** Tickets now on sale for 2024 **
Festival Kidz have been staunch followers of Beautiful Days for many years, and have many visits under our belts. But for my family, it was our first ever experience of the festival. I’m a huge Levellers fan and Beautiful Days has been on my radar since its very first incarnation. It was hard to believe it had taken me 20 years to actually get there! Thankfully, it proved to be everything I had hoped for.
General Vibe
It felt such a safe and happy environment at Beautiful Days. Everyone was so friendly. There was a a good mix of ages, with every generation incredibly well catered for. Everyone seemed to be having a thoroughly lovely time all weekend.
Baby and Younger Children’s Activities
Beautiful Days attracts lots of families and it’s easy to see why. We loved the kids’ field, away from the throng of the main stage. It was such a lovely chilled-out area with masses to do.
I thought it was lovely that the activities for the littlest people such as baby yoga and baby massage were available on request rather than at set times because ‘babies do not adhere to time-tables’.
Elsewhere, we witnessed lots of happy children involved in messy play, sensory activites, crafts and music. There were lots of performances and roaming theatre which engaged both children and adults alike.
There was also plenty of quiet space for families to chill out together.
Tweens and Teens
This was a great festival for older children and young adults as they were so well considered.
There were separate tents for both age groups, with fab activities and chill-out space available.
Check out the pictures below for examples of the types of workshops that were on offer.
Fairground
My 16- and 12-year-olds loved the old-fashioned fairground games.
All the stalls were charming and the festival was by no means overrun with expensive, noisy rides. There was a big wheel, a helter skelter and traditional games such as a tin can alley and darts-throwing.
Other Activities
The children’s field was where most of the activities took place, but I loved the fact that there were other places dedicated to kids throughout the site.
Set back from the main stage there was a great circus skills area on a gentle bank.
This meant if you had younger children, you could keep one eye on them happily playing as you also enjoyed the music of the main stage.
Music
I was head-over-heels for the 20th birthday line-up. The headliners were Suede, Primal Scream and, of course, Levellers.
I say of course, because it is tradition that Levellers both open and close the festival every year.
All three of the headliners were fanastic. I watched Suede with my daughter who had recently proclaimed them one of her top three favourite bands.
It was so special to sing along to the hits together, catching each others’ eye and smiling. It was a festival moment I will remember forever.
I watched Primal Scream on the second night with my best friend. The rest of my family decided to have an early night and it was lovely to have the opportunity to experience a full evening at the festival with a mate. A lot of dancing occurred!
I knew watching Levellers close the festival was going to be amazing. I lost count of how many times I’ve seen them somewhere around the 20-mark. But they still managed to exceed my expectations.
It was such a celebratory party atmosphere, the lighting was fantastic and they absolutely played their hearts out.
My husband isn’t anywhere near as huge a fan as I am, but he loved the set too.
The set closed with a wonderful firework display and everyone was in such high spirits.
Toilets
The toilets were back on form this year. Andy Loos were able to return and the number of toilets plus the condition was really good.
Loo roll and sanitiser was almost always available and queues went down quickly.
The main stage toilets were positioned so that even if you were queuing for the loo, you had the perfect view and sound.
Out of this world
On the final day there was a fancy dress theme: ‘Out of this world’
I absolutely loved how much effort people went to.
Would we return?
Absolutely we would! We loved the vibe, the people, the music. We were all so well catered-for and had a fantastic weekend. We can see why it’s a festival that families return to year after year, to create special family memories.