I’m sitting in the departures hall at Schiphol. I’m drinking the most expensive large beer of my life so far - a Heineken, I think for 8 euros.

It was the era of airline staffing chaos; the advice was: arrive not less (and not more) than 4 hours before departure. My canceled Prague-Amsterdam flight turned into a last-minute bus martyrdom - almost 20 hours with a transfer in Antwerp. The beer calmed me down at just the right moment - United Airlines, who I’m flying with today, are offering a discounted business class upgrade. With a smile on my face I click through, certain I can’t afford this luxury. Or…?

The upgrade cost $200, and I clicked and paid. Two hours later I was unwrapping the welcome kit in a massive seat.

With a few years’ distance, I’m looking at the real numbers for the first time. Sure - I used to toss some figures around to friends. But I’m actually counting it all up only now. A bit of mental purgatory.

For context: I’d estimated that in 2018 Burning Man cost me €3,000, in 2019 around €2,000, and in 2022 about €2,500. We’ll compare at the end.

2018 - The Rookie Year Where I Overpaid for Everything

I flew from Vienna via Amsterdam to Los Angeles. From Prague I took a bus to Vienna. And then did the whole thing in reverse on the way back.

All of that for 24,000 CZK. I even saved a little in Vienna because I handed over my clearly oversized carry-on when they asked (“full flight - anyone want to help and check their bag to the hold for free?”).

The KLM agent was worried I’d back out - they could only tag it all the way to the U.S. For me it was heaven-sent: a 6-hour layover in Amsterdam without a 15-kg backpack. I made good use of it.

Getting from Los Angeles to Black Rock City wasn’t straightforward - main jumping-off points are Reno and San Francisco. So: an LA-Reno return flight for another 5,000 CZK.

From Reno to BRC (and back) the Burner Express Bus sounded smart - and yes, this was the best decision. Two-kilometer queue at the city gate? The official Burning Man buses have their own lane. That $85 × 2 is absolutely worth it.

I stayed overnight in LA because… rookie. Youthful recklessness cost me 3,205 CZK on the way there and 2,655 CZK on the way back.

In Reno I treated myself to two nights to fight jet lag, shop, and “see the city.” I quickly learned - there’s nothing to see. Two nights of American Netflix cost 4,362 CZK on the way in, and I added one night on the way out - 1,068 CZK.

Roughly 500 CZK was almost charged against my deposit for “destroyed towels” at the return-trip hotel. I didn’t protest - desert dust is a reliable destroyer. In the end the deposit came back in full by itself. I suspect hotels didn’t dare touch a Diners card deposit (RIP).

In Black Rock City you can’t buy anything (except ice); all provisioning is on you. Theme camps can help if you join one. Camp dues scale with camp size and services - you pay for what the camp provides.

In 2018 I paid $150 and got a shaded spot, occasional ramen for dinner, and honestly it suited me. The big shop was planned for Walmart and I stuck to it: tent, sleeping bag, air mattress, chocolate, peanut butter, and a variety of canned goods for $170.

American plastic bags aren’t worth much - picture me hauling everything through the desert, the bag splitting, and Campbell’s Chunky Soup cans rolling down the dusty road…

But you made it! Somewhere along the way someone scans your ticket - $425 for the event itself. Yes, life in Black Rock City can be fueled by gifts - but getting into the city isn’t free. And while I’m complaining, here’s the most expensive candy at the end: the bike.

You move around the city by bike. You need it. Finding one last-minute in the U.S. was… impossible. But! Back then it was still OK to rent bikes - and mine cost $425 (with $150 refundable deposit). Pick-up and drop-off right on the Playa - still couldn’t wash out the bad taste of that price…

Total (converted at the then-current rate): €2,589.86.

