Camp Bestival 2018 {Review}

This morning I woke up in a bed I hadn't planned to be in. Now before you get too excited, this bed was my own at home - but I should have been waking up in my cosy tent bedroom in the grounds of Lulworth Castle having slept off the last day of Camp Bestival 2018. But, the British weather struck in the way that only British weather can. We should have known really with the school summer holiday just beginning. The stark change from the barmy heatwave to incoming coastal winds and sideways rain meant that the festival was shut down on Sunday afternoon due to safety issues on the festival site - the campsite was a fairly precarious place to be too with damaged tents and flying gazebos. This obviously left 1000s of families gutted, including me as the Sunday has always been my favourite day where I spend the day sleepily wandering around finding those last minute things to do and taking lots of photos before it ends. However, the three days that preceded the shut down was full of glorious weather and we had the most amazing time!

Camp Bestival 2017 ~ Review

The last of the mud has been washed away and I am now ready to look back on, and review, our Camp Bestival 2017. It was our eighth visit as Camp Bestival celebrated their tenth anniversary but somebody forgot to book the sunshine for the weekend. The rain, and mud, definitely impacted the festival but we were determined not to let it spoil our fun for Camp Bestival 2017.

Camp Bestival 2016 {Me Time}

Having looked at Camp Bestival from a family point of view, and shared some lovely images, today I got to thinking about what I got out of it as an individual trying to find some me time. Camp Bestival is clearly billed as a family festival but that doesn't mean, with a bit of planning, us grown ups can't find some time alone doing some grown up things.

We struck a good balance again this year as a family unit which gave everyone the opportunity to do the things they wanted to do. I planned ahead and booked another nature run with Nick, having loved it last year, and it didn't disappoint; with a gentle 5k+ around and beyond the festival site I can definitely recommend it - a morning run set off at 9.30 on each of the mornings and cost £5.

The nature runs set off from the Slow Motion area which also homed a yoga tent so you just know that I spent some of my me time there! Becoming a bit of an early riser I dragged myself out of bed and up the big hill onto the main site for two 8 a.m. classes; Qi Gong on the Saturday and Rise & Shine Yoga on the Sunday. Qi Gong was new to me and felt similar to Tai Chi, it was very gentle with a calming focus on balance, breath and stretching. The Rise & Shine Yoga I was more familiar with and was taken by a last minute replacement Kali - Kali Green Yogini - who has reignited my desire to move to Cornwall just so I can take some more of her classes! This year all yoga and meditation classes were free.

Camp Bestival 2016 {In Pictures}

It's that time again when we go through all of our pictures taken at this year's Camp Bestival. Between the four of us attending the family festival this year we had a DSLR, a compact camera, an iPhone and a Samsung phone all of which were constantly used to snap away taking pictures around the site. As you can imagine this resulted in hundreds of images.
Not really knowing where to start I've selected a random set of photos, in no particular order, that show some my favourite sights of Camp Bestival 2016.
Enjoy!

Camp Bestival 2016 {A Family Review}

We've been back home for just over 24 hours after leaving Camp Bestival 2016 behind us in, a just starting to get a little bit damp, Dorset. Across the weekend we were blessed with blue sky and sunshine which increased the amount of sparkle from all the space age glitter festooning the revellers across the festival site. And what a site it was again. This was our seventh year attending Camp Bestival and still there was enough to keep all four of us busy, satisfied and happy that we had had a complete weekend. The children, now 10 and 8, find new things to love every year but still enjoy repeating past experiences - you just can't get tired of Camp Bestival!

We arrived at around 10am on Thursday and easily entered the site through the well marked lanes around Lulworth Castle. Parking up was straightforward, a £25 cost, and once we had our bands safely on our wrists, and the £10 programme pack bought, we began the task of getting all of our gear to the campsite. Arriving a little bit earlier this year there was more choice of free areas but we headed to our usual camping spot that the children were familiar with - now they are older they are able to independently walk to the campsite toilets and collect water for us. Portable toilets were set up throughout the camp site and we never had more than 4 people head of us in a queue at any point across the weekend. There were times the paper and hand sanitiser were out so always be prepared and have those on you.

