Contiki Canada's graphic designer, Ashleigh (in the yellow) and I hang out with some pals at the NXNE main stage

This past weekend, Contiki set up a booth at Toronto’s Yonge & Dundas Square, the central hub for North By Northeast (NXNE), and it was may-jah. Clad in neon tanks and sunnies as one of the festival's sponsors, the Contiki Canada crew worked the crowd and gave away a trip for two to Coachella 2013 (um, hi, take me).

The best part of NXNE is that the bars are open until 4am. I’m kidding, that’s not the best part (it’s the 2nd best part). The very best part is that there are over 700 acts playing at 20+ venues across the city and if you buy a wristband for only fifty Canadian bucks, you can get in anywhere for free. Legit.

One of the best shows I saw over the weekend (and I’m sure many other people will agree) was folky-rock trio The Lumineers at the legendary Horseshoe Tavern. This band has blown up since their catchy song ‘Ho Hey’ hit the silver screen on a Bing commercial and the tiny Tavern was packed. Literally, the worst fire hazard ever. The lineup outside was atrocious but we managed to get in just as the band started playing and woo-wee, was it a hot, sweaty, incredible mess of a time.

Did I mention the bars were open until 4am all week? Because they were. And it was awesome.

Written by Lauren McPhillips