5 fantastic ways to save money at festivals

Love festivals but hate how much you end up forking for food, alcohol and phone chargers? Yaz reveals 5 of the best ways to save money at festivals

Is any British Summer complete without attending a festival, full of music, sweet cider, and that unique vibe where you feel like you’re on another planet? Whilst they’re a lot of fun, anyone who has been to a festival can relate to feeling like you’re bleeding money – from food and drink to music timetables and extra activities that you don’t want to miss out on. Luckily, there are plenty of ways you can have the best time at a festival while still staying on budget. Below, I’ve covered a few awesome tips to help you save money at festivals.

Pack the right gear

Many people end up shelling out hundreds of pounds on camping gear before they even arrive at a festival.

While it’s obviously important to get quality gear that’s not going to fall to pieces as soon as you arrive at the campsite, there’s also no need to invest in the high tech outdoors gear if you’re only going to use it once.

Check out our review of the best pop up tents available right now – these compact, affordable tents are absolutely perfect for summer festivals.

Bring your own food

Once you’re in a festival, you’re in – it’s not easy to go out to the supermarket to buy yourself a sandwich for dinner.

That means you often end up shelling out extortionate fees for food from the vendors at festivals which, although delicious, is totally unnecessary.

Why not bring a coolbox with food for your breakfast (long-life milk works well in a coolbox, and a loaf of bread and peanut butter can be a great cheap snack) and lunches, and then just budget for buying your dinner while in the festival?

This way, you get to sample some amazing festival food, but don’t have to pay for three meals a day which can really add up. This tip is one of the best ways to save money at festivals.

Bring a portable charger

Most festivals have phone charging booths that charge you by the hour, but it’s simple to bypass this if you bring your own portable power bank to keep your phone topped up on charge while you’re there.

A simple money saving hack – but it can make a real difference to your spending – not to mention being much more convenient!

Bring cash not cards

Plan out a budget for your time at a festival, and get out the right amount of cash to bring into the festival with you.

It’s far easier to see if you’re on track or not when spending cash compared to getting out your card every time – not to mention you’ll be avoiding expensive ATMs that charge you for withdrawals when inside!

If you want to save money at festivals this is one tip you should not ignore.

Don’t pay extra for fancy toilets and showers

Although it can be tempting to splash out for fancy toilets and luxury showers, it’s really not essential.

Get up early in the morning to use the toilets when they’ve just been cleaned and the regular shower queue is still quiet – you’ll be thankful for the early start when you’ve got an extra tenner to spend on a pick-me-up portion of chips on the last day!

Yaz is a writer at The Campfire Guide, a UK outdoors and camping website that aims to make the outdoors more accessible to more people.