“Hey, who’s going to congress? Can I share a room? Are you performing?”

If you’ve been taking salsa or bachata dance lessons, you might overhear chatter of something called a salsa congress. You may have the same reaction we did, as your eyes light up with childlike wonder and think, that really exists? 

A multi-day dance salsa festival that includes workshops, socials, and live performances!?!

It’s true.

An entire dance convention for people just like you. If you’re not into dancing yourself, but instead enjoy shows and performances, then there’s a lot of entertainment for you as well.

After three years of attending and performing on Daytona Salsa teams at the Orlando Salsa Congress, one of the largest in Florida, here’s our experience and what you can expect at a salsa congress.

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Salsa congresses can technically can be called different names and revolve around different styles of dance. While not specifically called a congress, some events such as the Tampa Salsa and Bachata Festival (TSBF), Bachateando, and many others still feature salsa and might be just as large. General salsa and bachata festivals can be small or large, but if it’s called a salsa congress, it’s probably going to be a major event.

What’s a Salsa Congress?

A salsa congress is a place where dancers of all levels along with dance studios all over the world come together for the biggest dance event imaginable. It’s a dance festival composed of learning, practice, celebration, and performance. What it usually doesn’t include is a lot of sleep. ??

Here’s what to expect at a Salsa Congress:

• Dance Workshops
• Dance Socials With Live DJs and Bands
• More than Just Salsa
• Spanish and Culture
• Spectacular Performances
• Pool Parties, Room Parties, and Celebration
• Salsa Congress as a Performer
• Packing for a Salsa Congress
• New Friends You’ll Probably See Again

 

Dance Workshops

If you want to take your dancing to the next level and learn from the pros, spend the extra money on a multi day pass that includes workshops. You already spend money on dance classes near you at home. Consider this an investment to learn from instructors from around the country that would cost substantially more to visit them in their hometown. If you see instructors you want to dance like and love their style, consider taking private lessons from them at the event. When else would you get the chance?

The workshop schedule usually gets posted before congress starts so we print it out at home and put stars next to the classes we’re interested in. At the event, we snap a photo of the workshop schedule in person since often, classes change and have last minute replacements.

Since there’s several classes happening at the same time, pick the workshops you want to learn the most and focus on those. Have your phone ready to record because at the end of class, the instructors let you record the patterns broken down by numbers and also to music. You won’t be able to remember that many classes so the recordings are worth the effort.

Many times one class will wrap up early and you can run to the adjacent class to record that pattern as it’s ending. Since we go to salsa congresses with a lot of people from our dance studio, we split up to cover all the classes and record the patterns. Divide and conquer!

Workshops start early and go all day so don’t feel bad sitting out a workshop to watch while you rest or eat lunch. It’s A LOT to try to do everything and your mind will be exploding from all of the information, but it’s an amazing education that’s well worth it.

Dance Socials with Live DJs and Bands

You’re attending a dance convention so there will be a lot of dancing! Dance socials are every night and are the perfect opportunity to try out your new moves you just learned in the workshops! Skill levels range from beginner to pro level, but you usually won’t see the pros until very late at night. Saturday nights get an influx of people that are only paying for the social event, so you’ll see many more beginners on the dance floor trying to get dances with good dancers.

If you can make it, special “silent parties” carry on into the early morning where people wear glowing headphones that have colors corresponding to the style of dance they’re listening to, each played by a separate DJ. Some nights might even feature a live band to spice things up, but keep in mind live songs can be an exhausting ten minute dance!

Socials also usually have themes so research ahead of time as to what the theme is and dress to impress! This is an event to bring your A-game and look sharp. People come from all over the world to be there.

Here are the most important things to remember at a dance social no matter your level:

• If you’re LEADING a dance, your job is to make the follower look like a STAR. You have to match the moves to their level, not bring them up to yours. You can try to be fancy and show off, but the goal is to have a successful dance that you both walk away from feeling good about. It’s a great feeling knowing you did your best and when the follower thanks you with a genuine smile after a dance.
• If you’re FOLLOWING, your job is to follow the lead’s moves as best as you can, MAKE IT LOOK GREAT, and add your personal sparkly STYLE. This includes when the lead makes mistakes – because it will happen a lot! Do your best and try to avoid being critical as that will only make people less likely to ask you again. Followers have a tough job, but if you can follow anyone’s lead no matter how good (or bad) it is, and make it look good, you are truly a shining star that people will look up to.
• Ask people to dance. If you want to increase your skills, learn the most by dancing with people you don’t know. It’ll give you a challenge and expose you to new styles. Be targeted and scout out the dancers you want to dance with since they’re hot commodities. This also applies to followers. Don’t be afraid to ask someone to dance. Sure you can dance with friends, but you’re at a congress. Take advantage of the amazing opportunity. At the very least, dance with friends when you need a break or when you just want to have fun.
• If you ask someone to dance and they say no, don’t take it personal. At first, it can be surprising and a blow to your ego, but there might be any number of valid reasons why they decline a dance with you. If someone politely refuses, they have their reasons. Accept it and move on to the many others waiting to dance.

