Camping at a Festival

It's Glastonbury time and whilst there are many seasoned festival goes out there not everyone is a regular camper.  Everyone knows that they need a tent, sleeping bag and some form of mattress to go camping but it’s the other little things that they may not be so sure of!  There are lots of lists out there for the “essentials” but most of these are for your personal hygiene and safety!  So we thought we would put together our 5 camping tips for a festival so that your tent becomes your home for the few days that you are raving in a field.

·     Groundsheet

Most tents, whatever their quality level are waterproof, however there are different levels of waterproofing!  We understand that you wouldn’t want to take an expensive tent to a festival as it may get ruined so any help in making a budget tent waterproof is a good idea.  Even if it does not rain whilst you are at the festival (rare in the UK!) dew and ground moisture can easily seep into your tent so pitching it on a groundsheet is a great way to ensure that you have a dry grounding.  Remember, you lie on the ground so a dry base means a dry bed, and there is nothing worse than after a day of hard dancing than getting in to a damp bed!  Also if you get a groundsheet that has a bigger footprint than your tent this will give you a good doormat, a space to remove your shoes before entering your inner sanctuary.

·      Mallet

Now we know this sounds obvious but you would be surprised how many people we have seen trying to put tent pegs in with their shoes as they have forgotten a mallet.  If you are not a regular camper you may not know that a tent does not include a mallet and without one, especially if the ground is hard pegs will fight back.  Please take a mallet and not a hammer!  This is so that you do not break every peg! A hammer will quite easily bend a peg instead of allowing it to slide into the ground!  So a wooden or rubber mallet is essential!

·      Camping Chair

Some people may think a camping chair is a luxury for a festival but we would disagree. This is not a luxury, it is a must!  This is not a school assembly! Anyone over school age, sitting on the floor all day will soon have aches and pains they just don’t need. This is also a British summer, and so the ground may not be an inviting place, so having a safe haven of a chair is a godsend.  The chair does not have to be expensive but do remember the more you pay the more likely the chair will survive the weekend and will be lighter to carry!

·      Cooker

The morning after the night before needs a cup of tea. Heading out to face the queues, especially if it is not the best of weather, can be avoided with one nifty little piece of kit.

If gas is allowed at the festival you are going to then a portable cartridge gas stove is probably the safest one to have.  This gives a nice wide base so the stove will not fall over and also a large flame so a kettle boils quickly

If gas is not allowed then a solid fuel pocket stove is the way forward.  The little burner is sturdy enough that it will not fall over and 4 squares of fuel is enough to make your kettle whistle in know time.

Just don’t forget the kettle!

·      Water Container

Water is always available at a festival and is probably one of the only free things on offer!  Having a larger water container that you can keep at your tent for drinking, washing and cooking is a great time saver!  The best kind for this is a collapsible one!  This means it is small to carry when empty and so easy to get into the festival ground.  Then when your tent is all pitched and you have made a little home for your self you can go fill it up and be sure you have water to quench your thirst when returning home.

So there you have it our 5 tips for making camping at a festival bearable.  However we are sure there are many other tips out there so please feel free to comment and add your "festival camping survival" tips.  There is know reason why camping should be slumming it and with a few carful purchases it can feel like the Ritz!  A festival should not be survived or endured it should be celebrated and loved.  With these few tips it will be!