Campsite Poll

[gooner1990]

14 hours ago, Pinhead said:

Oxleyers was where you were guaranteed to be robbed the first night and where if it was a muddy one you were likely to be the first flooded out. In some ways cant believe its still going where the camping strip between Other and Jazzworld was taken away for traders years ago. Still miss Dragon's myself tbh...

When did that strip of camping disappear?

Fairly sure it was still there when I started going in 2004.

[Lycra]

11 hours ago, AlexOvd said:

Being our first Glastonbury and coming out of the UK, how safe is the camping about robberies? For the ones coming from overseas how do you usually do with your passport for example to keep it safe? Any tips? 

Glasto Is one of the safest festivals but crime does occur. It's advisable to use one of the property lock-up facilities (they're free to use) for your valuables. For more info follow the link below

https://www.glastonburyfestivals.co.uk/information/advice/property-lock-ups/

[incident]

9 minutes ago, gooner1990 said:

When did that strip of camping disappear?

Fairly sure it was still there when I started going in 2004.

2009 I think was the last year. Certainly the last year we camped there. Maybe a very small amount of public camping was still left in 2010 but definitely not beyond that.

Basically it gradually got turned over to Staff camping for the SE corner crew.. at first bits were annexed unofficially starting in Williams and then creeping into Dragon, and then eventually (2010 or 11) the festival made it official and closed both fields to public campers.

[gooner1990]

8 minutes ago, incident said:

2009 I think was the last year. Certainly the last year we camped there. Maybe a very small amount of public camping was still left in 2010 but definitely not beyond that.

Basically it gradually got turned over to Staff camping for the SE corner crew.. at first bits were annexed unofficially starting in Williams and then creeping into Dragon, and then eventually (2010 or 11) the festival made it official and closed both fields to public campers.

Thanks for the info. 🙂

Now I think about it, I'm fairly sure some friends of mine camped there in 2009 as I went over there on the Weds afternoon to see them.

That's the thing with more 'attractions' is that they need space for it, plus then space for the crew!  Give it a few years and most of the punter camping will be right on the outskirts of the site.

[Gnomicide]

31 minutes ago, gooner1990 said:

When did that strip of camping disappear?

Fairly sure it was still there when I started going in 2004.

If you mean this but, it was definitely still there in 2010, I remember it being there then, the map shows it there as late as 2011.

2010:

2011:

2013:

[gooner1990]

7 minutes ago, Gnomicide said:

If you mean this but, it was definitely still there in 2010, I remember it being there then, the map shows it there as late as 2011.

2010:

2011:

2013:

I actually meant this > from 2007 below where it says Oxlyers Bridge and to the left of The Glade.

[incident]

Oh wait, I misread was talking Dragon/Williams rather than the bit across from the Other Stage. No idea about that section.

[Justcalledtosay]

11 hours ago, Memory Man said:

Never knowingly had my tent visited / robbed going every year as a standard punter since 2007. Not saying it doesnt happen but you’d have to be desperately unlucky to have it happen to you. Its not at all rife. I have to say i love the advent of contactless meaning hopefully carrying more than a bit of petty cash is a thing of the past. I was never comfortable having over £100 cash on me at any time, which was of course completely normal up until very recently. Other than cash and a smartphone i wouldnt bring anything worth stealing. Good luck finding my car amongst the tens of thousands if you get the key. I have never bothered with the lockups myself but can see why people do.

Contactless payment is up to £100 now, so technically you’re still carrying £100 in cash on your person 😉

[incident]

8 minutes ago, Justcalledtosay said:

Contactless payment is up to £100 now, so technically you’re still carrying £100 in cash on your person 😉

Most bank apps will let you temporarily "freeze" your card - which I'd definitely suggest people do when not in use at a festival.

[Gnomicide]

1 hour ago, gooner1990 said:

I actually meant this > from 2007 below where it says Oxlyers Bridge and to the left of The Glade.

In that case, no idea. I don't remember ever seeing camping there, I started going in 2010 so before that.

[gooner1990]

18 minutes ago, Gnomicide said:

In that case, no idea. I don't remember ever seeing camping there, I started going in 2010 so before that.

OK just for my own sanity I looked at some old maps, looks like the last time that camping was across the bottom of that field was 2008 then it was given over to food traders for the 2009 festival.

