loves shorter wait times, especially when you’re standing on the sidelines with a dipped prop, so we’ll definitely keep that in mind as we shape the safety and fire circle queue system for 2025. As far as internet access goes, we’ll see what we can do to extend better wifi out to the vendors, to make transactions smoother and more reliable. But to set expectations, we probably won’t do much to expand internet access to all participants—part of the magic is disconnecting a bit, right?

 

Vendors brought their best too, though we heard that some of you were wishing for a few more food options, and maybe a workshop where you could leave with something you made. That all feels doable and we’re on it!

 

Looking to 2025

Some of you are ready for more advanced and theoretical workshops, and we’re game to bring in even more challenging, niche, and downright mind-expanding sessions next year. An orientation for newcomers? Brilliant idea. We’ll plan to welcome first-timers (and those of you coming back after a break) with a chance to learn the ropes and meet some friendly faces right away. Based on multiple requests, we’re also shifting the festival schedule to a Thursday-Saturday format, with departures on Sunday, to give everyone a smoother weekend experience and a bit more time to rest and reset before your regularly scheduled Monday.

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We’re also excited to explore pop-up handwashing stations, maybe add some cool DIY workshop kits, and who knows—maybe even a small effigy burn (your idea, not ours, but of course we love setting stuff on fire as much as the next person).

We’re honestly blown away by the love you showed us in this feedback. You’re the reason SWFF is what it is—a weirdly magical, fire-spinning, community-growing masterpiece. Your suggestions for 2025 show how much you care about making this the best event it can be, and we’re taking them to heart. We’re already burning the midnight oil, brainstorming, plotting, and scheming to make next year’s festival even more amazing.

 

So here’s to you, the fire-spinning, flow-loving, big-dreaming humans who make this festival possible. Thank you for your kind words, your honest critiques, and your belief in what we’re building together. Keep dreaming big, and we’ll see you all in 2025.