A few questions from a first-timer!

[Vogue]

Hi everyone!

I've been to V a few times (last in 2009) and a few smaller festivals, but I'm really looking forward to my first time at Glastonbury! I have a few questions..

Are there plenty of water taps available? At V we only found one and had to walk for about 15 minutes in the campsite to get some water, and because of this the queue was always ridiculously long, so we ended up having to carry bottled water with us to drink at the campsite. Is this normal, should we take bottled water to glasto too?

Also (another complaint about v! ) is there any hot water available anywhere? At V, we asked at one of the tea and coffee stalls for a small cup of hot water, and they tried to charge us £2.50 (the price of a cup of tea). We had assumed water would be free, are glasto folk a bit more generous? I hope so! sorry if these questions are basic glasto-knowledge!

[whisty]

Plenty of water around the place but queues at certain times are inevitable.

Take a camping gas stove and small kettle

Edited June 4, 2011 by whisty

[rubenz]

You can drink from the numerous taps or purchase some cheap local mineral water from one of the stands. Just avoid the thieving ice cream men!

[stevenc]

I was going to ask about this....

So is it best to not bring bottled water then? Is it fairly cheap from the stalls?

Any other alternatives to bringing a kettle? Trying to pack as light as possible....

[Cooter]

Tap water is free throughout the site, hot water obviously isn't. Bottled water from a stall, cheapest I've seen it is about £2 for a litre, which is very fair in my opinion. Not that I'm into bottled water but if you're caught short then it's handy.

Maybe best to bring a couple of 5 litre bottles just to save the hassle of going to the taps or buying it from a stall a few hours after you arrive. And yes if you want hot water then bring a small gas stove.

[mikeydude]

The busiest time I've found is early morning when everybody is waking up and each wants to spend a while at the tap to do their morning wash and tooth brushing. Get there early or wait till later. If you want early morning water head to the toilet areas near the performance stages and not on the camping areas. These are generally very much quieter in the mornings

[Cooter]

If you want early morning water head to the toilet areas near the performance stages and not on the camping areas. These are generally very much quieter in the mornings

[Spindles]

Plenty of taps, but hot water is something that may come with a cost, dependent on where you ask, I suppose. I know some people have mentioned being given a potnoodle's worth for nothing but when traders have to pay for and cart their gas, equipment, water and so on I can understand them not wanting to get into the business of feeding a queue of people asking for hot water to make a brew with

Try and negotiate a fair price for both parties, is my suggestion.

[Spider43]

For washing water I always find it best to fill up a bucket or bottle when you get in as long as you're not to spangled..

[HurrahBrother]

Taps are everywhere you see toilets and a few other places besides. All the water is drinkable and treated (but the treatment, they tend to err on the side of caution, slighting the water with a tot or dark rum, whiskey or a teabag solves the taste issue)

A brew up kit is recommended. Just a stove and a pot. A stainless steel mug with a lid from a pound shop was my fist festi pot (just remember to use a wet flannel to take the hot pot from the stove) Camping suppliers on site do have gas canisters if yours runs out.

Fresh Milk is available both from a milk float that goes around every morning and the Yellow stores (which server as the festival convenience shop) but how do you stop it going off? As a coffee man, I use baileys (which won't go off).

If you are taking a brew up kit, get a small bowl that you could wash out of and you can have a strip wash in your tent. Just add safe soap (either that liquid lifeventure stuff or one from the body shop), flannel, hand towel and some talc powder if your not already taking them (means you can also use the showers, yes there are showers on site).

[Runner]

Have you thought of buying a hexi stove? Not all stoves have to be big and cumbersome.

Hexi stoves pack up smaller than a paperback book, and the blocks for burning are also relatively small.

The stove should cost no more than £5 from an army supply store

http://www.surplusandoutdoors.com/shop/survival-accessories/survival-accessories/even-more-survival-accessories/survival-hexi-stove-includes-290928.html

Peace x

[HurrahBrother]

Have you thought of buying a hexi stove? Not all stoves have to be big and cumbersome.

Hexi stoves pack up smaller than a paperback book, and the blocks for burning are also relatively small.

The stove should cost no more than £5 from an army supply store

http://www.surplusandoutdoors.com/shop/survival-accessories/survival-accessories/even-more-survival-accessories/survival-hexi-stove-includes-290928.html

Peace x

[fur_q]

I have a stove I made from a travel sweet tin and a hair wax tin and I power it using greenheat alcohol gel that comes in sachets (google it, better than meths as you don't need a fuel bottle) it's dead light, cost nothing and is perfect for heating a kettle of water.

Will post details on how it was made if Anyones nterested

Edited June 4, 2011 by fur_q

[MEGABOWL]

For washing water I always find it best to fill up a bucket or bottle when you get in as long as you're not to spangled..