🙂 

[Memory Man]

6 hours ago, Justcalledtosay said:

Contactless payment is up to £100 now, so technically you’re still carrying £100 in cash on your person 😉

Fair! If you use monzo they let you select your own contactless limit so you could put it down to say £20. And yes find out how to freeze your card using your phone if it goes missing!

I actually wonder (still) if the fest will have gone fully contactless due to its massive scale. There are bound to be places in far flung parts of the site & some bars where cash will still be easier

[Stevie P-alike]

2013 - My first time. It was a 60th birthday present from my sons, who were regulars and knew the ropes. They were in at the crack of dawn and had set up 6 tents on Kidney Mead by 10:30 Wednesday. We could see and hear the Pyramid perfectly - I was amazed at the clarity of the sound when Jake Bugg kicked off. Although close in, it was quiet at night as everybody was drawn to other areas. Composting toilets were just down opposite the Pyramid, and were clean first thing, so my two main concerns (sleeping and toilets) evaporated on day 1.

2016 - Arrived midday Thursday - various friends were scatted around, but all reported no room. We eventually ended up at Lower Mead, at the bottom of the hill almost at the road crossing into Silver Hayes. The noise was intense - drum and bass pounded out throughout the night, and the tent seemed to be literally shaking. Many are saying it closed at 3, but I woke at 5 a couple of times and something was still booming away. Despite all of this we somehow slept like logs - I guess when you're completely knackered you'll sleep through anything. As we were at the bottom of a hill, and it was one of the muddiest on record, our pitch gradually became an island, but luckily no water got into the tent. Toilets OK, but at the top of the hill and quite long queues most of the time, even early morning. Lots of food stalls though.

2017 - First time of using the coaches, and didn't leave London until 10, so arrived mid-afternoon Wednesday. Struggled to find anywhere at first, and as I was carrying 2 tents, I didn't have the strength to look around too much (hottest day of the year, too!). I ended up climbing up past John Peel to what I think was Wicket (although the bit I was in definitely wasn't Families only). I think I'd aim for here next time, as it was very close to JP and its bars, and good for the central areas. A longs schlep to the Naughty Corner though. Some nice, clean long-drops, and a cracking breakfast bar all nearby.

To be honest, I'd give anywhere a try. Each area has it's own good and bad points, and depending on when you arrive, you'll probably not have too much choice anyway. And wherever you find yourself, you'll have a blast....

[gfa]

59 minutes ago, Memory Man said:

Fair! If you use monzo they let you select your own contactless limit so you could put it down to say £20. And yes find out how to freeze your card using your phone if it goes missing!

I actually wonder (still) if the fest will have gone fully contactless due to its massive scale. There are bound to be places in far flung parts of the site & some bars where cash will still be easier

A few festivals claimed to be fully contactless this year but most vendors still took cash. They prefer it anyway because theres no card fees etc and its also a good backup incase systems go down

[blutarsky]

3 hours ago, gfa said:

A few festivals claimed to be fully contactless this year but most vendors still took cash. They prefer it anyway because theres no card fees etc and its also a good backup incase systems go down

And you can tell HMRC no-one was interested in buying a growler. 

[Pinhead]

12 hours ago, gooner1990 said:

Thanks for the info. 🙂

Now I think about it, I'm fairly sure some friends of mine camped there in 2009 as I went over there on the Weds afternoon to see them.

That's the thing with more 'attractions' is that they need space for it, plus then space for the crew!  Give it a few years and most of the punter camping will be right on the outskirts of the site.

2010 saw Dragon's halved so that only the Southern end (Piano Bar end), could be used by punters (we unitially started pitching lower down near the exit into SE Corner via railway line as we had done since 2007, but were moved on by security). Then in 2011 I was in Big Lickle with Oxfam and my mate still managed to pitch on the higher edge of the Southern end of Dragon's next to the heras fence and Piano Bar (though officially it was supposed to be crew only and no longer available to punters that year). Had last camped in Williams next door in 2002 and my mate last camped there 2007 I think, after which it became crew only (presumably due to new SE Corner crew / management needs in 2008, i.e. Shangri-La).

[Pinhead]

11 hours ago, Gnomicide said:

In that case, no idea. I don't remember ever seeing camping there, I started going in 2010 so before that.

This campsite between Other and Jazz was halved in 2013 due to space demands of short lived Spirit stage, after which it went altogether to make way for markets and was it the first mobile charging tent? Hare Krishna tent also found itself there for a few years as well I think b4 its more recent contemporary location.

