1. Fancy dress for you, your tent and your trolley
Don’t just dress yourself up, bring spangles to dress-up your tent and your trolley. I bring bunting, fairy lights, tinsel, ribbons and flags – and cable ties to attach them. A few pieces of sequinned fabric can transform from a cape into a flag, into a sparkly cave depending on the time of day.
2. A duvet and real pillows
My children have the nicknames Wallaby Boy and Starfish Girl because they sleep like wild creatures. They cannot be contained in sleeping bags, there’s not enough wiggle room. We bring real duvets and pillows to make it extra cosy and everyone feels at home with their sleeping antics.
3. Snacks + easy breakfast food
Easy breakfast food is a must. I bring cartons of oat milk which doesn’t go off. Top tip: Bread won’t last the whole weekend but brioche does. Yes, posh, I know! Brioche + Nutella + banana = breakfast of champions. We also do a big fry up on the Sunday morning and serve it in a burrito - less to wash up! If you’re not a fan of cooking while camping, there are food vans around the campsites for a morning coffee and a bacon bap.
4. Comfy shoes and wellies
Your feet will do a lot of walking, and dancing, maybe moshing and possibly sploshing. Shoes are super important! Bring a spare pair, bring flip flops for the showers and bring wellies, because even if it isn’t raining, some parts of the site can be damp underfoot. Be sure to bring your shoes into your tent at night so they don’t end up damp in the morning. Ours go in a big canvas sack which keeps the stink in and the dew out.
5. The secret bag
This is a comfort to look forward to after the festival. I keep a bag in the car with clean clothes, socks and shoes for the drive home. No matter the weather, you’ll be going home clean and dry.
Article written by Emma Scott-Child.
