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Queuing for the best pitch


Bigfishlittlefish
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Ok I'm gonna be as specific as possible and hope someone replies 🙂

 

First time at Glastonbury for the 6 of us, we are traveling from Liverpool by coach and will be arriving 5am. Our concern is we have an XL (Berghaus air 6XL) tent, want to camp somewhere lively and aren't sure how possible it will be.

 

pennard hill, park home, oxylers sound great but the walk from the coach drop off to gate D seems huge (anyone know how long?) So we won't be in the que until maybe just before 6am and it sounds like people que from Tuesday afternoon. Is it a lost cause aiming for a lively place with a large tent (we have a porch add-on for the tent and shower tent too)? and is it that much of a purge that people will rip up our shower tent etc so they can get a pitch?

 

If it's within reason to aim for these places given our tent size and que time I would like to have a prioritised hit list of where we should try first based on likelihood of enough space. I.e. 1. Pennard hill 2. Park home 3. oxylers etc.

Thanks in advance this won't be my last question as I'm sooooo excited 🙂

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If you are in the queue at 5am, you should have a shot at those spots.

Coach gets into to Gate A so Oxlyers will be the first of your target spots. I'd send a couple of people from your group ahead with the tent to grab a spot, if they are just crying that then you should get there in around 15 minutes. If they can spot space ahead in Pennards (if you'd prefer that) then another 15mins or so on top of that as you'll be heading up hill. 

You should be pitching before 10ish if the queue moves ok so I think you'd definitely get a spot on at least one of those three.

Not sure about the etiquette in the packed fields as I tend to avoid them but I am sure those who do will be along to advise you about the add on but people do put up gazebos etc for seating etc.

Enjoy your first Glastonbury, I'm envious, the first visit is always a mind blowing experience.

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I think some of the stuff about people queuing Tuesday afternoon for the best sports is a bit overblown. They go quickly but it's not like they were impossible to get.

In 2019 Oxylers was probably out of space for big groups of tents by about midday, single large tents probably late afternoon. There were still spots for the odd 3-4 man tent (if you searched hard) on Thursday morning. 

We were in the gate D queue by 5am and took about 90 mins after gates opened to get in.

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14 hours ago, Leyrulion said:

I think some of the stuff about people queuing Tuesday afternoon for the best sports is a bit overblown. They go quickly but it's not like they were impossible to get.

In 2019 Oxylers was probably out of space for big groups of tents by about midday, single large tents probably late afternoon. There were still spots for the odd 3-4 man tent (if you searched hard) on Thursday morning. 

We were in the gate D queue by 5am and took about 90 mins after gates opened to get in.

How come you were at gate D for oxylers? Was it just the closest gate for you or is it the best for those areas. Trying to work out whether to que at gate a where we get dropped off or walk down to gate d

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18 hours ago, Hotchilidog said:

If you are in the queue at 5am, you should have a shot at those spots.

Coach gets into to Gate A so Oxlyers will be the first of your target spots. I'd send a couple of people from your group ahead with the tent to grab a spot, if they are just crying that then you should get there in around 15 minutes. If they can spot space ahead in Pennards (if you'd prefer that) then another 15mins or so on top of that as you'll be heading up hill. 

You should be pitching before 10ish if the queue moves ok so I think you'd definitely get a spot on at least one of those three.

Not sure about the etiquette in the packed fields as I tend to avoid them but I am sure those who do will be along to advise you about the add on but people do put up gazebos etc for seating etc.

Enjoy your first Glastonbury, I'm envious, the first visit is always a mind blowing experience.

Thanks so much for the reply!

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22 minutes ago, Bigfishlittlefish said:

How come you were at gate D for oxylers? Was it just the closest gate for you or is it the best for those areas. Trying to work out whether to que at gate a where we get dropped off or walk down to gate d

It's where we got spat out once we'd parked up. They're about the same distance A and D. Just go straight down, hang a left after the farm. 

