Kandi at EDC Orlando
The East Coast entry point: what kandi trading looks like at Tinker Field, how many singles a first-timer should string, and the official rules to check first.
Dates and venue
- Dates
- November 6-8, 2026
- Where
- Orlando, FL
Verified on August 30, 2026 against the organizer's own page. Dates, hours and policies change — check the official page before you book anything.
Insomniac's general festival guidelines are the baseline for bags and allowed items across its events; the event's own Hours & Info page is the one that governs the year you are attending.
Age policy
The organizer lists EDC Orlando as an 18+ event requiring valid photo identification to enter, with 21+ and a valid photo ID for VIP areas.
That is the organizer's policy, not ours. This site is written for adults regardless of who the event lets in.
Palette prompts
- UV Pink
- UV Aqua
- White
- Black
- Neon Yellow
Colors, not artwork. Nothing here copies the event's own visuals.
How many to prep
There is no correct number. These are ranges for 3 days, based on how hard you plan to trade — round down if this is your first one.
15
Light
You will trade if someone asks. Mostly singles, one piece you like.
30
Trading
You are starting handshakes. A full trade arm plus a cuff to remember.
55
Active trader
You prep for weeks and restock daily. Bring cord and spare beads too.
More on the split in how many kandi to bring.
What people trade here
Orlando is where a lot of people on the East Coast go to their first big one, and the trading reflects that: more singles, more nervous first offers, fewer thousand-bead cuffs than you would see in the desert. That is a good thing to prep for. If you have been doing this a while, string a few extra FIRST FEST and YOU BELONG singles and hand them to people who are visibly new. That is the whole point of the object.
November in central Florida is warm and often wet. Beads do not care, but paper, cardboard and anything you glued will. Plan for humidity on the walk in.
Carry plan
Three nights, one venue, no camping — which means you are carrying everything from a hotel or a rideshare every day and can restock between nights. Bring one night’s worth of trade stack instead of the whole bin, and leave the rest where you sleep.
Keep one statement piece back for the last night. It is the trade you will remember, and you cannot give it to the first person who says hi on Friday if it is already gone.
Bag policy
EDC Orlando publishes its own Hours & Info page, and Insomniac maintains a general festival guidelines page underneath it. Check both for the year you are going, and check the clear-bag dimensions before you buy a bag on the strength of what a friend told you last season.
Bracelets and cuffs worn on your arms are not the part that slows security down. A bag full of loose beads and cord is. String before you go.
Policies change between editions. The official page wins over anything you read here.
Three to make for it
Ten lines that land here
- FIRST FEST
- YOU BELONG
- PLUR
- HYDRATE
- RAIL
- MADE THIS
- I SEE YOU
- WANT TO TRADE
- FOUND YOU
- GO HOME SAFE
Letter beads run out around twelve characters on a single. Browse the whole phrase library.
Trade etiquette, short version
Ask before you trade. Never pull anything off somebody's arm, and never take a piece somebody says is a keeper. If someone says no, that is the whole answer — you are not owed a trade, and neither are they. A gift is a gift: accepting one does not put you in debt.
Full version: trade etiquette and the PLUR handshake.
Leave no trace
Loose beads are litter. Cut cord ends, dropped letter beads and the plastic bags they came in all end up on the ground where you strung them. String over a tray or a towel, bin the offcuts, and pack out what you brought in — campgrounds especially.
Before you go
Water, food, hearing protection, and people who will notice if you are not okay. Read festival safety and the organizer's current rules — the official page wins over anything on this site.
Independent kandi guide. Not a craft kit brand. Not affiliated with or endorsed by any festival, promoter, venue, or artist. Festival names are used only to identify the events discussed.