How to Hold A mini-Family Festival in your Garden

Joanna Armah-Kinson Author

May 15, 2024 |

Immerse yourselves in the joy of festivals at home! Recreate the vibrant atmosphere and shared joy of a festival, right in your back garden.

How to Hold A mini-Festival in your Garden

Introduction

This year we are planning my son's school prom. You might not be surprised to hear that we are going to give it a festival theme. 

I'm picturing the magic of a family festival - the vibrant atmosphere, the unity and camaraderie that pervades the air, the thrill of shared experiences, and the heartwarming sound of children's laughter echoing through the open fields. 

It's a feeling that's almost intangible, a memory that etches itself in your heart. And I really hope we are able to recreate that for the Y6 leavers in his class so its a special memory they treasure forever. 

You can also create this festival spirit in the comfort of your own home. It will transform an average weekend at home, into a fun, laughter filled memory making family adventure. And if that sounds like hard work, then read on. 

Because with the tips and tricks in this blog post, you'll be surprised at how effortlessly you can transform your back garden into your own, fun vibrant festival.

Why have a mini Festival at Home?

It's hard to beat a full on music festival - the vast open fields filled with tents, colourful stages filled with banging music, and hordes of people all having a great time.

But most people can’t go to festivals every weekend. 

Some weekends you just can’t make it – maybe there aren’t good ones that weekend. Or you (or your kids) hate the travel, you don't like crowds, it’s too much money at the moment or maybe it’s just a free weekend in between other festivals

So how can you get all of the benefits of a festival, without actually going to one?

Host your own in your back garden!

At the heart of it all, when you take your kids to a festival, it's all about having fun together, creating shared memories, and embracing the joy of the moment. You can do this in your own house or garden.

Setting up your own 'home festival' offers a comfortable, convenient, and cost-effective alternative to travelling to an organised one.

It provides you with the freedom to craft an experience that is perfectly tailored to your family's interests and preferences. And to revel in the festival spirit all year round.

Sound good? Read on to find out how to get organised.

Get Ready

So, you can’t go to a festival and want to organise a mini one at home? Brilliant!

But what do you need to do to get organised?

If you want a sure fire way to build the buzz and minimise the stress for you, get everyone involved in the organization.

Let your Creativity Flow

Get your more creative family members to start making posters and tickets. If you don’t want to go that far, or if your not inviting friends, go instead for homemade bunting, decorating glass lanterns or homemade festival flags to help create a festival atmosphere on the weekend itself.

Location, Location, Location

Next choose your location. If the weather forecasts good (or if you don’t care!) set it up in your back garden. If not, your living room will work too. And if your worried that neither your home or garden are big enough, grab a gazebo and head to your local park for the afternoon. You might not be able to camp or take quite as much comfy seating, but you’ll be able to have a great time at a mini-mini-afternoon festival!

One of the biggest complaints at a festival is the lack of seating. So, choose a corner and create a warm, welcoming chill-out area using blankets, seats and cushions, whatever you can find! 

Decorate your festival space, being liberal with the bunting, flags, and fairy lights; not only will they help set the festival vibe but they’ll be also be perfect for those Instagram-worthy pictures!

Cozy Corner

Next, it's time to focus on the camping area. If you have a tent, that's fantastic! If not, don't worry. A homemade fort using sheets and a clothesline can be equally fun. Fill it up with sleeping bags, cushions, and battery-operated or solar fairy lights to make it cozy and inviting. Depending on what time of the year it is, you will need to ensure that you have plenty of warm things to sleep as it can get surprisingly cold at night even in the middle of summer. It helps if you’ve got something thick to lie on too.

With the festival site ready, it's time to create the festival soundtrack. Music is the soul of any festival, and your home festival should be no different. Work with your family to create a playlist that spans various genres and eras. From classic rock to modern pop, let everyone's musical taste be represented.

If you want to do a really organised festival playlist, choose some bands and put half an hour of their top songs together. Start with those you kind of like and build up to your favourites throughout the day. You can then add your line up to your posters. 

And of course, don't forget to keep some space clear for a dance floor. Dancing is an integral part of a festival, and your home festival should be no different!

Get the Party Started

So your festival site is set up and ready to go. The day itself has dawned bright and sunny and you and your family are ready to enjoy. What are you going to do now?

It's time to let loose and really enjoy yourselves.

Crank up the music, forget about perfect moves, and just let the rhythm take over. You could add in a family karaoke session or a friendly dance-off to really get the fun going.

You could have some sessions where you learn some circus skills – just like you might at a real festival. Get some poi’s, balls to juggle and toy plates to spin. If you need to keep the energy going, grab a pole and have an impromptu limbo competition, its sure to generate lots of laughs!

No festival is complete without food, and your home festival shouldn’t be any different. Make some easy street food snacks like hot dogs, mini sliders, or pizza and finish off with an ice cream.

Keep the Vibe going!

So you’ve danced the day away and now the sun’s going down.

How can you keep the festival vibe going without annoying the neighbours?

Grab some cozy onesies and get ready for a night camping in your festival tent.

As the music gets quieter, you can set up a projector to watch a film or gather round for a cozy storytelling session.

Hot chocolates all round (with a good shot of Baileys for the adults) and if you have a camp fire, why not toast some marshmallows or melt chocolate inside bananas for a late night snack.

And don’t forget to turn the fairy lights on. As the sun goes down they’ll really help to create a festival atmosphere.

Then, it's time to crawl into your sleeping bags and get cozy for a good night's sleep under the stars in your back garden or in your cozy living room fort. You’ll surely sleep well with the added comfort of a proper working toilet and somewhere dry to go if it rains!

Wakey Wakey

After a (hopefully) refreshing night’s sleep, it's time to wake up to another day of festival fun.

One of the beautiful things about festivals at home is that you can your own toilet, shower and kitchen facilities. So you can crawl out of your sleeping bags, grab yourself a coffee and some breakfast and have a proper shower. 

Why not start day 2 of your festival with a short exercise session? You could put a YouTube video and get everyone moving and ready to start the second day of your home festival. 

Rinse and Repeat

If your worried that music and circus toys won't be enough, why not set up a Festival Bingo Hunt to keep the kids busy? You can make it fun and adventurous or focus on the educational aspect, whichever works best for your family. Its a great way to engage with nature and have fun simultaneously.

Other things you could do include face painting, putting some temporary tattoos or have a fancy dress competition and parade. Bubble machines always go down well and if its a hot day be sure to get the hosepipe, paddling pool or water sprinkler out.

All the while keep the music going with your day 2 playlist.

Basically, you can do any of the things you love doing at a festival!

Conclusion

Holding a festival at home is all about having fun, creating unforgettable family memories, and nurturing a sense of adventure.

With a bit of creativity and planning, you can turn a quiet weekend into a magical mini festival right in your own home.

And if your eager for more family adventures you can download our "Make memories all year round with our 56 Family Adventure Jar Ideas" and discover an array of exciting activities for unforgettable family bonding.

You can read it here. 

Every day holds the promise of a new adventure, and with a little bit of creativity, it can often begin at home.

Categories: : Family Festivals