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5 hours ago, Bigfishlittlefish said:

How come you were at gate D for oxylers? Was it just the closest gate for you or is it the best for those areas. Trying to work out whether to que at gate a where we get dropped off or walk down to gate d

Coaches normally have a separate queue at gate A, so you might better off entering there than walking round to gate D and joining the general queue.

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34 minutes ago, bexj said:

Should be fine... But I'd leave your shower tent at home....is it really that important?  Its pretty grim for the people in the next tent who have to camp in your shower water... 

Unfortunately showers are a must for me and we figured it beats £100 shower pass x 6 people and the long ques 😬

You make a very good point though and we will be considerate and get something we can stand in to catch the falling water 😁

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1 hour ago, Bigfishlittlefish said:

Unfortunately showers are a must for me and we figured it beats £100 shower pass x 6 people and the long ques 😬

You make a very good point though and we will be considerate and get something we can stand in to catch the falling water 😁

Get a weekend wristband for Lost Horizons (£20?). Gives you access to a sauna and showers. And it’s an oasis of calm if you need a break from the madness for an hour or so. 

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9 hours ago, Bigfishlittlefish said:

Unfortunately showers are a must for me and we figured it beats £100 shower pass x 6 people and the long ques 😬

You make a very good point though and we will be considerate and get something we can stand in to catch the falling water 😁

Big tents are fine but space is at an absolute premium on Pennards and Oxylers so I'd reconsider the shower tent if you want to be good neighbours. You can literally turn over in your tent and cuddle the person in the next! 

Any escaping water will also be an issue as those fields get notoriously muddy very quickly.

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Your big tent will be fine at that time. In 2017, we decided to take a large 4 room tent. We joined the queue around 6am, got in around 10/10:30(ish) and managed to pitch in Park Home although not quite were we wanted it. However, we decided against taking a tent that big in 2019 for a few reasons - weight/space etc.

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15 minutes ago, vintagelaureate said:

Your big tent will be fine at that time. In 2017, we decided to take a large 4 room tent. We joined the queue around 6am, got in around 10/10:30(ish) and managed to pitch in Park Home although not quite were we wanted it. However, we decided against taking a tent that big in 2019 for a few reasons - weight/space etc.

Agreed. A 6XL is seriously heavy tent though to be carting very far. Personally I'd take 2 or 3 smaller tents as they're lighter and easier to carry.

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23 hours ago, waynewdk said:

I’ve noticed Lost Horizons are looking to raise funds for this years festival, I’ll post link if it’s allowed, never used them my self, might give it a go this year

Totally worth it.  I crowd funded them for the 2019 festival in return for a wrist band.  It was a great chill out area and the first time I've had a shower at Glastonbury, bliss!

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On 2/19/2022 at 3:33 AM, Simsy said:

Coaches normally have a separate queue at gate A, so you might better off entering there than walking round to gate D and joining the general queue.

Last time when we got there at noon or so on the Wednesday, the queue at A was hours long. We walked round to gate D (took ages with all of our stuff mind) and walked straight in.

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8 hours ago, MaxPower said:

Last time when we got there at noon or so on the Wednesday, the queue at A was hours long. We walked round to gate D (took ages with all of our stuff mind) and walked straight in.

Those disembarking coaches use a separate channel at Gate A to those arriving by car and normally entry for the former is much quicker than the latter at A. 

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25 minutes ago, Lycra said:

Those disembarking coaches use a separate channel at Gate A to those arriving by car and normally entry for the former is much quicker than the latter at A. 

Ah interesting, good to know.

serious trek from gate A where to we want to camp this year so that is a pain.

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1 hour ago, Bigfishlittlefish said:

Would you recommend gate a coach que for aiming for pennards/park home then?

I used Ped gate A when I camped in in Park Home in 2015.  

Its a bit of a walk but then to get to that side there is no getting around it, I would follow signs for Silver Hayes as you go through Darble, come along the path at the back of the Other stage, then up onto the Railway line and back down and you're there.

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