The festival survival guide you need pre Bluesfest!

There is nothing worse than the feeling that you’ve forgotten something important, and when it comes to camping at a music festival, forgetting one of the vital things can make it a very different experience! We’ve done it quite a few times now and consider ourselves old hands at it, so we’ve written a festival survival guide, sharing the tips and tricks we have learnt over the years!

Camping essentials

If you’re camping at Bluesfest, we are going to presume you have the obvious essentials organised- tent, shade, chairs table, cooking equipment etc. What other campsite essentials are you going to need?

• Disinfectant wipes for any sticky situations
• More water than you could possibly drink
• Quick, simple snacks that don’t require any preparation
• A torch or lantern (don’t waste your phone battery!)
• Rubbish bags
• A full tank of fuel in your car- if you’re planning on charging phones through your car, or having it as a refuge from the heat/cold at any point, you don’t want to be caught out!
• Battery-powered fan to direct onto your face for instantly cooling!
• Sunscreen to avoid awkward tan lines and unwanted burning
• Reusable straws- you’ve read about how bad they are for the environment, and you can buy some cute novelty straws to match the fun energy of the festival

Packing essentials

Packing for any trip suitably is quite an art form, so this festival survival guide is a point-you-in-the-right-direction aid. Surely no one has ever packed the perfect amount of clothes for a weekend away? Luckily, if you’re driving to the festival, weight limits don’t apply to how much you can pack into your car! It is also better to be over prepared for a festival, but there are some often forgotten items that you end up wishing you had brought!

• Enough warm clothes. Even festivals in the middle of summer can get cold if it rains or storms- and Easter weekend at Bluesfest the temperature is starting to cool off at night. Bring enough warm clothes in case any get muddy or dirty.
• Thongs for showers
• Makeup wipes and a face spritzer to keep your skin fresh
• Body wipes as an alternative to showering if things get crazy!
• Toilet Paper

Handbag essentials

No festival survival guide would be complete without the go-to bag essentials. The bag you carry for the day can definitely exclude the majority of your day-to-day necessities- so just bring along a small shoulder bag for easy access throughout the day. But there are a couple of key items not to be caught without!

• Mini hand sanitizer
• Small poncho folded up in the bottom of your bag (perfect for sitting on the grass or incase a shower comes through)
• Portable phone charger- just in case you’re on 3% when Tash is playing Jungle and you need to get that quick video!
• Cash & ID, obviously!
• A handful a band-aids, if your boots aren’t as comfortable as you hoped!
• Nurofen and Panadol. We aren’t all perfect and sometimes forget to drink enough water… don’t let a niggling headache stop you from enjoying your favourite artists.

The non-essential, essentials

The things that you don’t need to survive, but definitely need to create an aesthetically beautiful campsite, and long-lasting memories…

• Battery Powered Fairy Lights- for a bit of twinkly atmosphere
• Inflatable Pool Toys- they also make extremely comfortable seats
• Disposable Film cameras- because nothing screams festival more than grainy, noisy photos you can develop afterwards
• Portable Speakers- keep these to a minimum late at night or into the early morning, but always a great mood booster to accompany your morning camping ritual
• Funky flag or stuffed toy- to tie up high, and make finding your campsite so much easier

There you have it, our tried and tested festival survival guide! Let us know how you go a Bluesfest this year, we can’t wait to see all your beautiful photos! If you’re wanting some ideas on who to see at Bluesfest, check out the artists we are definitely going to be watching!