To warn you about the way outdoor concerts are going?

[MontanaMountains]

I love an outdoor concert, or at least I did. I've been going to outdoor concerts for decades and have seen many different bands and artists. It's a lovely tradition of taking a picnic, camping chairs, a blanket incase it gets chilly, maybe a candle in a jar for a bit of atmosphere.

The first I noticed things were changing was a concert at Ragley Hall in 2019. No picnics allowed, no drinks allowed except a small bottle of water per guest. This is all so they can squeeze more money out of you through drink/food sales. At least we could take chairs!

I've just received a concert information email about the Michael Buble concert I'm going to next month. No chairs allowed, no food, no drinks (not even a bottle of water), tiny A4 size bag allowed per person. You may take a rug to sit on but may be asked to remove it when the concert starts. You can buy food and drink from vendors at the venue.

This has taken all the enjoyment out of this event for me. I'd really rather not go. I'm late 50s with a history of back problems and DH is mid 60s, and the thought of standing for hours holds zero appeal. I'd happily return/sell my tickets but it's no refunds and no transfer of tickets. We're stuffed.

I've got another outdoor concert booked in August and I'm guessing the same 'rules' will apply. Sad as it is but I think our outdoor event days are over.

Just warning anyone with a similar history that things have changed, so think carefully before you book.

I often buy seated tickets and then stand for periods of time , when we saw Springsteen on his last tour I think I was standing for most of his set

I've never been to a concert where people didnt do this!?? (Although I've only ever been in tiered seats so it makes no odds to the people behind)

Is it not an option to carry food and drink on your person, rather than in your bag? Surely they do not do a body search? You could strap it round your waist in a bum bag and put a big hoody over it all. You might look like you've gained 7lbs in weight but better than paying £££ at the stalls.

Sometimes you have to remove bulky clothing and hold your arms out whilst they run a zapper up and down.

I went to a small festival at the weekend. In my back was a sealed bottle of water, a twirl bar, and a small pouch containing all my prescription drugs.
At the gate they confiscated.....my twirl bar. I'd got enough drugs to sink half the field and they took my bar of chocolate.

More annoyingly, once inside it became apparent that people were streaming in from the adjacent campsite, past their security point, with small trollies bursting with alcohol, and everywhere you went was the over bearing smell of weed.

But hey, I had a small bar of chocolate, criminal mastermind clearly

Exactly , everyone does it . The only concerts I’ve been to where nobody stood up is Will Varley gigs and if you know his music you will know why .

At a couple of outdoor music events Dd has been to there were people bringing collapsible spades, to dig up the drugs they had buried before the fencing went up.

Anyone thinking given the price of food at these places of doing the same except instead of drugs, burying bottles of drink, jars, packets and cans to save money on buying food at these events.

YANBU. We’re going to the latitude festival in a few weeks time. Our friends are camping and we have a day ticket. They had a long list of what you couldn’t bring along. I’m surprised it didn’t say ‘you can’t have fun!’ At the end of the list.

@MontanaMountains Did anyone bring chairs with them and get away with it, or am I destined to be standing all through Tears For Fears next Friday?

The concert is on Wednesday, so I'll report back then!

Not a chair in sight. Pretty much everyone was standing, with a few people stoically sat on their rugs amongst a sea of legs. We timed it to get there just as Buble came on, so stood for the entire thing. We overheard other punters moaning about the 'rules' on the way in. He was only on for 1.5 hours, so annoying as it was, it was doable for us. We stood at the back so we could wander around a bit around the edges. Small sense of achievement in that we didn't spend a brass farthing there. Enjoy your Tears for Fears concert!

Thanks for the info @MontanaMountains .After all my concerns, T for F's have cancelled but, hearing your update, maybe that isn't a bad thing.

It’s shit!

Last year at bag search security tried to take a bottle of sunscreen off me under the ‘no bottle’ policy

Michael Buble concert restrictions for his concert tonight and tomorrow in Bath... 500ml water 🥴

I'm intending to book accessible tickets and parking for all concerts in future, even where seated tickets are available after my last experience.

I can't stand for long periods of time, definitely couldn't stand throughout a concert and struggle with long queues to get in and out. I don't have a blue badge and was actually asked what was wrong with me when I used a disabled entrance at a stadium because I couldn't physically stand on the huge queue to get in. I told the security person I wasn't going to discuss my personal health issues with her and she stood aside but it wasn't a nice experience. I could buy a stick or a pair of crutches from Amazon and she wouldn't have asked, I clearly didn't look disabled enough.

I don't have a blue badge, lots of disabled people don't, I can walk from a parking space into a shop and around a supermarket so I wouldn't qualify, but I can't stand in one place or in a slow moving queue for more than 10 mins.

But I expect you can buy lots of water at £4/bottle!!
Much more profitable safer.

Contact the venue and ask to speak to the accessibility team, they should be able to accommodate you. You don't have to be in a wheelchair or qualify in some way!

We went to see Buble this week. They were very strict on the one small bottle. Food and drink was v expensive. Think £20 for 2 x sausage and chips and £20 for 2 lattes and 2 muffins

Went to see Elbow at Lytham Festival last week, again no chairs allowed. I enjoyed the concert but was in discomfort with backache for most of the evening and then struggled walking afterwards and for 2 days after as my ankle, that has plates and pins in, swelled and was extremely painful due to standing too long. Elbow were brilliant but I'd definitely think twice before booking tickets for an event like this again, and in all honesty would probably not book due to being anxious that the same would happen again 😢

True you don’t need to be in a wheelchair but to qualify for accessible tickets you do generally need to show some proof of disability ie blue badge / pip . There are many of us that don’t have any such proof but still can’t stand / sit on the ground for hours for a variety of reasons .