Music festivals have become somewhat of a summer tradition in the UK.
But if you’ve never been to one before, it can be quite an overwhelming experience.
One of the big draws of festivals, aside from the music (obviously), is going camping with your nearest and dearest, whether it’s family or a group of friends from school or work. In fact, for many it’s the socialising and camping that is the most fun – chilling out around a campfire, having a few drinks, singing a few songs, etc.
If you’re new to the whole festival camping thing, we’ve devised a beginner’s guide full of tips and tricks to help put you on the right path.
Here’s some advice for choosing the best festival camping equipment.
At the end of the day, you’re going camping, so you’re still going to need most of your usual camping equipment. If you’re a serious camper, you probably don’t need absolutely everything you normally take with you, but all the basics are important. For first-time campers, here’s a quick checklist:
Festivals are busy places with people stumbling about all over the place. As such, there’s a reasonable chance your tent could take a bit of a battering and will come back in a worse condition than when you left.
Therefore, unless you’re at a family-friendly festival where you have plenty of room to camp, it probably isn’t the best idea to spend a fortune on your tent. Take one that you wouldn’t be massively disappointed to come home without.
See our full range of great value festival tents.
Literally, tens of thousands of people go to each festival, so your tent is just one in a huge crowd. Consequently, it pays to make it as easy as possible to find. If it’s dark and/or you’ve had a few drinks, it might be a little tricky to remember where your tent is, so make life easier for yourself.
Ways to make your tent memorable include choosing a brightly coloured tent, painting it in some way or attaching a flag to it so you can quickly identify your tent among the thousands of others.
Weaving your way through a mass of tents is hard enough, but trying to negotiate guy ropes as well is nearly impossible for many, and it’s a formality that people will trip over them. Using brightly coloured guy ropes will at least give people a fighting chance of seeing them in the dark.
If there’s a group of you going (and there probably is), then it might be worth clubbing together to get a separate cheap pop-up tent. This is a perfect place to dump any wet or muddy clothing so that you don’t have it messing up your tent.
If you don’t take a pop-up tent then take plenty of bin bags in which to put wet clothes.
Shop our great range of pop-up tents.
So you’re into the festival site – now what? It’s not quite time to break open the beer; first of all, you need to pitch your tent. Here’s some advice…
There will usually be designated paths through the campsite, but try and avoid pitching too close to them. Yes, it’s a bit more of a pain to get to the paths, but that also means it’s much less likely others will accidentally stumble into your tent.
If you’ve never experienced festival toilets before then you’re in for a treat. Unless absolutely necessary, don’t pitch your tent near the toilets or you’re in for a world of pain.
Not only will the smell be pretty horrible, but the area will also be constantly busy, so it’ll be noisier and people will be more likely to trip or fall into your tent.
Again, the basics of camping apply here, so make sure you find a suitable pitch. Try and find somewhere that’s flat, not at the bottom of a hill (if possible) and is clear of lumps and bumps that could damage your tent or make sleeping uncomfortable.
It helps if you get to the festival as early as possible so you can have your pick of the pitches, otherwise you could end up with what’s left.
For many festival-goers, sleep might not be at the top of the agenda, but for those who do enjoy a good night’s sleep, here are a few useful tips.
Just because the bands have finished, that doesn’t mean everything is going to go quiet. There may be DJs playing until all hours, whilst the general hubbub of the campsite can also get pretty noisy.
Earplugs are your best friend here as they’ll block out a good portion of the noise. They will feel odd if you’re not used to wearing them, but they will help you get a better night’s sleep.
Just a simple bit of security advice. The further away you keep your valuables from the entrance, the more difficult it is for someone to pinch them in the night.
You’ll probably have no issues at all like this but it still pays to be vigilant.
Putting a padlock on your tent’s zip is another little security tip to deter would-be pilferers. However, it’s also incredibly useful in stopping those who are drunk/lost from accidentally mistaking your tent for theirs. You don’t want the shock of someone climbing inside whilst you’re getting some shut-eye.
It might not be the most fashionable of items, but an eye mask will help guard against the sunlight streaming through your tent in the morning. Most festivals don’t start until around midday so you have plenty of time in the morning to catch up with a bit of sleep.
There will likely be many pop-up food stalls dotted around the festival grounds, but they aren’t your only option. See below for advice on cooking at a festival.
It’s important to double-check what you’re allowed to take with you in terms of cooking equipment. Some places aren’t a massive fan of gas stoves, so make sure you comply with festival guidelines, as you could have it confiscated.
If possible, it pays to cook for a group of you rather than individually. Cooking one-pan meals for a few of you will reduce the amount of food you need to take, and it’ll save money too.
Try making foods such as chilli, soup or noodles that are easy to share between you. You might need a decent stove to cope with larger pans, but the results are worth it.
Check out our wide range of camping stoves and cookers.
It’s best not to take foods that go off quickly, such as meat or fish. If these are left in your bag for a couple of days, they will likely make you very ill!
Dried foods are ideal as they won’t go off, but don’t take anything bulky that will take up precious space in your pack. Take foods high in carbohydrates as you’ll need the energy for the long days.
See below for more information on general festival camping tips worth bearing in mind.
Having a campfire at a festival is fantastic (if permitted), but you must be careful. Festival campsites are crowded so don’t start a fire if you only have limited space as you risk burning yourselves and your equipment.
Even though most festivals are in the summer, it can still get pretty cold at night. A roll mat and tent footprint will help keep you insulated against the ground, but packing plenty of layers will keep you nice and warm when sitting around or trying to get to sleep.
Most people naturally pack their tent up after the festival and take it with them, whether they’re going to keep it for next year or dispose of it when they get home. However, some festival-goers leave their tent there at the campsite, even though they shouldn’t.
This is massively disrespectful to those who have to clean the place up afterwards and is a waste of a perfectly good tent. Either take your tent with you or check whether there are any tent recycling schemes you could leave your tent with.
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