Where do you camp and why?

[Mr.Tease]

1 hour ago, gratefulbread said:

Lots of votes for Dairy, that might be the one. Thanks! Don't mind being too far away from the Pyramid. I think I only watched two sets from there last time. 

Er, hasn't a large chunk/nearly all of it been turned into crew camping this year?:

[Mr.Tease]

2 hours ago, gratefulbread said:

I might require some assistance ya'll. 

I usually camp at Park Home as generally I love being near the Park Area and Arcadia. 

This is the first year wor lass is coming with me. The vibe at this year's festival for me is going to be significantly less nocturnal than usual (might have one or two late late nights but gone are the days of 7am finishes every day). 

Where would be good to camp that isn't too far from those areas, but quiet enough for my partner to get some proper rest? 

Has anybody got any experience of camping around Park Home but having relatively early bed times (ie before Arcadia shuts down)? 

Or will Park Home be sound with some decent earplugs? 

 

Thank you in advance for your wisdom. 

 

I've never camped there, but is the unfortunately named Cockmill Meadow family camping area an option? Depending on how old your daughter is, it's near kids field and the circus field, should be relatively quiet.

[djdavejohnson]

I have a few questions if anybody is able to advise?

I usually opt for pitching up in Kidney Mead, however is there a huge difference between here and Big Ground? Does one fill up quicker than the other? Pro's and con's?

This year we'll be driving in from Bristol, whereas usually we drive in from the East, can we still get to the east entrance driving this way in? Is this generally a more traffic-ridden route compared to coming in from East?

Or is it better to drive to West entrance? If so, any recommendations on fields to camp in over this side? Previously only ever done Bushy Ground.

Really appreciate any feedback, thanks!

[gratefulbread]

43 minutes ago, Mr.Tease said:

I've never camped there, but is the unfortunately named Cockmill Meadow family camping area an option? Depending on how old your daughter is, it's near kids field and the circus field, should be relatively quiet.

Sorry, "wor lass" is Geordie for my partner ?

My bad. Thanks though! 

[Mr.Tease]

6 minutes ago, gratefulbread said:

Sorry, "wor lass" is Geordie for my partner ?

My bad. Thanks though! 

Ha, in Scotland it means daughter? the language barrier!

[Avalon_Fields]

25 minutes ago, djdavejohnson said:

I have a few questions if anybody is able to advise?

I usually opt for pitching up in Kidney Mead, however is there a huge difference between here and Big Ground? Does one fill up quicker than the other? Pro's and con's?

This year we'll be driving in from Bristol, whereas usually we drive in from the East, can we still get to the east entrance driving this way in? Is this generally a more traffic-ridden route compared to coming in from East?

Or is it better to drive to West entrance? If so, any recommendations on fields to camp in over this side? Previously only ever done Bushy Ground.

Really appreciate any feedback, thanks!

I'd recommend Big Ground, but is very quick to fill up these days, need to be there  Wednesday morning before midday for a decent pitch I think. It's an easy walk from Gate B so aim for East car parks, it's a real slog from the West car parks.

Not Been to Kidney Mead, but BG advantages as I see it:

Great view of the pyramid

On a slope so if it's wet you're safer

Close to the gate

You can avoid crowds by keeping high, towards JP tent and the Other Stage, or the other way through the top of the kids field to Acoustic and down to Theatre & Circus, SE corner, etc...all a relatively easy route compared with battling it through the central walkways.

[djdavejohnson]

43 minutes ago, Avalon_Fields said:

I'd recommend Big Ground, but is very quick to fill up these days, need to be there  Wednesday morning before midday for a decent pitch I think. It's an easy walk from Gate B so aim for East car parks, it's a real slog from the West car parks.

Not Been to Kidney Mead, but BG advantages as I see it:

Great view of the pyramid

On a slope so if it's wet you're safer

Close to the gate

You can avoid crowds by keeping high, towards JP tent and the Other Stage, or the other way through the top of the kids field to Acoustic and down to Theatre & Circus, SE corner, etc...all a relatively easy route compared with battling it through the central walkways.

