Best advice for a newbie

[The Nal]

Find some annoying twat to make you walk up the hill, all the while screeching "DON'T TURN AROUND".

[mouserat]

25 minutes ago, Andy Glasto Virgen said:

Any recommendations for first night, first timer hang out/areas to visit?

Don't stress about hitting any particular bar or area just because you've heard about it - the best first nights I've had have always happened by chance, wandering past somewhere playing good music and staying put the whole night. Most of the time I couldn't tell you where I was or who was DJing.

Even though it's just a fraction of the festival on those first couple of nights, there's still loads happening so don't feel like you have to stay put somewhere if you're not enjoying it. 

[Crazyfool01]

24 minutes ago, Andy Glasto Virgen said:

All sounds exciting (confusing!! 🤣) think the ridge and furrow could be a good shout as im on my own, if I can find it!!! then maybe the fireworks after a few beers 👍 thanks for all the advice, hopefully see some of you there. Good thing is its only a couple of hours drive from north devon so hopefully get there nice and early Tuesday night/Wednesday morning 😊

Map for the ridge and furrow is on page 2 of that interesting thread . It’s basically in the field behind the west holts stage . Welcome to join me after that if you want  . Usually catch the fireworks from some point . The railway line that dissects the site is as good a viewing point as any as it often gets packed up there 

[Andy Glasto Virgen]

Cheers, will take you up on that 🍺👍

[scaryclaireyfairy]

47 minutes ago, The Nal said:

Find some annoying twat to make you walk up the hill, all the while screeching "DON'T TURN AROUND".

🤣

[bigbilly]

Might have already been said but first night you gotta go up to the the top of the park and check the view out. then walk to the stone circle  

[Bestival-weather]

Wednesday I am gonna try find Ridge and Furrow cos someone reached out to me as a virgin to meet up for a beer then see where Glasto takes me. Have taken all your advice on board and taken a lot of it away with me as good advice. I am not a newbie to Festivals only Glasto. I can not wait to come and have fun. My flag will tell you I am flying solo lol 

[deepkittycaz]

10 hours ago, Monty Pythagoras said:

Also the lock up people are usually quite sound and are nice to talk to.

 

And you can get toilet roll from them - another bonus.

Yes we are, and yes we do (until we run out of them!)

And we also do the Challenge 21 bands too!

[Purple aki squat]

10 hours ago, grumpyhack said:

Camp near where you are likely to end up at the end of the night.  A long trek across the site (and it's big) is not ideal when you are tired and emotional.

Make sure you can find your tent in the dark.  Don't think "it's next to the big blue one" because when you return there will be lots of big blue ones - and they all look the same colour in the dark.  Triangulate your tent relative to fixed things like roadways, pylons and toilet blocks

I’d disagree with this.

put your tent up and just go. One of those great things is getting lost and just hoping for the best later on.

Its the best place to get lost.

enjoy

[deschwah]

On Wednesday night take a few tins up to the stone circle .. critical point is don’t look back down the hill until you get there, preferably a few meters past/above the stones .. you must wait to look back can’t stress that enough 

Then behold .. your life just changed forever 

And you’ll find a few new best mates in a similar state of awe 

Then skin up 🤣🤣🤣 and, as we used to say… see you at the car on Monday morning x

 

[Ayrshire Chris]

On 5/14/2023 at 4:15 PM, Bestival-weather said:

Flying solo, never got tickets until this year so I am a virgin lol. 

Any tips for going there alone, meeting people or hanging out?

Remember no matter how hot and sunny (and it will be), it is during the day as soon as the sun sets it can get really chilly. So make sure you’ve got some suitable clothing either in a backpack, your tent or locker, whatever is most convenient for you. 

[Quark]

Never pass up the opportunity to fill up water bottle or empty your bladder.  Much better to do it when you can than find yourself caught out with no appropriate facilities. Ditto going for a shite. If you need to go, go. Because you can guarantee that if you leave it then when you REALLY have to go you'll either be miles away from a loo or the ones you find will be grim.

