All your mates are banging on about is this festival and that festival and don’t get me wrong, we all love festivals. In fact, the smell of frying onions, van fumes and human waste has never sounded more appealing. However, for the average Joe, affording more than one festival a year – if even that – is an impossible task. Most weekend camping tickets now set us back over 200 quid, with some estimated to reach over £500 for the whole weekend (I’m looking at you, Glastonbury). So, how do we get around this? Fear not fellow festival go-er, your wellies will see the light of day again and possibly very soon.
Grow up
Little do a lot of people know, most festivals offer a volunteer scheme where you get a free ticket for the whole weekend. That’s right, free access to all the stages, campsite and events. You know those blokes in high-vis’ jackets stopping you from crowdsurfing and most likely breaking your neck? They have a free ticket. Those people you see trying to flog those festival schedules to you? They have a free ticket too. Of course, you have to work, which means you have to have at least a vague air of responsibility about you, but this can all be sorted out with your ‘boss’ ahead of time so you don’t miss your favourites acts.
Lists, lists and more lists
Make a detailed list of stuff you need to bring. All the camping kit, food, drink, toiletries – the lot. Make it well in advance because it’s more than likely that you’re going to forget something and that something is probably the difference between you smelling like a human being and smelling like a wet dog for the whole weekend. Most importantly, take the list with you when you go shopping. In theory, this should stop you spending oodles of money you don’t need to be spending on stuff you don’t need to be buying. Go shopping with your mates and go halves on any deals that might be on.
Buy your food and drink beforehand to prevent the daylight robbery that is festival pricing. Bring loads of cheap, carb-laden foods to keep you full of beans and ready to party. Also, as boring as it may seem, make sure you bring plenty of water or a water container to fill at one of the refill points. After the first night, when you feel as if you’ve been hit by a truck and a skunk has died in your mouth, you won’t regret it – trust me.
Something borrowed
Borrowing from your friends, family and neighbours can save you having to buy your own brand new stuff. A lot of people seem to have tents lying around in their shed, for example. Just make sure to open it and set it up beforehand, not only to make sure you know how to do it but also to check for various creepy crawlies or even holes, which you don’t want to have to deal with at the festival after a few jars.
Be an early bird
Some festivals encourage people to buy their tickets early by offering them at a discounted rate months before the event, sometimes even straight after the previous year's festival. The gamble is that you won’t like the line-up, but when you have over 100 acts at each festival, that’s not usually a problem. So if you’ve got a favourite festival, save your pennies to save more pennies.
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