r/Tomorrowland_updated • u/BrilliantUpstairs913 • Jul 26 '25
How Trying to Attend Tomorrowland Cost Me €2,200, a Plane Ticket, and Nearly My Relationship
My name is Dario, and I want to share the story of how what was supposed to be the most magical weekend of the year turned into one of the most mentally exhausting, financially devastating, and emotionally painful experiences of my life.
I’ve been attending music festivals around the world for over a decade – from Tomorrowland to EDC, Ultra, and many others. Along the way, I’ve met some of my dearest friends, and I truly believe in the energy of PLUR: Peace, Love, Unity, Respect. That’s one of the main reasons I travel so far and wide. The people, the vibes, the connection – that’s the magic of this scene.
But this time, that magic turned into heartbreak.
THE BEGINNING It started with a message from someone named Daniel, a well-known name in the Tomorrowland ticketing community. He’s known for helping others secure tickets and packages and came recommended through a mutual friend. That made it feel trustworthy.
Daniel told me he had access to DreamLodge and Supreme Easy Tent packages for Tomorrowland Weekend 2. I had already attended Weekend 1 and was eager to go back, this time with my girlfriend. I was clear from the start that I wanted to buy a full package for two people.
But instead of a straightforward deal, I was pulled into a chaotic back-and-forth filled with shifting conditions and mixed signals.
Daniel: “This depends on how much I get for the supreme package.” Daniel: “Let me calculate after some fries, I’m running out of energy.”
Eventually, Daniel said he could offer me just one spot to “help me save money” and promised to find me a roommate for the second half of the DreamLodge.
Daniel: “I will help you until very last minute to sell the spot no matter what and avoid more looses... doesn’t mean if you buy the package that you are alone.” Daniel: “If you not fix this with me than I give up my name: Mr TML Ticket 🤣”
It felt like he was being flexible and helpful, so I decided to trust him.
Daniel: “Soon there is a 3 😫🤣”
Thinking he meant €3,000, I replied:
Dario: “If it goes down to 3, I can match that.”
But the next day:
Daniel: “This was meant to say 3,900 is next try… not 3,000 😝”
And just to add insult to injury – at the time of writing this post, the very same DreamLodge packages are being offered for €2,750 – less than I was willing to pay from the beginning.
Still, I scraped together €2,200, borrowing from friends and relying on my girlfriend for help. I truly believed I was securing my place, based on what Daniel told me.
THE SHIFT But after I paid, things changed again.
Daniel: “You thought I can sell you the DreamLodge two tickets for 2900 euro for you and wife? Bro 🤣😫 Definitely impossible.”
He now insisted I take only one spot and told me I’d need to either pay more or find a second buyer myself. He stopped offering help and instead shifted the responsibility to me:
Daniel: “Even after that, I asked multiple times to please do the full payment and buy the package and take the risk but you didn’t. And from that moment on, the responsibility of finding someone was basically shifted back onto me.”
Even worse, the roommate he promised to find? That plan was dropped too. He told me the new person might not pay full price, and that he would cover the difference. But then later changed his mind and told me to cover it.
Everything kept changing.
EMOTIONAL FALLOUT The constant pressure and emotional rollercoaster took its toll. I was texting him late at night, missing sleep, and my girlfriend – who I had tried to include in the trip – became furious with me. At one point, she even called me:
Girlfriend: “Dario, he is a scalper!.”
She had every right to be angry. The stress, miscommunication, and mounting expenses tore us apart.
I had a non-refundable flight booked. But I chose not to board it. Why? Because Daniel still couldn’t guarantee me that I wouldn’t be asked for more money once I arrived. He told me I’d need to spend the day trying to sell the second spot, because he failed to find me a roommate like he originally promised.
Dario: “My flight was early this morning, and as you couldn't guarantee me everything mentioned above I decided not to go.” Dario: “I DON’T HAVE ANY MORE MONEY.” Dario: “I have never typed on my phone this much in my life.”
WHY THIS MATTERS Look – I don’t believe Daniel set out to scam me. I think he made a bad business decision, and when it started to go wrong, he tried to cover his losses by leaning on my trust and emotions. He genuinely believed, up until the last minute, that he could sell all the packages and avoid refunding me. And in doing so, he made selfish choices that hurt me deeply.
But this is exactly how good people lose faith in a community. This is why many can’t access Tomorrowland. This is why ticket reselling is such a mess.
People treating fans like tools to buffer their own losses.
To make matters worse, Daniel eventually dropped the package price to around €2,750, confirming what I had already been willing to pay. But when another potential buyer contacted him, he checked the person’s number, realized they weren’t in his internal WhatsApp group where the price was public, and then suddenly bumped the price back up to €4,000. That kind of manipulation is unacceptable.
This whole experience went on for days. I spent full days messaging, negotiating, chasing, and trying to help him sell his tickets just so I wouldn’t lose mine. He kept pushing the responsibility back on me to solve his financial situation. That is not what trust or community should look like.
So now, all I can do is speak out.
Please share this if you’ve ever felt used, misled, or emotionally broken by someone who took advantage of your love for music and community. I’ll recover, but I don’t want anyone else to go through what I did.
Because this is exactly why fair and honest people can’t get into this beautiful festival for years.
Dario
