Glastonbury Festival 2011 will be by far the largest festival of the performing arts in the British Isles.  With about 138,000 members of the public and at least 40,000 ‘crew’ it really is a city in a field.  Or rather a city in quite a few fields, as the event has outgrown Worthy Farm and now involves Mr Eavis’s neighbours.  If you ever get the chance, go and have a look at it from up the tor.  There’s nothing quite like it. Listening to the noise on Thursday night, before any of the sound systems are on,  you can fully appreciate that there are 180,000 excited people in the countryside, and you’re one of them.  This electric background noise sparks off spontaneous applause memes which can be heard rebounding around the festival site like audible Mexican waves.  Magic. But surviving Glastonbury Festival 2011 may be demanding.  Even festival organiser Michael Eavis admits that “It can be battlefield conditions some of the time and you have to be nimble and quick witted”. As Glastonbury residents we have collectively attended the festival over 100 times and so we have put our heads together and written our Survival Guide to Glastonbury Festival.

Glastonbury Festival 2011 Survival Guide

Pace yourself – Everyone over does it on the first night, but it’s not a night out and you probably don’t want to waste 24 precious hours sick with alcohol poisoning from the first night’s revelry. Do not forget – you may need to sleep at some point so it’s good to be strategic about it. Don’t sleep through your favourite band. Take waterproofs and Wellies. It’s almost certainly going to rain this year. Full motorbike leathers are perfect for muddy conditions. Take sun cream or a sun hat (or both) Drink lots of water Carry handy snacks with you at all times. We recommend superfood bars as they take up little space, are delicious and can keep you going for ages. You can buy them from our stall – see map. Download the map (see above) and save it on your ‘phone Download line-up (from the official website) and save it to your ‘phone. We recommend U2 (20:00 Friday Pyramid), Coldplay (20:15 Sat Pyramid), Paul Simon (16:30 Sun Pyramid), Don McLean (13:30 Sun Pyramid), Wombles (14:00 Sun Avalon), Chumbawamba (18:30 Fri Avalon) Do not just go to the big stages. There’s an almost infinite amount of brilliant stuff in tiny tents, hidden caravans and even underground – literally! Take plasters for your blisters Keep your valuables on you at all times. Never leave them in your tent. Take a small rucksack/ bumbag or good large pockets. Take wet wipes. They make your bits smell better again Stretch before lying down Make sure you can find your tent. Identify landmarks THAT YOU WILL BE ABLE TO SEE IN THE DARK and / or bring your own flags etc. Bring a torch Get to know your neighbours – the number one tip for helping prevent tent theft If you run out of money, earn some. Get a job washing up, deliver food & drink or carry luggage for tired festival goers Beware the 1 way system around Arcadia / Shangri-la. We don’t recommend spending 3 hours of your evening standing in a muddy queue. Beware undercover police in the stone circle field. They may spoil your fun. Remember where your car is.

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