If you're peckish and you see food that looks interesting, stop and eat. Almost guaranteed you won't be able to find it again, and if you keep waiting for the right place then you'll end up hungry and grabbing whatever's nearest. And sod's law it'll be crap.

From the moment you get on site, accept you'll miss things. Every year I come out and discover that a band I liked was actually playing somewhere and I missed them, or talk to mates and find out they were having the best time while I was mooching between stages or watching something acceptable. Make peace with it now and you'll have a lot more fun.

Don't be self-conscious about talking to people, dancing or getting into a crowd.  Was a massive mindset shift for me when I realised that no one cares about my shit dancing. Spent far too many years loitering on the edge of crowds and missing out on fun.

Whether you smoke or not, having a lighter on you is always handy.  It's amazing how many chats I've ended up having because I can offer someone a light.

[Clarence Clemons]

10 hours ago, Bestival-weather said:

Wednesday I am gonna try find Ridge and Furrow cos someone reached out to me as a virgin to meet up for a beer then see where Glasto takes me. Have taken all your advice on board and taken a lot of it away with me as good advice. I am not a newbie to Festivals only Glasto. I can not wait to come and have fun. My flag will tell you I am flying solo lol 

Hope you have the best time man. I'm sure you will. Got a lot of respect for anyone who does these things solo! rock oN!

[Skip997]

Keep hydrated

Eat at least one good meal a day

Don't rush round trying to see every act on your list

Don't fret over where you'll end up camping

Don't fret over bringing every gadget under the sun

[maelzoid]

17 hours ago, The Nal said:

Find some annoying twat to make you walk up the hill, all the while screeching "DON'T TURN AROUND".

I don't know... where are we going to find an annoying twat around here?

[Quark]

1 minute ago, maelzoid said:

I don't know... where are we going to find an annoying twat around here?

Ooh ooh ooh I know this one!

[Quark]

10 hours ago, deepkittycaz said:

Yes we are, and yes we do (until we run out of them!)

And we also do the Challenge 21 bands too!

And we love you for it!  Aside from the obvious benefits the lockup people are a beacon of sanity for 5 minutes 😄

[THEBOILERMAN]

PRAY TO THE SUN GODS 

[maelzoid]

5 minutes ago, Quark said:

Ooh ooh ooh I know this one!

There's more than one correct answer....

[gooner1990]

If you find yourself with a spare few mins either queuing up for the toilet/beer/food or waiting for an act to come on don't just get your phone out and play on it, talk to someone near you or have a look at what else is going on in your vicinity, I can almost guarantee it will be more interesting than scrolling through Twitter or trying to get 4G signal.

[Skip997]

6 minutes ago, gooner1990 said:

don't just get your phone out and play on it

This.

Don't bother with your phone at all, beyond arranging where and when to meet folks and occasionally checking the time.

[gooner1990]

3 minutes ago, Skip997 said:

This.

Don't bother with your phone at all, beyond arranging where and when to meet folks and occasionally checking the time.

I actually hit one of my friends phone out of his hand in 2017 after three days of him being on his phone pretty much all the time. 

Was doing my head in.

[Justcalledtosay]

If you like to plan your day, plan your day. If you're a bit more care free, pick a couple of must see's. If you don't give a shit, don't plan anything.

People are different and like different things. Plan your festival (or don't) depending on what suits you.

[Quark]

1 hour ago, Skip997 said:

This.

Don't bother with your phone at all, beyond arranging where and when to meet folks and occasionally checking the time.

Pretty much.  Arranging meets, the occasional photo (I keep meaning to take more but I'm always having too much fun to remember 😄) and checking clashfinder to see what my options are.

All non-fest whatsapps are muted, no-one outside bothers contacting me because they know they won't get a response, and the news and other such nonsense can absolutely do one.

[Skip997]

6 minutes ago, Quark said:

 the occasional photo 😄

 

I've got into a "bad" habit (depending on one's opinion) of taking very few photos, due to the fact that it's all too familiar.

When I do take photos I use a real camera.