Bonnaroo is stepping away for a year. Organizers confirmed Friday, August 21 that the Manchester, Tennessee festival will not take place in 2027, giving its 700-acre grounds — known to fans as The Farm — time to recover after three consecutive years of severe weather disruption.
The announcement, shared as a letter to what the festival calls its “Bonnaroo Family,” came about two months after this year’s edition wrapped. Organizers pointed to a heavy investment made ahead of the 2026 festival meant to storm-proof the site — improved drainage, 4.5 miles of new roadways, and 135 newly grassed acres — but noted that even those upgrades weren’t enough time to undo the damage from back-to-back rough years, including a heavy rainstorm that hit again this past June.
“This wasn’t an easy decision, and not one we take lightly, but in our hearts, we know this break will only make Bonnaroo better,” the festival wrote, thanking fans for “loving this festival as much as we do.”
The break follows a genuinely rough stretch for the festival. 2025’s edition was cut short after a single day due to flooding, and this year’s event faced its own weather delays on the final day, despite truckloads of mulch brought in to help manage the ground conditions at Centeroo. Signs that something was off had already been circulating among fans before Friday’s announcement — Bonnaroo typically reveals next year’s dates well in advance (2026’s were announced back in July 2025), and with no word on 2027 by mid-August, speculation had started to build in Bonnaroo-focused fan communities.
Produced by Live Nation’s C3 Presents, Bonnaroo has run nearly every summer since its 2002 debut, pausing only for COVID-19 in 2020 and 2021. This marks the first time the festival has deliberately taken a planned year off for site recovery rather than external circumstances. The move mirrors a practice long used by Glastonbury in the UK, which builds in a fallow year roughly every five editions to let its farmland reset.
Manchester Mayor Joey Hobbs acknowledged the news would be felt locally, noting the festival’s absence will particularly affect nonprofits and youth leagues that have worked concessions at the event over the years to raise money for their programs.
No word yet on when Bonnaroo plans to return, though organizers have said the break is intended to set the festival up for a stronger comeback and we would be surprised to not see it back in 2028.