Once camp was set up we chilled for a bit, made some plans from the programme and later explored the site. The Magic Meadow is open on the Thursday evening with plenty of eateries, bars and entertainment going on to whet your appetite for the three day weekend to come.

Across the long weekend we struck a good balance of things for us to do as a family, as one parent with the children and as a solo adult. This post is going to concentrate on just a fraction of the things that we experienced at Camp Bestival for the children and as a family.

Project 366 2016 #30

Week 30 of Project 366 2016 and the first proper week of the school holidays!

Day 206
Another one of those lazy Sundays - things don't change even though we are on holiday! Today we got out the husband's board game from his younger days, Lost Valley of the Dinosaurs, for a bit of good old-fashioned retro fun!
Day 207
The planning turned into action today ready for Camp Bestival with a trip to the supermarket for the essentials!
Day 208
To break the chore of planning the packing we headed out to The Courts with the in laws for a picnic. The gardens were in full bloom and the honey bees were busy.
Day 209
Packing day is here! Luckily we have a big VW Transporter to carry all our paraphernalia down to Dorset.
Day 210
An early start but it was worth it. Once we had done the big task of setting up camp we went for our first peek of the Camp Bestival site and were greeted by quite a sizeable Spaceman!
Day 211
The first full day on site included a must go ride on the beautiful carousel.
Day 212
Early morning Qi Gong for me today followed by my favourite Soya Chai Latte from the lovely Coffee Camper.

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Camp Bestival 2016 ~ A jam-packed guide!

The excitement is rising in the house of 76sunflowers as we count down the weeks to our annual trip to the best family festival on earth - Camp Bestival.
My children have grown up with Camp Bestival in their blood, having attended since 2010, and it is their summer highlight every year. I remember that first festival nervously taking a two and four year old not really knowing what to expect but if I had this toddler survival guide I would have been much calmer!

One thing we did get right in 2010 was the fancy dress and I had my little pirate and fairy happily bum shuffling and toddling around that year. Now, fancy dress at Camp Bestival is a huge thing, not essential - my boy has no desire to dress up anymore - but you will see it everywhere. Should you be short of ideas for this year's Space theme then the Fancy Dress Festival Guru herself, aka Tattooed Mummy, has a great post here for inspiration - I'm hoping she goes as one of the Clangers!

Over the years we have perfected our packing and preparation, and tweaked our list to suit our family as they grow older, but this list from Penny would have saved us a lot of time and is a great starting point if going to your first festival.

Once the packing lists are done it is always a good idea to make some plans about what you all want to try and do across the long weekend. The site is packed full of entertainment for all ages and here is a selection of things that Sarah, from the Parenting Trials, is looking forward to this year including the biggest bouncy castle in the world!

Some first time festival goers may worry about the toilet situation but this post, will put you at ease, as well as giving you some other essential things to know or do.

Food is a hugely positive experience at Camp Bestival with an array of culinary delights to suit everybody's tastebuds. Louise and her Gorgeous Boys are licking their lips in anticipation of this delicious line up!

Despite the fantastic array of food on offer it is still useful to bring some food from home for breakfasts in the tent and picnics on site. Polly, from Enchanted Pixie, has some super ideas for feeding a family at a festival to help balance the budget and still enjoy a Mexican Burrito!

For some lovely images and a review of last year's festival take a look here and here.

I hope this has whetted your appetite to join us at Camp Bestival 2016!

x x x

Camp Bestival - Looking back and looking forwards

I sat quietly at home earlier in the week and the sun was shining. It was blooming cold out but the brightness of the ball of fire in the sky made me think of Summer time and one of my most favourite things - Camp Bestival! As soon as I start to think about that magical place down in Lulworth my head becomes full of happy memories.

Last year at Camp Bestival saw us going as a family unit for the first time since 2011. This allowed me to go off and 'find myself' but, more importantly, gave us some much needed time together away from the strains and stresses of day to day life. With a myriad of things to do for families and children we once again planned more than we could actually manage but left feeling satisfied and content.
Some of our favourite things included...

Camp Bestival 2015 ~ Review & Tips

I've bombarded you with images galore, here and here, from Camp Bestival 2015 and you may have guessed we have had an absolute ball but I've not put down many words. So here is my overall review of Camp Bestival 2015 with some helpful tips thrown in for good measure.

