Reviews
The good bits, the bad bits; all the fun and frolics of a festival brought to you by Festival Kidz reviews… and don’t forget the mud!
Limetree 2011 Review
Our competition winners for Limetree Festival tickets were Mike, his wife Gaelle and their 2 daughters (aged 5 and 9). Now Mike, as it turns out, was a music journalist in a past life so we asked him to share how they got on… (the photos are from Mike’s phone as they lost their camera)
Arriving, setting up camp and site layout
“We arrived on the Saturday after cowarding out of a 3 hour drive in weather of biblical proportions on the Friday (not wanting to put the tent up in a lake & lightning). The site was tricky to find, but beautifully secluded. On the way in I was fearing a lack of space in the family fields would force us to pitch up in the crowded main field but when we decamped from the car park, a very short walk into the family field put us at rest. The family field was bijou with no facilities but at least we had a spot and we quickly setup and got into the fray.
I was so glad we weren’t in the main field as it was fit to bursting, and walking through to the main arena was an A to Z of discarded booze, Friday had clearly been a heavy night 🙂
Harvest at Jimmy’s 2011 Review
2011 HAJ Weather: Windy and a few showers (but plenty of shelter so not a problem)
Review by: Danielle (with a 3yr old and a 5mth old baby)
Getting to the festival:
We arrived just after 1pm and the car parking was easy and quiet. We loaded the buggy with stuff and went to wait in the queue. The gates where supposed to open at 3pm but didn’t open until gone 3.30 ( maybe even 3.45 ) so we had one very fed up 3 year old!
We had a good choice of where to camp and chose the family area. We where all pretty spaced out and the families around us were fantastic: all really friendly and kind enough to give us some gas when ours ran out and the shop said they wouldn’t be getting any more!!! All the people round us had children a similar age so it wasn’t noisy and the children slept well.
Shambala 2011 Review
Louise went down to Shambala Festival to check out their family friendly credentials for Festival Kidz. Louise lives and breathes festivals, so much so that she even took her newborn baby to Glastonbury last year just days after an emergency c-section! So what did she make of Shambala then?
“Wow! It was all the best bits of Glastonbury, but smaller, more accessible, and less middle class. The very first thing we felt on entering the site was a warm welcoming vibe, something Shambala is well known for.”
80’s Rewind 2011 (Henley) Review
2011 80’s Rewind (Henley) Weather: Torrential rain for the first 2 hours, then it dried out on Day 1 and glorious weather on Day 2.
Review by: Caswasere (with 2 kids, 9 and 6 years old)
Getting to the festival:
Queue was about 20 mins to get to the camping arena. We did have to carry the stuff quite far – pull along carts available to hire, but the queue was horrendous for these. People had brought flimsy trucks to wheel things along – pointless: most broke before they got to their campsites – best inventions were those that had brought wheel barrows, or industrial strength carts.
Entertainment – Line up and Kids Activities:
There was a children’s entertainment area, we used this Fri evening after setting up the tent, but didn’t have time to go anywhere near it on the main Sat/Sun event. Entertainers were good and there was lots of circus equipment for them to try out, really good as it was free!
Beautiful Days 2011 Review
2011 Beautiful Days Weather: Mostly dry and warm. Sunny at times but with heavy rain on the Saturday morning.
Review by: Chris Luxford (with a nearly 3 year old)
Getting to the festival:
The festival was clearly signposted from the A30 with stewards to guide people along the local lanes long before reaching the site. There was a steady stream of vehicles arriving, but no queue (though getting out on the Monday took an hour).
LodeStar 2011 Review
2011 LodeStar Weather: Hot and sunny.
Review by: Steve (with 2 kids, 6 and 8 years old) – Attended SATURDAY only
Getting to the festival:
No queues to get in and very easy to find. We didn’t have a problem on the narrow country and village lanes as there was very little traffic when we arrived, but I did wonder what it would be like if it was busy.
Entertainment – Line up and Kids Activities:
The line-up was a good mix of well chosen bands – some unsigned, some up and coming. Most were really good. There was also an alternative stage with some comedy and a few theatre sketches, but we didn’t really spend much time there.
For the kids there was Read more…
Jolly Day Out 2011 Review
Held over 4 days with different headliners each night, this new summer festival promised to bring music and fun for all the family to Hampton Court Green on August Bank Holiday weekend.
