How to Have a Successful Tour Through a Daily Routine

business
Written By Melissa Wright

15 years as a road warrior, crossing here and there all across the United States has taught me a few things about touring as a musician. Yes, it’s thrilling to get to see new places every day, but for the most part, life on the road is just as routine as any other type of job.

It’s helpful to have a routine in mind to keep everything from quickly spiraling out of control. It takes something as small as losing the charger for your phone to use as a GPS to send the band into a bad-vibe downward spin, ruining that night’s show and taking a day or so to recover.

Experience teaches best but this checklist will also help. Enter your email below to download your Tour Routine Checklist!

Big Universe Music
Tour Routine Checklist

Week Before Tour

  • Clean and empty out the van for a fresh start

  • Get oil change, top fluids, check tires

  • Make sure registration and insurance are up to date.

  • Print out current insurance and registration cards

  • Pack a small first aid kit and a small tool kit

  • Set up an air freshener and cleaning wipes situation



  • Plug in all musical equipment and test

  • Pack extra strings, wire trimmers, and batteries

  • Pack nail clippers

  • Inventory merch

  • Pack a small sales bag with Sharpies, card reader, and signage



  • Create an email folder with all the emails for each show

  • Create a stage plot, input list, and epk to send to venues

  • Create a tour itinerary including load in times, set times, and addresses of venues and hotels/where you are staying



  • Pack 1 stage outfit and 2 touring outfits. Keep your clothes to 1 bag.

  • Pack phone, computer, and chargers for both

  • Pack sunglasses, sunscreen, and lip balm

  • Pack a sleeping mat and a pillow

  • Personal hygiene kit — toothbrush, toothpaste, deodorant, multi-use soap, makeup, hair products, floss

Morning Routine On Tour

  • Wake up. Drink water and shower. Brush teeth. Exercise if you can.

  • Gather up phone chargers, drying clothes, ice packs from freezer. Load van.

  • Get breakfast.

  • Refuel van

  • Drive

Afternoon Routine On Tour

  • Talk through the plan for load-in and show that night.

  • Solve any sound or set issues that came up the night before.

  • Review the deal for the show that night

  • Plan or confirm where you are staying

  • Post social media promoting the show that night

  • Plan the next day — what time you have to leave, how long your drive is, any other plans for fun activities

  • Eat lunch or a snack

Evening Routine On Tour

  • Load in to venue. Check in with front of house and get your meal tickets, etc.

  • Take this time when the van is emptier to throw out any trash and reorganize the van.

  • Set up your gear for sound check.

  • Set up merch booth

  • Order food (try to choose something healthy at the venues as it’s not always easy to find healthy food on the road)

  • Play your show!

Post Show Routine On Tour

  • Sell merch and interact with your fans!

  • Pack up all of your gear. Don’t forget cables and stands!

  • Close out with the venue and the bar manager. Double check your numbers against your advance sheet.

  • Pack up your merch. Write down your total merch sales for the night

  • Get ready to go to your crash pad or hotel

Late Night Routine On Tour

  • Check in to hotel or crash pad.

  • If you’re carrying coolers, put ice packs and refridgerated food in the fridge/freezer.

  • Find out where everyone is sleeping and put your mats and pillows down.

  • Hang out and relax for a few!

  • Hydrate

  • Try to get to bed ASAP so you feel good in the morning

  • Charge your phone overnight

  • Shower if you need to (you do.)

  • Do a load of laundry if you can. You can also wash your clothes by hand and hang them to dry

  • Go to bed, wake up and do it again!

Melissa Wright
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