Ok that's great @Avalon_Fields, thanks for the advice there.

I'll aim for Big Ground, and if I'm too late for that I can venture down into Kidney Mead.

Anybody - having just looked at the 2017 road map, it looks like there's a brown, purple and blue route onto the farm from the East. And coming southbound on the A37, brown route is the first route you hit which takes you to purple parking and closer to gate B. Are you able to choose which route in to take? Or is it a case of if that was full for example, that's closed off and you're directed down to another entrance?

Aiming to leave Bristol around 7am if that helps - leaving time is flexible! Thanks ?

 

Edited April 29, 2019 by djdavejohnson
Spelling

[glastohead11]

Does anyone know if there are only certain gates that Taxis will drop off at?

[dccool]

17 hours ago, vintagelaureate said:

I camp in Park Home which is pretty noisy because of Arcadia, doesn't bother me - I wonder how the new Arcadia will affect things?

Bigger louder and brighter is my guess

[Woffy]

37 minutes ago, glastohead11 said:

Does anyone know if there are only certain gates that Taxis will drop off at?

Unless i'm mistaken - which, generally speaking, is a distinct possibility - the festival doesn't encourage anyone to be dropped off at gates, taxis included.

The preferred option is at the Collect and Drop Off at Bath & West Showground, where you can then get the 24/7 shuttle bus (10mins) to Gate A.

Edit: A taxi isn't going to get you to Gate B or C anyway, only to the entrance to the car park fields, leaving you with a massive walk to the actual gate.

NB: I'm a southerner, so i only really know the east gates / car parking.

 

Happy to be corrected by someone more knowledgable though.

Edited April 29, 2019 by Woffy

[incident]

Just now, Woffy said:

Unless i'm mistaken - which, generally spekaing, is a distinct possibility - the festival doesn't encourage anyone to be dropped off at gates, taxis included.

The preferred option is at the Collect and Drop Off at Bath & West Showground, where you can then get the 24/7 shuttle bus (10mins) to Gate A.

Yep, that's right.

For Gates C and D, Taxis can't even get anywhere near the gates without the appropriate routing / car park pass.

At Gates A and B, the public road is patrolled and monitored, and anyone attempting to stop to drop off / pick up is going to be moved on and/or ticketed pretty quickly.

[Woffy]

21 minutes ago, incident said:

Yep, that's right.

For Gates C and D, Taxis can't even get anywhere near the gates without the appropriate routing / car park pass.

At Gates A and B, the public road is patrolled and monitored, and anyone attempting to stop to drop off / pick up is going to be moved on and/or ticketed pretty quickly.

The Collect & Drop Off is pretty easy work too - far less hassle.

Only drawback is that you can't take trollies or wheelbarrows on the shuttle bus.

But i did email the festival last week and they confirmed they have no issues with people bringing foldable pushchairs / buggies.

[The_Amazing_Oblong]

First year was Oxlyers then a few years at Pennards. After the 05 flood returned to Oxlyers and have been there every year since (except for crew camping for a year when we couldn't get tickets). It's very busy (camped on top of each other) but close to our most often used areas.

[Zoo Music Girl]

21 minutes ago, Woffy said:

The Collect & Drop Off is pretty easy work too - far less hassle.

Only drawback is that you can't take trollies or wheelbarrows on the shuttle bus.

But i did email the festival last week and they confirmed they have no issues with people bringing foldable pushchairs / buggies.

I used to get the shuttle bus from B&W every year (a friend's mum lived fairly nearby so we would crash there the night before and get on site for gates opening). One year they let us take a wheelbarrow to the festival but wouldn't let us take it back - it was her mum's decent metal one so we had to spend ages trying to persuade them that if they let us bring it in surely we should he able to take it back. Luckily the driver who took us in showed up and agreed to take it back as he'd brought it in. Was horrific as we'd just spent best part of an hour dragging the bloody thing through mud from Park Home on zero hours sleep. I'd never bring anything like that again.

