festival camping with 11 month old?! crazy talk?

[mamabgood]

Hi,

does anyone have any experience of attending festivals with a baby? I am hoping to go to cambridge folk festival with my lo in july. Have been before baby and am pretty sure that it will be reasonably baby friendly as a festival...am just wondering about sleeping in tent and bedtimes/ routines etc going somewhat out of the window.

any thoughts?

the campsite is quiet at night and has a family area.

thanks in advance!

We camp regularly at landrover events 5-6 times a year with dd since she was that age. She's now 5 - no problems just take lots to keep warm, lazy foods and stuff the routine

Took mine to a few big music festivals when they were babies. Far louder/busier/rowdier than I imagine the Cambridge Folk Festival would be, and it was great :)

Definitely second MrsSnaplegs' list -- lots of warm clothes/bedding and lots of easy food.

We took DS1 when he was 11 months and it was fab. He was quite a routiney baby and there was an evening he got so overtired we had a woman come to the tent to check we weren't murdering him but otherwise it was fab and totally recommend it.

Have a look at this:

www.facebook.com/#!/festivalkidz

Get a rucksack type baby carrier and a warm fleecy blanket to go right around it and walk around to get dc to sleep and then co sleep on airbed with a duvet

I went with DS at 14 months. I borrowed my friend's big 3 wheeler off-roadish buggy and it was invaluable. DS actually slept in it while we saw bands (from a distance) on the saturday! (Not intentional, he just fell asleep in the buggy early so we went with it )

Wow!

thanks everyone- great advice.

am delighted to hear it can go so well!

MrsSnaplegs - is it ok to co-sleep on an airbed? i thought that was one of the big no nos!? be great if it is fine at that age- he'd love it!

Is it just you and the baby? Could you get single airbeds instead, just to cut down on the risk? Or one of those Ready Bed things?

Mamabgood - we all sleep so lightly when camping it wasn't an issue but that is what suited us. It meant we kept dd warm as at that age I think on their own in sleeping bag is harder for them to keep warm. As soon as she could toddle she went in her own sleeping bag on her own airbed

We've been taking dd to Cambridge Folk Fest since she was 11 weeks old. It's so much easier with a baby than with a toddler, though toddlers are still easy. We always camp at Coldhams and it's just brilliant.

We might not go this year though. Tickets on sale this weekend before they announce the line up which I find very odd. The calibre of acts has arguably gone down and they've got a new stage coming, slightly different sponsorship etc and I'm reluctant to spend over £250 when I could be disappointed when they eventually announce the lineup.

If you watch the ad on the CFF website, dh and dd are on it... See big strange mythical creatures and standing next to them a man with a child on his shoulders...

Yeah good point Mrs Snaplegs... even in July I have been pretty freezing at night myself.

TobyLerone- i will be with family but not sure if dp is coming as he isn't a big camping fan ( imagine that with a baby thrown into the mix!) he's thinking travellodge would be the way forward! or certainly campervan which unfortunatley is unaffordable. What is a Ready bed btw?

ShowOfHands- good name!! I kwym about the ticket sales before line up - very odd, there is some sort of rationalle written on the site but makes no sense to me. I'm debating whether to wait for line up and see whether tickets are still available.
I'll check out the CFF site for your dh and dd! fame eh?!

I went to Camp Bestival with 6 month old and was great. We slept together in double sleeping bag on thermarests which worked well for us.

Ear defenders were handy.

Also decorating buggy with glowsticks so people don't fall over it.