Where do you camp and why?

[mazola]

13 minutes ago, George1399 said:

I heard that you can arrive at the car parks from Tuesday evening? I'm driving from Kent so this would be ideal to get an early spot in the queue Wednesday.

Has anybody done this and could say whether or not it's worth the kip in the car? Makes minimal odds imo if i'd have to be up at the buttcrack of dawn to get to the farm by 8am.

If you are going to go the night before, then kipping in the car defeats the object, might as well get a chair out and try and kip in the queue. There will already be massive queues by 5 or 6 in the morning.

How early you need to turn up depends on how big your group is and where you want to camp.

[gfa]

50 minutes ago, Deaf Nobby Burton said:

It is definitely a fine art which I guess a lot of is down to personal preference. For example if you take Oxylers as an example, it always surprises me that it generally fills up from the middle out. Now I get the benefits of that, you’re further away from the path so less noise and you have less people having to walk past your tent to get to theirs, but equally being right in the middle must be an absolute nightmare navigating to and from your tent. I would’ve thought the sweet spot would be maybe 3/4/5 tents from a path, but it appears not from the way the fields fill up.

Generally what i find is that being furthest from the path means you have a bit more space, nearer to the path you have people cramming their tents in a lot more. Helps if you have people joining you later on I guess - although i'd say 3-5 tents from the path is the sweet spot honestly.

[Fish Bulb]

I keep hearing an option of getting there a bit later on the Wed and walking straight in, no queues. What time do we realistically think that would be? Midday onwards?

[Avalon_Fields]

Just now, Fish Bulb said:

I keep hearing an option of getting there a bit later on the Wed and walking straight in, no queues. What time do we realistically think that would be? Midday onwards?

I've got in through Gate C the last couple of times with minimal queues at around 11:00.

[Fish Bulb]

16 minutes ago, Avalon_Fields said:

I've got in through Gate C the last couple of times with minimal queues at around 11:00.

Cheers. Last two times we've arrived at about 9 and although we come in the coach queue so that bit isn't too bad, I am tempted by just waltzing in (and leaving my bed / house a bit later).

Now I've just got to convince everyone else this would be a good idea...

[cheesey_toastie]

3 hours ago, northernringo said:

First time visit for my group this year - is there an average queuing time for people arriving around 8am? I think our bus gets in at 8.45am

There's big variations based on weather (if all the camper vans get stuck again and back the traffic up), and what gate you come into. 

They seem to keep the coach gate moving pretty fast tbh. The coach arrivals are spaced out - that is probably the busiest time to arrive though. I would be happy if you got in within two hours. It depends if the stewards are directing car arrivals to that gate... 

I think the longest I've ever had to wait to get in is about 2-3 hours. I've heard folk joining the back of the overnight queue and waiting longer though. Things seem much better organised in recent years.

[Fish Bulb]

3 hours ago, northernringo said:

First time visit for my group this year - is there an average queuing time for people arriving around 8am? I think our bus gets in at 8.45am

The last two festivals I've joined that queue, at about that time, and from memory I don't think we queued over an hour each time. However I have horror stories from 2016 with the mud etc. So as mentioned, think it does depend on the weather.

[gooner1990]

23 minutes ago, Fish Bulb said:

The last two festivals I've joined that queue, at about that time, and from memory I don't think we queued over an hour each time. However I have horror stories from 2016 with the mud etc. So as mentioned, think it does depend on the weather.

In 2015 I got the coach and arrived 10.30am approx and was through Ped Gate A (coach entrance) within 40 mins.

[JoeyT]

Without reading back (lazy I know) can anyone tell me what it's like to get in the queue Tuesday evening & queue through the night?

I've never had to / never will do it myself but I genuinely can't think of anything worse than getting a broken sleep in the cold and then wrecking myself so I can't enjoy the Wednesday.

Is there seriously camping spots worth doing that to yourself for?!

[broken monkey]

In 2017, we got there around 9.30 and queue for 1.5hrs but when we went back for our second batch of gear around 12, the queues had gone. 
We got to the gates around 11am in 2019 and walked right in.

This was gate D for reference. 

[broken monkey]

Just to add. 2017 was just after the MEN bombing incident so queues were particularly worse that year due to the extra bag searches. 

[GoonerRob]

12 minutes ago, JoeyT said:

Without reading back (lazy I know) can anyone tell me what it's like to get in the queue Tuesday evening & queue through the night?

I've never had to / never will do it myself but I genuinely can't think of anything worse than getting a broken sleep in the cold and then wrecking myself so I can't enjoy the Wednesday.

Is there seriously camping spots worth doing that to yourself for?!

We do it every year... it's when the festival starts for us. Few cans in the queue, joint or two, excitement building, try grab a couple of hours kip (wear warm clothes or just bring your sleeping bag and a camping chair)... cant wait. 

 

 

[FrancisH]

Tagged this question onto the end of a post the other day - but I'll just ask directly!

What's the deal with Pennards, looking at these posts doesn't seem like many people go there? Anyone got any experience?

We've done Paines for years but now all our mates are in WV so it's just me and partner. We love Greenfields stuff and tend not to get back to our tent until about 5/6am anyway so Pennards seems logical?

edit; we're tuesday night queuers so shouldn't be too much of a problem getting in?

