Festival time

[stripesandyellow]

We are going to our first festival later in the summer. It's a family-orientated one and we are seasoned campers, but we normally camp with a tent but go out on days trips and eat out - this will be park up and then not leave the site for a few days. I'm a little nervous at that thought...!

I've been reading all the cool box tips but am wondering what else I should consider since we can't pop to the shops like normal??

Have you got electricity? I doubt it!

This is what I’ve always done for weekend camping with no electric…

Fill 4 pint milk bottles with water and freeze. Take out at last min and put in your cooler boxes with food that needs chilling(these are obviously larger than freezer blocks)

. Freeze any meat you want to use on day 2, (bacon etc) as it will stay frozen for 24hrs and also keep the cooler box cold.

Take good that doesn’t need to be in fridge. Tins, packet pasta etc.

Plan your meals so you only take what you need.

Depending on kids ages, take loads of snacks!!

Freeze your drinks before you go and then put them in your cool box. You'll have a supply of cool water for 24 hours.
Invest in a good water bottle (such as a Swell bottle) that keeps water cool for 24 hours.

For breakfast I’d normally give each of the dc an instant porridge pot with a pouch of fruit purée (Ella’s) squirted in for extra nutrition and to cool it down! It fills them up and keeps them going for a while. Alternatively you could take cereal bars or sliced malt loaf and little cartons of fruit juice. We normally take cereal bars for snacks though. Satsumas and little boxes of raisins are also good snacks that keep well over the weekend and can be thrown in your day bag without going squishy! Take some food/drink treats which your DC like but don't have very often; makes it easier to say no to the food stalls and avoid the queues.
We often get lunch from the food trucks (saves us carrying stuff around). If you're careful, you can find some reasonably priced food options and it's definitely worth visiting the food trucks at least once or twice over the weekend as it's part of the experience. it’s worth asking at food stalls if they’ll do you a children’s portion — they’ll usually say yes, and often charge you very little for it.
We always bring our own dinner and eat it back at the tent. Returning to the tent also gives the kids a bit of downtime away from the festival mayhem, and gives you a chance to get their beds ready while it is still daylight. It is a good tip to get their PJs on under their clothes in the early evening too, so they don’t have to fully undress in the cold later on when their batteries are well and truly run out.
We took Tilda Kids pouches for the dc which they happily ate cold.
There are several free water points around the main arenas and campsites. Take the squeezy capsules of dilutable squash (Robinsons Squash'd) if your ds isn’t that fond of water.
Ice bags are often sold inside festival campsites, so just make sure you buy a couple of bags each morning to keep all your food and drinks cold.
I always make sure I bring 1 or 2fully-charged portable chargers with me to events, because they really do come in handy.While some festivals do offer phone-charging stations, I think it’s much easier to just bring your own and save the money.
Take way more wash cloths/wipes than you think you'll need and a big water carrying bottle so you're not stuck in tap queues with a fidgety child who wants to explore

Are you sure there's no shops on site? Most festivals ive been to there's been at least one general store. Bloody expensive but will help if you can buy some bits fresh

Seasoned festie here, honestly apart from breakfast and snacks I’d not bother taking any meals. Your tent may be a long walk from the arena so going back for meals will be a nightmare.
Do fill and freeze empty milk bottles and large fruit juice cartoons with water to keep the cool box cold and freeze all your drinks so they’ll still be chilly on the last day.
Duct tape.
Have fun!

I only really take loads of snacks and breakfast when we go as there is such an array of food stalls to try.

I buy and freeze bottles of water which keeps the food/milk cool and can then be drunk when defrosted.

Have fun, it will be amazing. We are not going this year and I am missing going already!

Thanks all for the responses, I'm sure there will be more available than I think (information is a bit sparse) and happy to buy some meals, just don't want to be forced into spending loads of money when we could have prepared better!

Ill try and clear out the freezer a bit this week to make room for freezing water bottles!

Tins of dolmades. You might find some in Lidl left over from Greek Week, or look in any Greek / Mediterranean type grocery shop. A great lunchtime snack that needs no cooling or prep.

The Lidl Greek week tins of butter beans in sauce and the aubergines are also excellent.

Pouches of microwave rice can be heated v quickly in a pan with a splash of water.

I'm getting prepped for a festival now & things I do are take cardboard-a box for an entrance mat to get all the muddy boots & fluff & cardboard can be extra insulation under sims.

Also, I've a pair of trainers that were v comfy but worn out now. I've kept them to wear then bin at the festival when they're filthy.

Buy festival crap like flowery headbands & stick on face jewels for dc before arriving to save ££££ from buying at the festival stalls

Babybel cheeses stay fresh without refrigeration - ideal for protein snacks!

@Daisy62 thanks for that-I wondered if babybel would be ok not refrigerated & that may save room in my massive new cool bag! 😬