Festival Packing List
Everything a first-timer needs for a camping weekend in a British field, from wellies and power banks to medication rules and banned items.
Photo: zzuuzz / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
Packing for a UK music festival is a balancing act between what the weather demands and what the festival bans: a tent you have pitched before, a warm sleeping bag and mat, waterproofs, wellies and layers, then a careful look at your festival's own banned list before you leave.
Weather, tent and sleeping kit
British festival weather can swing from hot sun to a torrential downpour in a single weekend, and a field gets cold at night even after a warm day. Pack layers rather than one heavy coat, a proper waterproof jacket, wellies plus a second pair of comfortable shoes, and sun cream and a hat for the dry spells. Practise putting the tent up at home so you are not learning in the rain.
| Area | What to pack |
|---|---|
| Shelter | Tent, pegs, a mallet if allowed, spare bin bags |
| Sleep | Sleeping bag suited to cold nights, mat or airbed, pillow, eye mask, earplugs |
| Clothes | Layers, waterproof jacket, wellies, spare socks, hat, warm top for the evenings |
| Essentials | Ticket or wristband details, photo ID, bank card, a little cash, reusable water bottle |
| Health | Prescribed medication, sun cream, basic first aid, hand sanitiser, toilet roll |
| Power | Fully charged phone and power bank, torch or head torch |
Money, phones and medication
Many festivals now run cashless or card-first bars and food stalls, so bring a bank card and keep a small amount of cash as a back-up, then check your festival's own payment information before you go. Phone batteries drain fast in crowds, so arrive with a charged power bank and turn your screen brightness down.
Bring prescribed medication in its original packaging with the pharmacy label in your own name, carry only what you need for the weekend, and pack a copy of the prescription or a letter from your doctor. Festivals commonly ask for this and can refuse entry to substances that cannot be confirmed as prescribed medicine.
What to leave at home, and what to take back
Items banned at many UK festivals include glass, gazebos, drones, fireworks and flares, and nitrous oxide, which is a controlled drug. Confiscated items are usually not returned. Lists differ from site to site, so read your festival's own list and ticket terms, including its rules on wristbands, which must normally stay on for the whole event.
Take your tent and everything else home with you. Abandoned tents mostly end up as waste, and the Association of Independent Festivals has run its Take Your Tent Home campaign since 2019 to ask festival-goers to stop treating tents as single-use.
For personal safety, agree a meeting point with friends in case phones die, never leave a drink unattended and do not accept drinks from strangers. If you or a friend feel suddenly unwell, or think a drink has been spiked, go to the welfare or medical tent or tell a steward straight away.
The costly mistakes usually come from not packing to the weather and the festival's rules. The practical rule: pack from the official list, not from memory.
Checked against the sources below at the time of writing. Ticketing rules, licences, royalty schemes and festival policies change; confirm with the official body, venue or organiser before you rely on them.