Edited April 6, 2022 by FrancisH

[leath02]

Has anyone who's ever volunteered, gone and pitched a tent in the main campsite for a pal who's arriving with a normal ticket before the gates open? Or heard of this being done?

[Deaf Nobby Burton]

4 minutes ago, leath02 said:

Has anyone who's ever volunteered, gone and pitched a tent in the main campsite for a pal who's arriving with a normal ticket before the gates open? Or heard of this being done?

I’m sure it happens, but there are signs everywhere saying tents erected before 7am (or 8am maybe?) Wednesday will be removed.

Edited April 6, 2022 by Deaf Nobby Burton

[leath02]

4 minutes ago, Deaf Nobby Burton said:

I’m sure it happens, but there are signs everywhere saying tents erected before 7am (or 8am maybe?) Wednesday will be removed.

aye thought as much, seems an unccessary risk, ta for the info

[blutarsky]

19 minutes ago, leath02 said:

Has anyone who's ever volunteered, gone and pitched a tent in the main campsite for a pal who's arriving with a normal ticket before the gates open? Or heard of this being done?

14 minutes ago, Deaf Nobby Burton said:

I’m sure it happens, but there are signs everywhere saying tents erected before 7am Wednesday will be removed.

I have family who are traders. In 2019 my brother-in-law took in my parents tent and set it up for them in Pennards bang on 7am Wednesday. It was the first tent in the field. Obviously he was inside the fence - might be more difficult for a volunteer to do this. 

[jimmillen]

21 minutes ago, FrancisH said:

Tagged this question onto the end of a post the other day - but I'll just ask directly!

What's the deal with Pennards, looking at these posts doesn't seem like many people go there? Anyone got any experience?

We've done Paines for years but now all our mates are in WV so it's just me and partner. We love Greenfields stuff and tend not to get back to our tent until about 5/6am anyway so Pennards seems logical?

edit; we're tuesday night queuers so shouldn't be too much of a problem getting in?

I camped in Pennards in 2016, it was fine. Seemed like a pretty young demographic compared to the festival overall, lots of people seriously getting on it, but perfectly friendly vibe. The downsides are lack of space, the tents are squashed in like sardines, and noise - there's probably not an hour of the day when people aren't walking past your tent, singing, shouting, talking - but that's what ear plugs are for. 🙂 

I wouldn't choose there now 'cos I'm older and boring and would want a bit more quiet, but it's really not that bad.

[FrancisH]

Much appreciated! Might give it a shot... Though I can see me getting to our usual spot in Paines and throwing the bags down haha

[Olshansky]

2 hours ago, JoeyT said:

Without reading back (lazy I know) can anyone tell me what it's like to get in the queue Tuesday evening & queue through the night?

I've never had to / never will do it myself but I genuinely can't think of anything worse than getting a broken sleep in the cold and then wrecking myself so I can't enjoy the Wednesday.

Is there seriously camping spots worth doing that to yourself for?!

the only time i ever did the tuesday overnight queue was in 2015.  I didn't wear proper clothes, and even with a blanket and sleeping bag wrapped around me I was absolutely freezing. Not like, annoying freezing - miserable freezing.  Didn't really sleep either, but took a nap after the tent was all set up.  

after 5am or so, the queue would move a good distance every so often, so you didn't really get a chance to rest anyway.  And then of course, the excitement sets in.  

[efcfanwirral]

1 hour ago, FrancisH said:

Much appreciated! Might give it a shot... Though I can see me getting to our usual spot in Paines and throwing the bags down haha

Paines is my plan this year- what's it like? Only ever done round there once when Arcadia wasn't there 

[petewilson09]

We are first-timers and have a rough plan of driving down from Leeds leaving about 2am on wednesday morning, getting to car park about 6 ish. 

We have planned to come in via Blue route or at least east side of site and coming in gate B or C. 

We have discussed camping in Big Ground/kidney mead.

Has anyone any thoughts on whether this is feasible or would we be looking at a long queue? Or would we be best leaving earlier  than 2am or leaving later to avoid huge queues? 

 😀 

[dotdash79]

5 minutes ago, petewilson09 said:

We are first-timers and have a rough plan of driving down from Leeds leaving about 2am on wednesday morning, getting to car park about 6 ish. 

We have planned to come in via Blue route or at least east side of site and coming in gate B or C. 

We have discussed camping in Big Ground/kidney mead.

Has anyone any thoughts on whether this is feasible or would we be looking at a long queue? Or would we be best leaving earlier  than 2am or leaving later to avoid huge queues? 

 😀 

We did this in 2019 from Rochdale, you will have to take a break on the way down. We made it on site at around 8:30 after hitting some traffic. 
 

but we were knackered for the day so you will have to have a nap in the day

[petewilson09]

5 minutes ago, dotdash79 said:

We did this in 2019 from Rochdale, you will have to take a break on the way down. We made it on site at around 8:30 after hitting some traffic. 
 

but we were knackered for the day so you will have to have a nap in the day

When you say made it on site, do you mean into a campsite or into a car park?

Yea we have factored in a probable nap at some point during the day 😅

[dotdash79]

3 minutes ago, petewilson09 said:

When you say made it on site, do you mean into a campsite or into a car park?

Into the car park we was pitched at around 10:30