Check out our handy top tips to help you survive a festival with kids. Have you ever wondered how to entertain kids at a festival?
1. Some festivals can be surprisingly more expensive than others.
The first thing to research should be the cost of bringing everyone along and if it’s affordable. Remember to include transport, food and accommodation. A great way to make festivals affordable is only going for a day ticket, especially if it’s your first festival experience.
2. Choose which festival to attend with the kids
Not all festivals are suitable for children. But the good news is, many now are. Examples of great family friendly festivals include Timber Festival 2022 based in Derby, Latitude Festival in Suffolk and Eden Festival in Dumfries & Galloway.
3. Research the site and facilities
When planning your stay it’s important to be aware of where the facilities you might need are. Bathroom breaks can be very stressful if you and your toddler are camping miles away from the toilets. Showers and food trucks as well as coffee stand for the adults are handy to know the location of. The medical tent is also a good idea to note down. If your festival is spread across a wide area it’s handy to plan your day around where things are so you don’t tire out the children too much.
4. Pack the essentials
Festivals can be muddy and wet. Make sure you bring suitable footwear such as wellies for the kids or sandals if it should be very hot. Lots of layers is often the sensible way to go because they can be put on or taken off depending on the temperature. It’s easy to lose things at a festival so remember to label your items, including shoes before you go. Any medications or epipens are crucial to remember. Keep these kinds of items in a zip lock bag so they don’t get wet or damaged clearly labelled on what they are and how to use them. Our medical alert labels are useful for this purpose.
5. Plan some down time during your stay
Children can get over excited and overwhelmed, especially if they have additional support needs. It’s useful to schedule in potential quiet times for the kids to get a bit of rest bite from all the excitement going on around them. Maybe bring a familiar book or a colouring book that can give them something calming to do in between activities.
6. Make a safety plan with the kids
Should you be separated from your children for whatever reason it’s important to prepare them for what you’d like them to do. Try to make this as simple as possible for them to remember. Our children’s ID wristbands are really useful for children to have contact information with them or a reminder of what they should do if they get lost.
7. Ear protectors
Festivals can be LOUD. Especially if it’s a majority music festival. Lots of speaks at all hours of the day. Little ears are still developing so remember some ear protectors or ear plugs for the older kids in case it’s too noisy for them to sleep.
8. Bring a cooler
Festivals are more often in the summer and that means it can be extremely hot. A cooler can be a lifesaver with bottled water and any medication or cooling packs you might have. Great to pop sun cream in there as well.
9. Keep hydrated
And that brings us onto the next point. Hydration. If your dancing, cartwheeling or walking across a festival site you’ll likely be sweaty and therefore thirsty. Children are especially sensitive to sun so beware of heat stroke. A hat is important for shade and remember to top up the kids water bottles regularly. A sachet like dioralyte can be a lifesaver if you think the children need one.
10. Take lots of photographs and have fun!
The kids won’t be little forever so make sure you take lots of pictures to remember your family festival fun for years to come.