 

More Than Just Salsa

Bachata, dominican, cha cha, casino, kizomba, zouk, hip hop, and many other styles are on display at congress. I love salsa dancing, but I can’t dance salsa for every dance the entire night. I’d be exhausted! Sometimes you need a break and want to slow it down or change the scenery. This is where a congress is very different than your local latin night. At a congress, there are multiple rooms based on different styles of dance. You’ll usually have a salsa room, bachata room, kizomba room, and maybe other rooms dedicated to a particular style or styles of dance.

We like to start the night dancing a few salsas in the salsa room, then head over to the bachata room for a few dances there, and then take a break out in the hall before bouncing back and forth the rest of the night. Also, after dancing with a lot of people in one room, the crowd gets a little stale since you don’t want to dance with the same person twice. Switching rooms opens up a whole new group of people to dance with.

Latin Culture

Being a Latin community, you will hear a lot of Spanish around you. If you only speak English, you’ll be fine. Most people also speak English.

During events and workshops you’ll hear some Spanish while instructors are teaching because they truly love what they teach. They’ll most likely be teaching in English, but Spanish might be their natural expression of showing how much they love their culture. Just the fact that you’re there learning means you appreciate their culture and want to be a part of it.

And not only Spanish either. You might hear languages from all over the world. Salsa congresses are a melting pot of people who love to dance.

Spectacular Performances

People often reference shows like Dancing With the Stars or World of Dance when talking about great performances. At a congress, you’ll very likely see dancers who have appeared on one of those shows. The performers and choreography during a nightly showcase is that incredible. You’ll feel the energy, the music, and the appreciation in the air of quality entertainment as the crowd cheers and applauds. Many of the people sitting next to you will be on that stage.

All night long performers from all over step onto the big stage and perform routine after routine of varying difficulty and style to wow audiences. Earlier in the evening you’ll see student teams getting experience under the bright lights combined with pros to mix it up and toward the end of the night – the hard hitting showstoppers.

As a side bonus, you’ll most likely see several of the instructors you took workshops with on the big stage performing! How awesome is that?

Pool Parties*, Room Parties, and Celebration!

What do you think happens when you get a ton of people together who love dance, who perform for crowds, and know how to have a good time? You get lots of partying and celebration.

It’s no surprise these dedicated dancers want to blow off steam. They’ve put in endless hours training for their time in the spotlight. They’ve stepped onto the big stage in glittery costumes, did their thing, and finally have their performance behind them. It’s time to relax and celebrate their accomplishments! After performances, you’ll see team after team in the hall reviewing recordings of their performances, hugging with smiles (sometimes tears), and taking group photos to mark the occasion.

During the day, I always wonder what the normal hotel guests think when they visit the pool during a salsa congress. Imagine the body of a hardcore Latin dancer. The guys have perfected their swagger persona and are chiseled from endless hours of cardio and lifting their partners. The girls are confident, wearing the tiniest Brazilian bikinis and are experts at seductive movement. The scene is filled with dancers moving to the DJs music under the tent, by the pool and grouped together in the pool. It’s like Spring Break but organized around professional dancing. This is a daily event, but toward the end of congress is the big, official pool party that you don’t want to miss. It’s an entertaining sight to see for sure.

During the night, hotel room parties are carrying on. It’s the one negative to a salsa congress if you’re trying to get some sleep. That is, unless you’re the one partying. Most of the time this hasn’t been an issue any time we’ve retired to our rooms to recharge, but be sure to bring earplugs. Hearing a party in the hall at 3am is pretty common. I have to give credit to the salsa congress organizers as they bring the issue up to try to make people more courteous.

*In Florida, pool parties are common at every salsa congress. Your area might have something different.

Salsa Congress as a Performer

So you’re performing? Congratulations! You’ll have a moderate level of anxiety all the way up until your performance night(s). All of your hard work has come down to this. On the other side of your performance though is an amazing feeling of accomplishment like you’ve never felt.

