In Glastonbury Festival's first year entry only cost £1
This weekend sees 180,000 hardy souls – including myself – descend on a Somerset farm for the UK’s biggest music festival.
Unfortunately, I was born a few decades too late to take advantage of Glastonbury Festival’s first year, when entry cost £1 and got you free milk. This year, tickets cost an eye-watering £205, plus the seemingly ever-increasing cost of the booking fee (£5) plus post and packing (£6).
While I had no choice but to grin and bear the cost of the ticket, I’ve a few thrifty tips for anyone heading to a festival this summer.
Programmes: While Glastonbury tickets include a free programme, other festivals sometimes charge a small fee. One way of avoiding this is to print a copy of the schedule before you go. I recommend Clashfinder.com, which allows you to plan your itinerary around the acts you want to see. It contains info on most major UK festivals, including Reading & Leeds, T in the Park and Latitude.
Camping: Outdoor specialists Millets and Blacks both currently have 20% off camping accessories (excluding tents, sleeping bags and camping chairs). But these offers don’t always make their prices the cheapest. For example, Tesco currently has a 2-man dome tent for just £8 (was £12).
Festival fashion: The unpredictability of the great British summer means you’re just as likely to require wellies and waterproofs as hats and sunglasses. Either way, you should be able to find bargains, with many high street retailers currently in sale mode, including Asos, M&S, H&M and more. See our High Street Sales page for more.
Booze: A can of flat lager or cider, warmed to an unpleasant temperature by having been in a tent for three days might not be to everyone’s taste. But it’s certainly cheaper than paying prices at festival bars. Here are some of the best booze deals available this week. (Of course, please be Drinkaware.)
– Morrisons 2 for £16 on cases of San Miguel, Budweiser, Magners and more.
– Tesco 3 for £22 on cases of Kronenbourg, Stella, Strongbow and more.
– Sainsbury’s Foster’s 15x440ml for £8 (was £12).
Sun cream: Optimistic as ever, I scoured the internet and a few local supermarkets and pharmacies in search for the best prices on sun cream. Take a look at our Cheap Sun Cream guide to see what I managed to find.
Free festivals: Finally, for the ultimate MoneySaving festival experience, check out our guide to the UK’s best free events this summer. It also contains info on how to get free tickets to paid festivals by volunteering for charities, or carrying out odd jobs such as litter-picking and car park attending. You won’t even have to pay to get in!
Do you have any festival MoneySaving tips? Let us know in the comments section below or in the forum discussion.