Getting there by car was very easy. Perhaps not quite so easy by public transport, but possible – just slow because of the location. The festival was well organised with good signposting, helpful car park stewards and no queues to get in. So far so good.
Standon Calling 2011 Review
Standon Calling 2011 weather: Rained overnight on Friday. Fine the rest of the weekend.
Review by: Sam Sugden (with two 12 yr olds and a 3 yr old)
Getting to the festival:
We planned to arrive Thurs eve, but rain was predicted so were lucky enough to stay at friends who fortunately live close by. We therefore arrived around 10am Fri instead and there were no queues at all. Unlike 2010 when camper vans were parked up on the hill, this year they had moved us to a spot much closer to the festival.
Entertainment – Line up and Kids Activities:
If you ask my daughter what her highlights were she would say the swimming pool and Big Love Gallery where they got to make lots of lovely badges. My 3 yr old son and I once again enjoyed listening to Morris and his reggae nursery rhymes, and the Punch and Judy show.
My highlight would be that we got to see John Grant up close and personal late Sunday, one of those moments that will stay with me for a lifetime.
Just So Festival 2011 Review
2011 saw the second ever Just So Festival, a unique and special event intended to celebrate all that is creative and fun in childhood. You won’t find commercialism or big children’s TV characters here, just boundless opportunities to play and explore in a magical journey through the woods. This is not just a festival… this is a place where kids and families can come together in the beauty of imagination.
There were problems with an inadequate water supply and the organisers have issued public apologies, admitting that they got it wrong and have learnt for next year. Reviews should be read with these issues in mind, which will have undoubtedly deeply soured the experience for some.
The organisers are not professional festival managers, rather it is led by two mums inspired to create a special and creative weekend for families to share. They care passionately about the event. On many counts they have done an incredible job and are well on their journey through this huge learning curve. It’s also worth remembering that this is a not-for-profit community event. The Just So Festival has a great ethos and has already built up a very loyal fan base.
Croissant Neuf Summer Party 2011 Review
2011 Croissant Neuf Summer Party Weather: Cloudy most of the time, one or two light drizzles.
Review by: Nonny Kinchin-Smith (with 2 kids: aged 5 and 4)
Getting to the festival and setting up camp:
The festival is situated in a beautiful wooded valley in south wales, accessed by very narrow country roads. Stewards were at junctions in the approach to the site to ensure that no vehicles tried to drive the wrong way (limited passing places). Once on site we queued for 15 minutes in the car before being able to go to the ticket office to get our wrist bands. So, in less that 30 minutes we were already parked and unpacking our gear.
Limetree 2011 Review
Our competition winners for Limetree Festival tickets were Mike, his wife Gaelle and their 2 daughters (aged 5 and 9). Now Mike, as it turns out, was a music journalist in a past life so we asked him to share how they got on… (the photos are from Mike’s phone as they lost their camera)
Arriving, setting up camp and site layout
“We arrived on the Saturday after cowarding out of a 3 hour drive in weather of biblical proportions on the Friday (not wanting to put the tent up in a lake & lightning). The site was tricky to find, but beautifully secluded. On the way in I was fearing a lack of space in the family fields would force us to pitch up in the crowded main field but when we decamped from the car park, a very short walk into the family field put us at rest. The family field was bijou with no facilities but at least we had a spot and we quickly setup and got into the fray.
I was so glad we weren’t in the main field as it was fit to bursting, and walking through to the main arena was an A to Z of discarded booze, Friday had clearly been a heavy night 🙂
Shambala 2011 Review
Louise went down to Shambala Festival to check out their family friendly credentials for Festival Kidz. Louise lives and breathes festivals, so much so that she even took her newborn baby to Glastonbury last year just days after an emergency c-section! So what did she make of Shambala then?
“Wow! It was all the best bits of Glastonbury, but smaller, more accessible, and less middle class. The very first thing we felt on entering the site was a warm welcoming vibe, something Shambala is well known for.”
Beautiful Days 2011 Review
2011 Beautiful Days Weather: Mostly dry and warm. Sunny at times but with heavy rain on the Saturday morning.
Review by: Chris Luxford (with a nearly 3 year old)
Getting to the festival:
The festival was clearly signposted from the A30 with stewards to guide people along the local lanes long before reaching the site. There was a steady stream of vehicles arriving, but no queue (though getting out on the Monday took an hour).
