Policies & FAQ

What is the refund policy for the Five Borough Fling?

Weekend passes are refundable until 7:00pm EDT on Wednesday, November 4th; tickets for individual dances are refundable until 48 hours before the start time of that event. We are a small team of volunteers and will be extraordinarily busy in the days leading up to the Fling, so although we will do our best, requests received after Friday, October 30th may not be processed until after the event is over.

Although tickets are no longer refundable after that point, you may transfer them to someone else wishing to attend the event, but please exercise reasonable caution around payments to people you do not personally know! The Facebook events in particular can attract scammers claiming to have tickets - check if you have mutual contacts or a friend who can vouch. Unfortunately, we will not be able to assist with ticket transfers leading up to the event.

People dancing in a large indoor hall with wooden floors, some wearing colorful outfits and masks, with an upper balcony visible in the background.
A couple dancing closely at a social event, with the woman in a brown top and the man in a blue plaid kilt and a yellow face mask, surrounded by other people in a warmly lit indoor setting.

Do you have a sliding scale?

Instead of a sliding scale, we have set ticket prices as low as we can for everybody and created ways to dance for free or reduced admission through volunteering.

And, if you would like to contribute more than the stated ticket price, we accept tax-deductible contributions at any time through memberships and donations!

The volunteer organizing team works to keep prices affordable by writing grants which have subsidized operational costs, making improvements to our dance’s feel and vibe, and increasing marketing efforts so that the fixed costs of hall rental, and caller and band fees are distributed over more dancers.

We recognize that NYC is expensive to visit and a limited number of home stays are available. Volunteers also receive discounted or free admission - please fill out the form here to indicate interest.

Will there be required Covid testing, or masks required?

We will not require testing for Covid-19 this year, but we strongly encourage all attendees to test before traveling to the venue. Please also consider getting your booster at least two weeks before the event. 

We ask that you do not attend if you are feeling unwell.

Most dances will not require masks; if there is enough dancer interest and space, there may be a line designated for masked individuals only.

A woman with long hair playing a violin in a large hall or auditorium with arched windows and purple lighting.

What will the role terms be?

Two men dancing closely together at a social event, with other people in the background.

In line with the local social dance scene here in NYC, dance roles will be called as Leads and Follows.

Can children attend? Will there be childcare?

Yes, and YES!

Kids of all ages are welcome and appreciated, and we encourage them to participate at the level of their comfort. Our vision of Contra is intergenerational and dancers are usually very able to accommodate for kids’ levels. As always at Brooklyn Contra, kids under 12 dance for free in the company of their adult(s) and will not require their own tickets to take part in dancing.

We are thrilled to this year be able to offer childcare for ages 0-12 on site at St. Paul and St. Andrew, Saturday after 1pm and during Sunday afternoon’s Farewell dance. If you would use this service, please fill out our interest form so that we can get a sense of numbers and stay in touch with you. There will be a small extra charge to help us offset the costs; scholarships are available.

For more guidance on dancing with kids, we have some helpful tips here.

What’s up with the After Party Add On?

We’ve wanted for years a space for everyone to congregate comfortably after Saturday dancing, with more room to dance where we could control the tunes! But on the Upper West Side, all those types of spaces are private event venues with a minimum spend (i.e. either you spend $1000 on food and drink or you pay them the difference in cash). To help us meet that minimum, we’re charging a fee that is approximately equal to the value of food and drinks we’re giving you (two drink tickets and some apps) and what we figure most folks would spend anyway in order to make sure we don’t get stuck paying for a huge bill afterward that no one gets any value for.