Glastonbury 2023

Glastonbury might not be for you so.

First Glasto can be tough (Although at least it was dry for you - too hot but at least dry). One tends to try to cram in as much as possible (Oh I'll see 20 mins of this and hop over there for 30 mins of that and then yonder for last 15 mins of something else). It's not really feasible over the few days. But that just goes with experience.

It was another hot year this year. That's 3 in a row if I remember correctly. I definitely found it a bit easier this year than last year though. I think they'll get into a bit of trouble over the crowds at Elton John. That was MASSIVE. We stayed a good bit back and to the side as we were not too pushed for him and hit looked crazy big. I don't know how it compared with McCartney as we were up between the front of the sondstages for that but, to me, it looked way too big. (I believe they got their knuckles rapped about the crowding for The Killers in the John Peel/Woodsies a few years ago). Couple of musings:

• I miss Williams Green and hope it comes back. Was always a great hangout on Thursday especially. I'm not adverse to change but that was a great spot.
• Glad they added more compost toilets near Pedestrian Gate A. It helped.
• However they removed one of the water sources at the bottom of that area (Now enclosed by staff area). That caused delays early in the mornings.
• Food prices have definitely gone up but that's not limited to Glastonbury.
• Last year the sound from Arcadia and The Other Stage was VERY loud near where we usually camp (Near Pedestrian Gate A). But this year it was very much improved. Cheap pair of earplugs solved that.
• No Lanyards. That was a pity as I usually keep them as souvenirs

So yeah, I enjoyed this Glasto a lot. I definitely found it easier on the auld bod than last year. THAT was tough for some reason

Yeah, the whole sleeping in a tent for 5 nights thing was a worry for me beforehand, not gonna lie. But honestly, it was no problem at all. Half decent self-inflating mattress and a 4 man blackout tent for the 2 of us was fine. As The Nal says above though, I would seriously consider a tent that I can stand up in for next time. Although you do have to consider the extra weight of a bigger tent along with the bigger footprint of the thing meaning your campsite choices get slightly more limited the later you arrive. The biggest problem for me was trying to make sure that my daughter kept her side of the tent tidy and put all her makeup brushes away (about 60 of the bastards) when she'd finished with them.

Showers consisted of stand up washes outside the tent with a collapsible bucket and a couple of cloths. Admittedly, this was made easier with the weather this year, but it was fine, and really most people are in the same boat. We did consider queueing for the Greenpeace showers, but really we didn't want to be wasting time doing that when there was so much to see.

The old system meant you needed to pay for the tickets, well the £50 deposit. So buying tickets for 6 people meant you needed 300 quid or to give all the other people trying your CC info. Which isnt a runner obviously.

Now all you need is the reg and you get a payment link later. So you could lash your reg details up on Twitter, FB, Insta et al and have your followers/mates all trying for you.

Reckon the recent demand boosted hugely by the good weather. Two or three shetstorms in a row (97/98) for examp would impact latent demand.

Genuinely believe you havent done Glasters until you've been through a 2007 or 2016. The last 4 bear little resemblance.

As per previous posts this sale occurs on a Sunday morning at 9am. An entire office won’t be helping out.

People can get pals to help out but that has been the way for my crowd for the past 15 years. When not going I get online to help pals and they return the favour on years they’re not going.

Good luck getting hungover or exhausted people out of bed at 8.30am on a weekend morning to do you a favour. There’s no hope of an 18 (or 25) year old kid getting their pals online with codes to do them a favour. Some will but not greatly more than help at present.

Any alarm about the new system is misguided. The same people will be trying. The big difference is that you won’t get kicked out of the system at the point of payment. That is one hell of an improvement.

This is my tent. Plenty of room to stand up, hang things off etc and only 11kg. Its done 10 or so festivals now.

This is all I bring to festivals between myself and Mrs Nal, apart from a small bag she carries. Less is more!

It's the credit card only thing that annoys me. I think i know only one person with a credit card, everyone else (myself included) has a debit. Is there any particular reason they won't accept debit card payments?

On the mud thing, i'd have been delighted if every single year i went had been devoid of rain. This notion of not having done a real Glastonbury if you never experienced the mud is nonsense. I reckon 98 was worse than 2007. On the flipside, 95 and 2010 were my hottest, with an honourable mention to 92.

I think a techie could write some code to apply multiple times.

I'm not certain though

I think it will always be popular now and oversubscribed.

Social media and influencers and TikTok make it very bucketlisty.

I think it didn't even sell out in 08.

They could easily do it over two weekends like Coachella but maybe too many complaints from neighbors although I guess everyone makes money from it.

I imagine lots of people go once and say "never again" whilst others fall in love with the festival.

It’s been a long time since Glasto didn’t sell out, if ever. No event this century had tickets left over. 2008 was late, but sold out.

The festival doesn’t need social media to attract people. Most attendees are returnees and the BBC coverage ensures it attracts new fans.

I also don’t know anyone who’s only been once. There must be such people but they’re rare though I couldn’t blame them if they arrived in 1997 or 2007. My pal Rachel came with us last year for the first time at the age of 51. By October she was online looking for a second ticket. It’s not something to tick off the bucket list, it’s the greatest show on earth.