We arrived around 11:00 on the Thursday morning, following the clearly signed roads into the site where we parked up with ease - this year managing to pull up at the bottom of the car park thus avoiding the hill down. This is purely pot luck and has nothing to do with the time you get there. The car park is on a hill so be prepared with a trolley or buggy to get your things from car to camp, and back again. Trolley hire is available for a £50 deposit then a £5 half hour charge.
Tip: We always bring our trusted Phil & Teds which, with a few bungees, does a fantastic job.

We chose to camp in our usual spot in the valley of Purple Camping. Toilets were a few minutes walk away, showers a bit further - we had a trug! The campsite toilets were kept well stocked with toilet roll but we always bring our own just in case and they were cleaned well on a regular basis.
Tip: The portable loo doors are noisy so my tip is don't camp too close unless you want to hear a constant thudding of doors all night.

Onsite toilets are scattered around with a choice of chemical toilets or compost loos. As on the campsite these were well attended with toilet roll aplenty and clean. Some toilets are located near a water point but many aren't.
Tip: put a small bottle of hand sanitiser in your pocket.

The festival site itself is a short walk uphill out of the valley - you can camp a lot closer and avoid the hill on a daily basis - and is partly open on the Thursday night.
Tip: Head up on the Thursday evening and get your bearings onsite.

The site is a decent size which means a lot of walking. We planned a few activities we definitely wanted to do and some we might do should the mood take us, this way we weren't too stressed going from a to b on a timetabled mad scramble and actually found a lot of things that we had never even thought about. You can buy a Camp Bestival bag for £10 which includes a lanyard programme, book programme and colouring book and pencils. Be wary though that performance times do change and these are only sporadically displayed on the Castle Stage screen. My beady eyed girl spotted that Ella Henderson had been moved earlier but the husband missed most of Marcus Brigstocke as his comedy slot was moved forward.
Tip: Make a few plans but also just go with the flow.

Food is plentiful onsite but prices can add up. Some example costs were; a large pot of macaroni cheese and bacon £7 with a smaller child's size at £4, wood fired pizzas £10/£9, corn on the cob £3.50, pie and mash £7.50 with a child's serving at £4. The quality of food is good with a great range all around the site, particularly within the Feast Collective tent. We bought dinner each night but breakfasted in the tent and picnicked for lunch.
Tip: Take plenty of snacks, drinks and pre prepared wraps and keep a well stocked cool box in your tent.

Be prepared for the weather. This year we didn't see a drop of rain but the temperatures dropped massively at night. The sun was hot in the daytime and this sun spray from P20 was a great product to test out on the family.
Tip: bring sun spray, layers, sun hats, woolly hats, onesies, blankets & wellies and waterproofs - just in case.

Take some spending money. As well as food there are other stalls to entice you to part with your well earned cash. Bars are plentiful selling beer, cider and ale for £4 - £4.80 a pint - cocktails, wine and spirits were also available. You can take alcohol onto the campsite but this is not supposed to be taken onto the main site. Other ways to spend your money include; the carousel at £2.50 a ride, the FairyLove tent, Tell Tails, postcards, charity stalls, Fire Toys - the boy bought a diablo for £12, Bubbles Inc, face paint tents and clothing stalls.
Tip: go armed with bubbles, glowsticks, and face paints.

At night the main music acts hit the Castle Stage. In the past we have always camped up on the field from 6 onwards but this year we decided to explore elsewhere in the evenings. On the final night we chose to watch the fireworks from the side of the castle and this gave us a fantastic viewpoint without being huddled tight and fenced in on the main field - it also meant we could exit the site quickly at the end as we had to head home on the Sunday too.
Tip: the bandstand on the Kid's Field showcases a wide range of music - we had a ball on the Friday night dancing to the 'Fabulous Lounge Swingers'. Also head into the Dingly Dell in the dark - it is beautiful and the children going to the play park at 22:40 is one of their favourite moments!

x x x

Disclaimer: I received family Camp Bestival 2015 tickets in return for previews and reviews of this year's festival. As always, views and opinions are my own.

Photos of Camp Bestival 2015

You really can't make it around Camp Bestival without taking a few - hundred or thousand - photos.
Here is a snippet of my captures of the amazing sights I caught on camera across the wonderful festival site.

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