How to Choose the Best Family Festival for you: 5 Insider Tips to Help you Find one Everyone Loves
Joanna Armah-Kinson 
Overwhelmed by the amount of festivals to choose from? This blog gives you 5 insider tips to help choose the best family festival for your family.
5 top tips when choosing the best family festivals to go to this summer.
With hundreds of festivals happening across the UK every summer, how do you decide which one is right for your family?
If you’ve never been to one before, the choice can be overwhelming. Even festival veterans can be missing out by sticking with the one they know and not looking at what else is out there. Events range from the niche, such as vegan campouts or mountain climbing weekends, to massive temporary communities that showcase every music genre, food truck and activity imaginable.
If you want to experience the whole family festival vibe, choosing between them can be overwhelming and ultimately may stop you from attending any.
When every festival seems to offer non-stop entertainment, interactive workshops, unlimited food options and family-friendly facilities, how do you even begin to pick one? Particularly since every festival out there claims to “cater for kids” but that can mean anything from “we tolerate them being there” to “we are going to go out of our way to ensure that they and you have the most epic weekend ever”.
Can’t I just show up at any festival and have a good time?
Alone, yes. With kids? Well, you could try your luck, but when you have the whole family with you, it can be quite a risky approach.
You could simply choose the most convenient festival or one whose name you like, but by doing this you risk being left wondering what all the fuss was about. It may turn out to have your favourite music or activities or even end up being the perfect festival for you, but it's just as likely that all of those things are at a festival 20 miles down the road and you’re left having had a boring weekend, wishing “if only I’d known”.
And, on a purely practical level, festivals can be quite pricey, so picking the wrong one can be an expensive mistake. Going to family festivals is all about having a fabulous time and making magical memories, so make sure you are spending your precious time and money at the right one.
In this blog post, we’ll walk through 5 tips to help you select the best family festivals for your family. They'll help you navigate the maze of options and ensure you create magical memories this festival season!
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5 Pro Secrets to Help You Easily Choose the Right Family Festival
#1: If it hasn't got the things you "Just Can't Live Without", don't go.
Are there any special facilities your family requires, like a quiet space for little ones, a prayer room, baby changing areas, or even reliable Wi-Fi (good luck finding that!)? If there's something critical to your family's lifestyle, be sure to check the festival offers it.
It's easy to think "it's only 3 days, we'll cope". But festivals are a sensory overload. They start early, finish late and probably won't provide much opportunity for a good sleep. If you are missing something you need, you might find those 3 days feel very long.
You do need to be strict on what you add to this one or you might end up with an unobtainable list. For instance, as much as everyone would love to have good Wi-Fi at a festival, the only real reason it would be a must-have is if you’re waiting for a life-changing phone call or if you’re a trader who needs it to make sales!
#2. Be realistic about Your family’s Comfort Level.
Only you know what your family is happy to put up with. Are they adventurous and willing to try anything or less used to camping and festivals and more likely to want an easy life? It’s ok to stretch boundaries but stretch them too far and you’ll end up with stress, unhappiness and less than magical memories.
Just how truly “family friendly” a festival is can play a big part in ensuring your family’s comfort level is met. Some festivals cater solely for adults but accept children on the site. Others are aimed squarely at kids and ensuring they have a great time but offer little in the way of entertainment for adults. Many offer a middle ground, attempting to offer activities and entertainment that appeal to all ages. Choosing the right one can be critical to keeping everyone happy.
#3. Ensure there are at least 1-2 Activities you Love
Seek out festivals featuring activities your family loves, whether it's water sports, skate ramps, cars or even wandering around stately houses and their gardens. Having familiar experiences will make for happier campers!
Festivals offer a great opportunity to try something new and I would always recommend planning in time to experience this, but having some things you know your kids love to do is a great basis for a happy weekend.
And you can find a festival for pretty much every activity you can think of (we even used to go to a great one that celebrated the asparagus harvest)!
#4. Find a Festival with Music that makes Everyone think you went Just for them!
One of the best things about the best family-friendly festivals is that they tend to cater to all ages when it comes to music. You may well find the lineup has a band you love from years ago, followed by a brand new one your tween loves.
For some of the more popular festivals, you may have to take a leap of faith and buy tickets before the lineup is announced. In this case, take a look at who’s played in past years as the spread of music genre and decades is likely to stay the same.
#5. Set your Budget Early On.
Tickets are only part of the equation, so ensure you have an idea of how big your budget is and stick to it.
Family festivals can be expensive. Having a good idea of what you are willing and able to spend can help stop costs from spiralling out of control.
From ticket prices to add-on activities, travel and food there is alot of variability between festivals. Knowing how much you can and are willing to spend is key to helping prioritise which festivals are right for you.
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Choose the Right Festival and you can Relax and have a Brilliant Time.
I hope you've found these 5 insider tips gained from going to multiple festivals every year for the past 10+ years helpful.
One of the wonderful things about festivals is the sheer variety—there truly is one for every family. We love going to them and I want your family to as well.
If you want more tips, download our handy FREE guide. It contains 14 things to consider when choosing the perfect festival for your family.
Finding the best family festivals for your family may seem daunting with so many options to pick from. But taking the time upfront to identify your must-haves will ensure you find an event that exceeds your expectations.
Once you have clarity on what matters most to you, you can start researching events that fit the bill. Use our blog post that lists out all of the best family festivals in the UK to help you.
Give your family the gift of an epic family festival experience they'll treasure forever. Grab our guide and get ready to make this summer your festival season to remember!
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And if you want more information about Family Festivals you can also read:
- The Complete List of UK Family Friendly Festivals in 2024
- 5 Benefits of taking your kids to a Family-Friendly Festival this Summer
- 7 Things you Didn’t know about Taking your Kids to Festivals
- From Family Festival Newbie to Seasoned Pro: My Journey to The Fantbulous Family Festival Planner
Categories: : Family Festivals
Written by Joanna Armah-Kinson (Owner, The Fantabulous Family)
Joanna is the wife of a festival performer, who is lucky enough to spend the majority of her summer weekends at festivals entertaining her (now 11-year-old) son. As a mum who juggles a part-time job and managing two businesses, she knows the importance of good planning, and the need for flexibility and good grace when plans fall through! A lifelong adventure lover, travel, photography and spending time outdoors have always been Joanna's passions.
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