Written by: Evie Lambert
Whether you’re going to your first or your fifty second festival, make sure you take the time to brush up on all the necessities you need to fulfil your festival experience and make the most of your fully scheduled weekend.
Here are our tips for surviving festival season:
1) Tent:
To kick things off, you are obviously going to need a tent- we would recommend investing in a full man tent, or a pop-up tent which has slightly more room than you will actually need, because you will end up needing that extra bit of space in the end.
2) Footwear:
A good, supportive pair of shoes is an absolute need for your weekend as you will be spending ninety percent of your time on your feet and if you don’t have comfortable shoes on, it will feel like a very, very long weekend (and not in a good way).
3) Snacks:
Make sure you have plenty of snacks and nibbles to last you the weekend as these will always be useful when you aren’t near any food vans but need something to be munching on.
4) Reusable Water Bottles:
We would strongly recommend you bring a reusable water bottle along with you as most festivals will allow you to fill up at their free water points. The less plastic bottles on site the better!
5) Invest in a Second Phone:
Taking a cheap ‘Nokia Brick’ with you will be useful as the battery will last you the whole way through the weekend, unlike your regular iPhone or Samsung. They are priced around £15 so we think it’s a great investment for festivals!
6) Portable Charger:
If you are going to take your regular phone to the festival, make sure you have a portable charger or ten with you as the batteries usually never last longer than a day so you will need to charge them up often.
7) Cash:
Most events now a days are cash-free and everything is paid for electronically so taking as little cash as possible and having the majority of your money on a card would be a wise option. Despite this, you may want to take a small amount of cash with you to spend on any little keep sakes or merch you like the look of whilst you’re there.
8) Rest:
Festivals can leave you feeling very drained and exhausted so make sure you are getting as much rest as possible throughout your time there. If you ever have a spare half an hour between artists, go and get your head down in a power nap and recharge yourself.
9) Don’t Overdo it!
Some famous last words are ‘don’t overdo it on the first night’ but they are true! You are there at a festival for sometimes four nights so you have to pace yourself and make sure you don’t burn yourself out a few hours in.
10) Pitch your Tent Carefully…
Once you actually arrive on site, make sure you pitch your tent in a prime spot and we have three rules to help you on this matter; set up on the top of a hill to avoid having your tent turned into a swamp at the bottom of a hill, make sure you’re near a landmark to help guide yourself back to your tent at the end of the day and make sure you’re near(ish) a toilet. You want it to be a short distance when you wake up in the middle of the night and need to use the toilet but not close enough where you are can smell them. Festival toilets *shivers*.
11) And finally, here is a quick list the items which are absolute necessities:
- Ear plugs
- Deodorant
- Emergency money in your phone case
- Antibacterial hand gel
- Baby wipes (these will be your best friend)
- Hats
- Sun cream
- Gaffa tape
- Bin bags
- Plasters
12) Most importantly, enjoy yourself! Don’t take anything too seriously and have a laugh – you’re there to have a good time!