% in site by....?

[Homer]

I think I must be the only person that loathes the new early opening times. Three to four days of Glasto is just about right for me - five to six is just too much for my aging body and brain. It seems to have become something of an endurance test to see who can get in earliest and stay longest. Plus it's such a pain trying to get the extra time off and figure out how to be on site at some ungodly hour of the morning.

Ah well.

[Filth-and-Splendour]

We were lucky !

Left Yorkshire at 11.00 pm Tuesday

Got into car parks about 6.30 am

Got to pedestrian gate just after 8.30 and were sticking tents up not long after 9 !

I am glad cos had a few newbies with us and had they not got camped up for hours may not be coming this year.

[Wirephil]

Talking about Wednesday morning hangovers, we are planning to arrive Tuesday night and stay on the car park. Is there much going on, i am aware there won't be entertainment

[BlackHole2006]

Left Horsham at 4:30AM

Got to Glastonbury at about 8:30AM

Got onto site at about 11am.

Family camping was pretty much full and it was real hard to find a space, but we managed.

[Gnomicide]

It's probably just a rumour but i was told that last year that over 100K of people got in before the footy started.

[AFC]

Don't know if this has been asked in this thread but we are hoping to put up an 8 man tent. We are looking to come in from the west car park. What time roughly, do we need to be in to have a good camping spot?

[MamaJojo]

Talking about Wednesday morning hangovers, we are planning to arrive Tuesday night and stay on the car park. Is there much going on, i am aware there won't be entertainment

[jimmyt]

I hadn't read this thread before and wish I hadn't. I'm a teacher and it's a miracle I can get the Friday off (time in lieu for taking a five day residential this year (I do it every year just to get the Friday!!!)) but the best I can do is leave Reading straight after school on the Thursday. Last year we were on site by about 7.30pm and fortunately we had some friends who had pitched our tent for us (it was a crap pitch, right on a main road, but at least we had a pitch at all). Trouble is, this year it's just me and my girlfriend going and I'm now worried we'll have nowhere to put our tent this year!

[JC-Mo'Fucka]

I hadn't read this thread before and wish I hadn't. I'm a teacher and it's a miracle I can get the Friday off (time in lieu for taking a five day residential this year (I do it every year just to get the Friday!!!)) but the best I can do is leave Reading straight after school on the Thursday. Last year we were on site by about 7.30pm and fortunately we had some friends who had pitched our tent for us (it was a crap pitch, right on a main road, but at least we had a pitch at all). Trouble is, this year it's just me and my girlfriend going and I'm now worried we'll have nowhere to put our tent this year!

[jeffie]

I think there'll be even more there on Wednesday this year. Not sure the footie made a difference. Surely people could have stayed home and watched it and then left for Glastro Thursday morning?

I reckon it'll be 85% full minimum by Wednesday. Ill be there anyway.

[jeffie]

I arrived thursday night after work in 09 and camped in an overfill just outside a gate, sounds terrible but it was fine. Still packed a better atmosphere in there than reading do in the center of their campsite

Edited March 9, 2011 by jeffie

[The Nal]

I think the football made a biiiig difference.

Choice was - sit at home and watch on TV, or stand in a field with up to 100,000 other people - there was no choice.

We made it in and set up an hour before the match, having left a B&B at Shepton Mallet at about 8.00am.

[Chazeboy]

There was a big overflow field inside the perimeter this year gate with the coaches (D?) it was taped off on the weds morning and was still empty every time we did a car run through friday, and when we left monday it was still empty, i guess that was wht it was going to be for not sure, did anyone else see it, it was over the paved road once you got through the gates and got your free stuff, turn left, go up hill and over said road, there was food stalls and camping on your right as you walked passed it, and the field was on the left.

this is a big long winded way of saying seems like they have plenty overflow, i just dont know when they activate it.

[eFestivals]

In 09 there was a lot of people on site too though. Wednesday evening was rammed. The footie just brought it forward a few hours. I still think there'll be 120k on site by Wednesday this year.

while the numbers that arrive on Wednesdays has been growing year on year for decades (for many of those years I blame a website called efestivals ), the huge number of early arrivals last year was driven by the footie to some extent.

But because for many of those early arrivals their arrival was less pleasant than they expected, due to queuing, I suspect that a fair number of those will choose a different arrival time for this year so they don't have the same issues.

So I expect a greater number of people who arrive overnight in the hope of getting in before there's huge queues, plus others who are less fussed about being on site as early as possible on the Wednesday who will arrive later in the day.

[jeffie]

In 09 there was a lot of people on site too though. Wednesday evening was rammed. The footie just brought it forward a few hours. I still think there'll be 120k on site by Wednesday this year.

[Glastoboy]

I hadn't read this thread before and wish I hadn't. I'm a teacher and it's a miracle I can get the Friday off (time in lieu for taking a five day residential this year (I do it every year just to get the Friday!!!)) but the best I can do is leave Reading straight after school on the Thursday. Last year we were on site by about 7.30pm and fortunately we had some friends who had pitched our tent for us (it was a crap pitch, right on a main road, but at least we had a pitch at all). Trouble is, this year it's just me and my girlfriend going and I'm now worried we'll have nowhere to put our tent this year!

[**claire**]

This is the football crowd taken from the hill up by the MyHab bit. Looks a fair old size to me....

[p.pete]

I hadn't read this thread before and wish I hadn't. I'm a teacher and it's a miracle I can get the Friday off (time in lieu for taking a five day residential this year (I do it every year just to get the Friday!!!)) but the best I can do is leave Reading straight after school on the Thursday. Last year we were on site by about 7.30pm and fortunately we had some friends who had pitched our tent for us (it was a crap pitch, right on a main road, but at least we had a pitch at all). Trouble is, this year it's just me and my girlfriend going and I'm now worried we'll have nowhere to put our tent this year!

[jeffie]

U2 fans won't arrive until Friday afternoon, and won't know where they are going.

[p.pete]

And they'll all be going about midnight on friday? Probably won't even bring any camping gear.

I foresee a festival ghost town by Saturday morning.....

[Filthy]

Maybe we need a poll to see what time people were pitched last year and how many people are intending to arrive earlier/ later this year?

[jeffie]

Maybe we need a poll to see what time people were pitched last year and how many people are intending to arrive earlier/ later this year?

[dingbat2]

My sympathies. A lot of my friends are teachers and had to stop coming to Glastonbury becuase the Friday night to Sunday night is just too soul-crushing.

My advice would be to travel light, with a small tent and wander about (especially if you have a desired camping spot), you will be surprised how many people are prepared to shift their tents to make a bit of room for you to squeeze in.

Failing that, there is always space on fringes in Lime Kiln Ground, Wicket Ground & Dairy ground.

[JC-Mo'Fucka]

Hi JC,

I misread your reply to JimmyT, thought it was you, and was just about to congratulate you on having possibly the coolest efests login a teacher could have......

[robith]

I think Wednesday attendance has been naturally increasing year on year. I think the football definitely had an impact on the time of day on Wednesday that people arrived by, but that Wednesday numbers by midnight will still be in the 100k arena.

The weather can't be too understated either. Last two years have been pretty gorgeous and surely encouraged more people to rock up early. Also don't most of the coaches go on Wednesday? The increase in coach based tickets must've increased the Weds count too.

Me, I always come early Thursday. I'd like to do a Wednesday entry, but you know I hear all this talk of queues etc. My 4 years of Thursday entry have been totally stress free