[Gnomicide]

1 hour ago, Pinhead said:

This campsite between Other and Jazz was halved in 2013 due to space demands of short lived Spirit stage, after which it went altogether to make way for markets and was it the first mobile charging tent? Hare Krishna tent also found itself there for a few years as well I think b4 its more recent contemporary location.

There was a mobile charging tent in 2010. Orange Chill n Charge rather than EE, it also had a mini Pyramid stage in there.

[kalifire]

I’m always a bit baffled by the people who’ll queue, sometimes for hours, to sit by their phone as it charges up. I always used the lock ups for that. Was it 2019 when the festival made a decision half way through the weekend to stop lock ups from being able to charge phones, so everyone had to go to EE? Pissed me right off, that decision.

I’ll be taking a powerbank or two with me in June. 

[Memory Man]

2 hours ago, kalifire said:

I’ll be taking a powerbank or two with me in June. 

These are up there with tent & sleeping bag as most essential item to bring these days! I always laugh when i see a que of people at EE when you can buy one for £20 off amazon that will last you 5-10 years! Only a rank amateur would go to a festival without one these days 😂

[Gnomicide]

The EE power bar swap thing they did was good when it first started. Walk up, swap it, walk away. They are light and not cumbersome to carry around but they just got too expensive and not being able to swap ones from previous years was just a scam. 

For the price of their single charge jobs you can buy a bigger one with enough charges to last the weekend.

[Crazyfool01]

18 minutes ago, Gnomicide said:

The EE power bar swap thing they did was good when it first started. Walk up, swap it, walk away. They are light and not cumbersome to carry around but they just got too expensive and not being able to swap ones from previous years was just a scam. 

For the price of their single charge jobs you can buy a bigger one with enough charges to last the weekend.

and the fact they had to withdraw them because they were a fire hazard (ive still go mine somewhere ) .... probably not enough power inn it to give a 1/4 charge to most modern camera phones ... 

[gooner1990]

1 hour ago, Memory Man said:

These are up there with tent & sleeping bag as most essential item to bring these days! I always laugh when i see a que of people at EE when you can buy one for £20 off amazon that will last you 5-10 years! Only a rank amateur would go to a festival without one these days 😂

I was the first one in our 'group' to bring a portable charger to the festival in 2013. One of my non-festival going friends used to use one for work and got given a new one so offloaded his one one to me for free just before the festival.

Everyone's battery's had virtually gone, then I pulled this great big brick thing out and everyone was mesmerised by its capabilities. Think we managed to charge 4 or 5 iPhones back to full charge for the last day or two of the festival which was helpful for meeting up and they all worked a dream as most other peoples phones on site had died by then.

Jump forward to 2014 and most of my friends brought them with them, and then by 2015 I think most of the festival had them!

[gooner1990]

11 hours ago, Pinhead said:

2010 saw Dragon's halved so that only the Southern end (Piano Bar end), could be used by punters (we unitially started pitching lower down near the exit into SE Corner via railway line as we had done since 2007, but were moved on by security). Then in 2011 I was in Big Lickle with Oxfam and my mate still managed to pitch on the higher edge of the Southern end of Dragon's next to the heras fence and Piano Bar (though officially it was supposed to be crew only and no longer available to punters that year). Had last camped in Williams next door in 2002 and my mate last camped there 2007 I think, after which it became crew only (presumably due to new SE Corner crew / management needs in 2008, i.e. Shangri-La).

Could you imagine trying to camp down there these days?! Would be a nightmare.

When I worked with Shelter in 2019 we were outside the main fence behind IICON stage and that was seriously loud to try and sleep next to!

[blutarsky]

1 hour ago, Gnomicide said:

The EE power bar swap thing they did was good when it first started. Walk up, swap it, walk away. They are light and not cumbersome to carry around but they just got too expensive and not being able to swap ones from previous years was just a scam. 

For the price of their single charge jobs you can buy a bigger one with enough charges to last the weekend.

It was great in 2017 - think it was £20. We stopped in each morning on the walk down from Worthy View to swap an empty one which we'd used to charge 2 phones. It took 2-3 minutes and we did it en route to Williams' Green. 

2019 I think they hiked the price to £40 so I bought an Anker for £30, which gives a full charge in about 45 minutes, and will do this 4-5 times.