Getting a shuttle bus was always a great option as long as we got there nice and early. One year though (2009, also the wheelbarrow year) there was an accident or something nearby that meant we were kept at the showground for hours and hours in the blazing sun. Pretty sure I got sunstroke that year. 

[Woffy]

51 minutes ago, Zoo Music Girl said:

I used to get the shuttle bus from B&W every year (a friend's mum lived fairly nearby so we would crash there the night before and get on site for gates opening). One year they let us take a wheelbarrow to the festival but wouldn't let us take it back - it was her mum's decent metal one so we had to spend ages trying to persuade them that if they let us bring it in surely we should he able to take it back. Luckily the driver who took us in showed up and agreed to take it back as he'd brought it in. Was horrific as we'd just spent best part of an hour dragging the bloody thing through mud from Park Home on zero hours sleep. I'd never bring anything like that again.

Getting a shuttle bus was always a great option as long as we got there nice and early. One year though (2009, also the wheelbarrow year) there was an accident or something nearby that meant we were kept at the showground for hours and hours in the blazing sun. Pretty sure I got sunstroke that year. 

So getting the shuttle bus is great as long as you don't take a wheelbarrow, there isn't an accident and you don't get sunstroke! ??

I'm getting the shuttle bus from Gate A to B&W for 9am on Sunday (and then back again).

Hopefully it'll be quite quiet around that time of day. ?

The plan is to pack up all my tent and gear on Sunday morning, take it with me and put it in Mrs Woffy's car at B&W. Then return to site with Mini-Woffy and the buggy. Then we can just leave in my car after Q.U.E.E.N. Janelle.

 

[Zoo Music Girl]

43 minutes ago, Woffy said:

So getting the shuttle bus is great as long as you don't take a wheelbarrow, there isn't an accident and you don't get sunstroke! ??

 

 

 

Ha pretty much yeah. Should say I did it from B&W on 2010, 2011 and 2013 as well with no issues And from the train station in 2008 (fine but bit of a long wait).

Edited April 29, 2019 by Zoo Music Girl

[Jack.194]

Not sure if this is the correct place to post, but I'm trying to work out where is best to camp (first time going this year!)

We're looking for a fairly lively camping site, not too worried about getting loads of sleep but ideally want to be close to all the action! Have read a few different articles/posts and Oxlyers is looking like a good possibility. 

Also seeing as none of our group have been before how would we get to Oxlyers (or whichever campsite is considered most appropriate) e.g. what gate is best to come in at/how to get there from the car park of that gate etc.

Very inexperienced in Glasto in general but very very excited!

[kalifire]

25 minutes ago, Jack.194 said:

Not sure if this is the correct place to post, but I'm trying to work out where is best to camp (first time going this year!)

We're looking for a fairly lively camping site, not too worried about getting loads of sleep but ideally want to be close to all the action! Have read a few different articles/posts and Oxlyers is looking like a good possibility. 

Also seeing as none of our group have been before how would we get to Oxlyers (or whichever campsite is considered most appropriate) e.g. what gate is best to come in at/how to get there from the car park of that gate etc.

Very inexperienced in Glasto in general but very very excited!

I think any of the inner fields are going to tick your boxes, mate. Oxylers, Pennards, Big Ground, Kidney Mead - they're all going to be crammed and full of more life at night than the fields closer to the edge. I'd personally go for Pennards over Oxylers just because there are fewer people coming through, whereas when you get a popular act on Other, it can be pandemonium. 

Unless you're getting a coach/shuttle in which case you have no choice, Gate D is your best choice for Oxylers/Pennards, B or C for Big Ground/Kidney Mead. Just look at the map.

You're going to have a brilliant time!

[Skelts]

26 minutes ago, Jack.194 said:

Not sure if this is the correct place to post, but I'm trying to work out where is best to camp (first time going this year!)