2019 - Optimization Mode

Optimization started with the camp falling apart and losing hope for DGS (Directed Group Sale - programs where good camps get a handful of tickets in advance). I had no luck in the main sale, and when I thought I’d “optimize to zero” this year, an offer arrived you don’t refuse. Burner Express gave last year’s customers a limited chance to buy bus + Burning Man ticket together. So my prep, instead of March 2019, began at the end of June - which made my optimization efforts… entertaining.

The Burning Man ticket stayed $425; the bus was $88.49 each way. I optimized one leg with a shopping stop - meaning I paid $93 for the bus to stop at Save Mart for two hours, stashed $100 worth of groceries in the luggage bay, and unloaded it comfortably right on the Playa. Luxury.

I flew to the U.S. Prague-Copenhagen-Los Angeles-Reno with Norwegian. Return fare: 24,186 CZK. Beautiful price, slightly sadder return: on my departure day Norwegian cut a bunch of flights and there was talk of creditor protection. In the end the cuts worked out - we departed from Oakland instead of LA, with a mega delay and transfer, but the airline still lives happily today.

On the way in I bowed my head in Reno for 3 nights at 8,962 CZK, breakfast included. Free breakfast in U.S. hotels isn’t common; it softened the blow of a badly timed flight that forced me to book an extra night. On the way back I “slept” one night in Reno - in reality I just destroyed towels all night for 2,044 CZK.

I found a new camp last minute (I’ll write about that another time) and it was a good one. Camp dues were $400 - a great price for the option of a shower (which I didn’t use), communal food, communal water, communal Gatorade, and a communal porta-potty. At first I thought that was luxury - but having a clean, nice-smelling toilet on the last evening is something I truly appreciated.

2019 was also the last year you could rent a bike directly on the Playa. While that created a new problem for later years, it’s against Radical Self-Reliance anyway. In any case, $334.75 including the $150 deposit - I indulged again (and the pink cruiser was a fantastic companion).

Total (converted at the then-current rate): €2,537.21.

2022 - You Don’t Skimp on Life Experiences

Thanks to a favorable chain of events and a better airfare, I could bring my tent and sleeping bag from Europe. One-off Decathlon buys aren’t in the budget this time. I flew Amsterdam-Los Angeles-Reno and back (San Francisco - unplanned Chicago, story for another time - Amsterdam - Prague).

The original 19,400 CZK fare grew by $200 for the business-class upgrade. In there I got a few nice extras - blanket, socks, amenity kit - which nudged other costs down (but not by much). The bus from Reno to the Playa with a shopping stop cost $93; from the Playa I took the bus straight to San Fran for $107.

I didn’t shop in Reno - there was no need. I needed to get my bearings and, by then, I was fully swallowed by startups, so I needed to work. Two all-nighter startup shifts in Reno set me back 4,948 CZK, and on the way back I only slept one night in San Francisco. Sand-blasting my luggage and destroying towels I did only superficially - more important was dealing with COVID and a fever I caught two days earlier. Yeah, by then nobody cared about COVID anymore, but I masked up and looked weird. In any case, a ground-floor motel straight out of American TV for one sweaty night cost 1,565 CZK.

Shopping en route to Black Rock City was a laughable $50 (air mattress, coffee, peanut butter, a few cans). The higher ticket price balanced it out - in 2022 the Burning Man ticket was $475. I love my camp - $400 camp dues were worth it again (especially with the COVID runs on the last night).

I ended up not sorting a bike - I wanted to do a pedestrian burn. Didn’t happen. We found an extra bike in the camp container and I happily borrowed it.

By 2022 everything was straightforward for me. The Burn had its scars, but it was still a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

Total (converted at the then-current rate): €2,390.05.

Estimates vs. Reality

I’m seeing these numbers together for the first time as I write this. So how did it turn out? Estimating may not be my strong suit. I thought I splurged in 2022 - and I spent the least. Optimization in 2019? Not even close. All three years cost almost the same. Exchange rates moved, something didn’t pan out, externalities did their thing…

But it was worth it. Every time.