Festival Essentials You Can’t Forget to Pack This Year
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We’ve all been there, you’re buzzing to be at a festival, you’ve got your favourite artists coming through the speakers, and boom… You realise. You’ve forgotten something. It happens to the best of us, and will continue to happen for many generations to come.
To avoid this, we’ve put together our essential items that need to be on your packing list this festival season! From the four day camping trips to the one-day fests, we’ve got you covered. Other than the bare essentials (ticket, ID and wallet) you might not have thought of everything here. Take it from us (we’re all festival veterans here at Tickets for Good), you’ll want to pack these things to have the best time out in the field!
Camping must haves
Camping at a festival is a must at some point in your life. It’s an experience you’ll never forget… But you don’t want it to be because you forgot a thick hoodie and spent most of the night freezing cold in your wafer-thin tent!
When camping, you’ll definitely want to take along these items:
- A tent — Big enough to fit you and all our belongings in, but not so big that it takes most of your first day to build (you’re at a festival, not out with Bear Grylls).
- A sleeping bag/blow up mattress — Either one is needed, go with the mattress for that extra luxury feeling. For the best kit, check out WildBounds. This Bristol-based company sell the best of the best in camping gear from independent brands — all in one place!
- A pillow — After a long hard day of enjoying yourself, you’ll want to rest your (potentially) sweaty head on a soft pillow from home. Make sure you use a pillow case you aren’t too emotionally attached to!
- A warm, thick hoodie — Don’t be fooled by the sunny weather in the day, the temperature really drops at night. Taking a warm hoodie will be a god send when it’s 3am and somehow feels -138 degrees celsius.
- Wellies — The reality of the UK weather, ey? Summer festivals still need wellies sometimes, you don’t want to lose your trainers in ankle-deep mud when the rain hits…
- Torch/Lamp — For the dark trips in the night to spend a penny (northern slang for going to the toilet if you didn’t know…) you don’t want to trip on guylines!
- Food and drink — Although festival vendors are awesome, nothing beats a pack of chocolate digestives or a bagel around the campsite when you need to recharge! As for staying hydrated, a great little product is Dash Water - a range of sparkling water flavoured with wonky fruit to keep your taste buds happy.
- Reusable Bottle — We can’t stress this one enough. Good for the planet and for keeping the dehydration headaches away.
- Clothes — The weather (especially in the UK) isn’t always on your side, so make sure to take enough spare clothes and a waterproof so you are ready for any elements!
- A telescopic flagpole and flag — Hear us out, this is an unsung hero when it comes to finding your camp in a sea of identical tents. They fold up nice and small, and will make finding your bed at the end of the night so much easier.
Toiletries, where less is definitely NOT more
Up to 4 days of no showers (unless you’re lucky enough to have VIP) gives the high potential of your freshness levels dropping significantly. You aren’t alone in this department, but you have some lovely allies that can help you navigate the festival!
- Toothbrush and toothpaste — No one likes that furry teeth feeling. TruthBrush have a lovely range of sustainable bamboo toothbrushes available on their website - we suggest you go for the travel case gift set!
- Deodorant — An everyday essential, even more important at a festival during summer…
- Sun cream — We’re so over the Squashies look, make sure you protect yourself with some sun cream to avoid your skin getting cooked all day!
- Baby wipes — These will be your best mate when the going gets tough (usually around day 2 or 3). These are non-negotiable to stay fresh and clean.
- Dry shampoo — A life saver for your barnet — especially if it’s a warm one!
- Anti-bacterial gel — An essential even before COVID-19, supplies of soap always start to run low at festivals.
- Mirror — A great asset to make sure you’re looking fresh before heading into the mixer (handheld not full length just to specify!)
- First aid/Medication — If you take any medication, make sure it’s one of the first things in your bag. First aid is also a must, so at a minimum pack painkillers, blister plasters and tissues!
Technology you don’t want to leave on the kitchen side
Your memories will last a lifetime, but your technology won’t. Avoid the festival blues or losing your mates for hours with some tech items that everyone needs.
- Phone — It’s highly unlikely you’ll forget this, but it’s definitely one you don’t want to leave at home!
- Portable charger — You’re having a wicked time, one of your favourite songs comes on, and you want to capture the moment. You pull your phone out, and it’s dead. Don’t be this person, get a portable charger on your list (plus a cable!)
- Disposable Camera — Capture the great memories you’re going to make. These are a nice alternative to your phone camera, catching a more authentic view of the festival!
- what3words — We’ve all been there, sometimes you get split up from the crowd, and there’s only so many times you can say ‘3rd flag from the left!’ when trying to describe your whereabouts. This app (available for Apple and Android) is a great way of sharing your precise location with your mates.
Our final send off…
Well, there you have it! Our packing list to make sure you have a great festival, and no packing hiccups along the way. P.S here’s another reminder to not forget your ticket, ID and some money to spend (not having these will really ruin your festival experience…)
Happy festival season, we hope you all have a blast!