We're looking for a fairly lively camping site, not too worried about getting loads of sleep but ideally want to be close to all the action! Have read a few different articles/posts and Oxlyers is looking like a good possibility. 

Also seeing as none of our group have been before how would we get to Oxlyers (or whichever campsite is considered most appropriate) e.g. what gate is best to come in at/how to get there from the car park of that gate etc.

Very inexperienced in Glasto in general but very very excited!

Oxlyers will pretty much fulfil all of this!  It's fairly central and accessible from all gates, but is closest to Gate D.  Time to start obsessing over the map to figure out the route from whichever gate you come in via.  You can't really miss it though, just head for the Other stage.

If you haven't come across it already, this site will give you pretty much all the info you need.  Have fun at your first Glasto, you're in for a treat!

http://www.glastoearth.com/the-faq

[Divein]

27 minutes ago, Jack.194 said:

Not sure if this is the correct place to post, but I'm trying to work out where is best to camp (first time going this year!)

We're looking for a fairly lively camping site, not too worried about getting loads of sleep but ideally want to be close to all the action! Have read a few different articles/posts and Oxlyers is looking like a good possibility. 

Also seeing as none of our group have been before how would we get to Oxlyers (or whichever campsite is considered most appropriate) e.g. what gate is best to come in at/how to get there from the car park of that gate etc.

Very inexperienced in Glasto in general but very very excited!

I would say you've come to the right place.

 

I've camped in Oxylers since 2010 and I think it's a great spot. We have (what I believe) is a really good place to camp, it's not in the main bit directly opposite the Other Stage but in the back half over the path that runs diagonal through Oxylers. We camp on the right hand cornerish towards the back fence. There's always space all festival as no one goes that far back and we just walk to the hedge line and it brings us out at the on the entrance to Silver Hayes. It's also quiet as there's no through traffic but if you wanted it a bit lively you could go more towards the middle and the path. 

I'm adamant it's pretty much the same to get to Oxylers really between Gate A and Gate D , which are all on the west side of the site (Pink, Orange, Yellow Car Parks), so if you head to the site from the west then you'll get put in one of those car parks. I think Gate A moves quicker than Gate D and the queue is slightly less as Gate D is the gate for Pennerds so is always busier. 

Gate A to Oxylers is right when you get in, walk down the path through the hedge (keep left), down to the hedge again over the little bridge, and up and  left through silver hayes, once you get out on silver hayes its all on the right.

Gate D (this is a rough one as Ive done it once in 2010) is through Gate D and then right, where you have to get round dairy now as there's loads of crew camping by the looks of it and then head down towards the railway track. Oxylers will be down in front of you.

 

I hope that makes a little sense. 

[Jack.194]

Looks like Oxylers it is! Thanks to all those that responded, now I've just got to get my head around the map!

[Quark]

28 minutes ago, Jack.194 said:

Looks like Oxylers it is! Thanks to all those that responded, now I've just got to get my head around the map!

Read it carefully, tale it all in, get your head around where the stages are in relation to each other....then rock up, take one look at the place and forget it all in an instant

You'll have a banging time.

Although I would disagree with @kalifire on one note - we normally camp in Big Ground, and while it's great in terms of being able to watch Pyramid from a chair outside your tent I wouldn't call it the liveliest come night time. More likely to find chilled campfires than raucous shenanigans.  And it can be a bit of a schlep uphill if you want to duck back there between sets to refuel

[jyoung]

39 minutes ago, Jack.194 said:

Looks like Oxylers it is! Thanks to all those that responded, now I've just got to get my head around the map!

Just don't bother with the Welsh Oggie.

[dccool]

Camped in big ground a few times 2010 and 2013 most recently. In comparison to paines and oxlyers (2015 and 2016) its positively sedate unless over the last few years its changed. 

Generally rule of thumb is the nearer you pitch a tent to the SE corner the livelier the campsite. 

Paines or maybe back of oxlyers this year.

[timbrass]

Baileys for 8 of us because it is easier to carry in tents from Campervan West (where 4 of us are staying) and there is a bit more space.