As a side bonus, performers get a hefty discount for performing! When you’re just getting started on your dance career, it’s worth it to perform not only for the discount, but for the valuable experience as well.

Tech Practice

During the daily workshops, there will be one time where you have to miss a workshop for a mandatory practice. If your team doesn’t make practice – you don’t perform. So it’s critical to be there. The room is walled off from the public and there will be a lot of teams waiting to run their routine so if your practice slot is at 11am, be there at 11am to sign up as soon as possible.

The nice thing is that you can run your routine without needing your costume. You also get to work out the kinks of placement on the stage along with spatial awareness. Make the most of it and bring a jacket. It’s usually cold in there.

The Main Event

You’ll be nervous your first time performing on the big stage like you’ve never felt before, but it’s okay. It just means you care to put on a good show.

The room will be opened up into a massive space to accommodate hundreds or thousands of people in the audience. As you hear the dulled music outside the event, your team will be in a side room practicing last minute runs and giving each other reassurement. When your team is called, you’re led backstage to line up behind other teams about to make their way onto the platform.

This is it. Showtime.

As the current team is on stage performing, you’re waiting for your turn. The music ends, the lights go out, and as the previous team is walking off, you’re stepping up the stairs onto the platform. You’re in place, the lights raise and are so bright, it’s hard to see the sea of faces looking at you. You give it your all, try to never break the confidence, and put on the best performance you can.

And in the space of a few minutes, it’s over in seconds. A memory you’ll never forget.

Packing for a Salsa Congress

No matter how well you plan, you’ll want to bring as many outfits as necessary. Everyone does. There is a lot going on and you want to be confident in the clothes you’re in.

Clothes for Workshops

You can wear gym clothes, street clothes, or even dress up if you’d like. A lot of people wear shirts with their dance studio’s logo to represent where they take classes. Women often wear dance sneakers for workshops and save the heels for social dancing.

Clothes for Dance Socials

Bring clothes that are comfortable to dance in since you will be on the dance floor for several hours. Also, this is a showy event. It’s common to see dancers that look a little “extra” with flashy outfits, nice shoes for the guys, and one piece sexy rompers for women. Don’t forget to keep in mind the nightly themes for the socials.

Dance Shoes

Obviously. Make sure you have comfortable shoes that you can wear for long periods of time. We also like to bring sneakers or flip flops to give our feet a rest.

Food

If you’re staying at the hotel, it’s easy to go back to your room for a snack, but if you’re staying off site to save money or plan on attending every workshop, you have to plan a little more. A lot of people bring small backpacks filled with easy and quick snacks to keep their energy up. We like flavored applesauce packets, dry cereal, chips, and nuts to keep us going during the long morning to afternoon stretch of workshops. Fresh fruit, vegetables and hummus is a nice bonus. Many times the hotel will have quick grab and go meals for sale or a nice lunch buffet.

How to Save Money at a Salsa Congress

Sign up as a performer. That’s the biggest discount you can get for an all-access pass to congress. A close second if you’re not performing is to buy your tickets very early. A summer congress might sell tickets at a hefty discount during Black Friday the year before. Follow their social media or sign up on their email list to keep an eye out for specials.

To save money on hotel rooms, you might be able to get an event rate through the congress event. Also, off-site hotels or Airbnbs are usually much cheaper but require a walk or drive. Be aware that if you have to drive and park at the hotel, parking can fill up! We’ve almost missed a performance because the hotel was turning away people that didn’t have hotel rooms.

The most common way to save money on a hotel room is to go as a group and share the cost of the room. It can be a great bonding experience, creates memories, especially if you’re on a team together, and makes the room much more affordable. It also makes sense because you won’t be in the room most of the time except to sleep. Don’t forget to bring earplugs and an eye mask.

Another way to save money is to only buy tickets for the part of the event you’re interested in. Single night tickets are usually available. If you don’t care about workshops, consider buying tickets for only the socials or performances.

New Friends You’ll Probably See Again

Once you go to a few congresses, you’ll recognize people since performers travel and attend several events around the country. It’s also surprising when you attend workshops the following year and recognize people you had met in class the previous year.

See You At Congress!

I hope this has given you a little idea of what to expect from a salsa congress. Every congress is as different as the memories you make. The people you go with and your experiences from previous years will always change your perspective.

All in all, if you love dance, you will love a salsa congress. You’ll learn a lot about yourself, be challenged, and raise your dancing to the next level. You might get less sleep and your feet will hurt, but you’ll also have a collection of unique memories. It’s incredible, exhausting, and worth every minute. See you there!

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Have you ever attended a salsa congress?