Jolly Day Out 2011 Review
Held over 4 days with different headliners each night, this new summer festival promised to bring music and fun for all the family to Hampton Court Green on August Bank Holiday weekend.
Getting there by car was very easy. Perhaps not quite so easy by public transport, but possible – just slow because of the location. The festival was well organised with good signposting, helpful car park stewards and no queues to get in. So far so good.
Just So Festival 2011 Review
2011 saw the second ever Just So Festival, a unique and special event intended to celebrate all that is creative and fun in childhood. You won’t find commercialism or big children’s TV characters here, just boundless opportunities to play and explore in a magical journey through the woods. This is not just a festival… this is a place where kids and families can come together in the beauty of imagination.
There were problems with an inadequate water supply and the organisers have issued public apologies, admitting that they got it wrong and have learnt for next year. Reviews should be read with these issues in mind, which will have undoubtedly deeply soured the experience for some.
The organisers are not professional festival managers, rather it is led by two mums inspired to create a special and creative weekend for families to share. They care passionately about the event. On many counts they have done an incredible job and are well on their journey through this huge learning curve. It’s also worth remembering that this is a not-for-profit community event. The Just So Festival has a great ethos and has already built up a very loyal fan base.
Harvest at Jimmy’s 2011 Review
2011 HAJ Weather: Windy and a few showers (but plenty of shelter so not a problem)
Review by: Danielle (with a 3yr old and a 5mth old baby)
Getting to the festival:
We arrived just after 1pm and the car parking was easy and quiet. We loaded the buggy with stuff and went to wait in the queue. The gates where supposed to open at 3pm but didn’t open until gone 3.30 ( maybe even 3.45 ) so we had one very fed up 3 year old!
We had a good choice of where to camp and chose the family area. We where all pretty spaced out and the families around us were fantastic: all really friendly and kind enough to give us some gas when ours ran out and the shop said they wouldn’t be getting any more!!! All the people round us had children a similar age so it wasn’t noisy and the children slept well.
80’s Rewind 2011 (Henley) Review
2011 80’s Rewind (Henley) Weather: Torrential rain for the first 2 hours, then it dried out on Day 1 and glorious weather on Day 2.
Review by: Caswasere (with 2 kids, 9 and 6 years old)
Getting to the festival:
Queue was about 20 mins to get to the camping arena. We did have to carry the stuff quite far – pull along carts available to hire, but the queue was horrendous for these. People had brought flimsy trucks to wheel things along – pointless: most broke before they got to their campsites – best inventions were those that had brought wheel barrows, or industrial strength carts.
Entertainment – Line up and Kids Activities:
There was a children’s entertainment area, we used this Fri evening after setting up the tent, but didn’t have time to go anywhere near it on the main Sat/Sun event. Entertainers were good and there was lots of circus equipment for them to try out, really good as it was free!
LodeStar 2011 Review
2011 LodeStar Weather: Hot and sunny.
Review by: Steve (with 2 kids, 6 and 8 years old) – Attended SATURDAY only
Getting to the festival:
No queues to get in and very easy to find. We didn’t have a problem on the narrow country and village lanes as there was very little traffic when we arrived, but I did wonder what it would be like if it was busy.
Entertainment – Line up and Kids Activities:
The line-up was a good mix of well chosen bands – some unsigned, some up and coming. Most were really good. There was also an alternative stage with some comedy and a few theatre sketches, but we didn’t really spend much time there.
For the kids there was Read more…
Standon Calling 2011 Review
Standon Calling 2011 weather: Rained overnight on Friday. Fine the rest of the weekend.
Review by: Sam Sugden (with two 12 yr olds and a 3 yr old)
Getting to the festival:
We planned to arrive Thurs eve, but rain was predicted so were lucky enough to stay at friends who fortunately live close by. We therefore arrived around 10am Fri instead and there were no queues at all. Unlike 2010 when camper vans were parked up on the hill, this year they had moved us to a spot much closer to the festival.
Entertainment – Line up and Kids Activities:
If you ask my daughter what her highlights were she would say the swimming pool and Big Love Gallery where they got to make lots of lovely badges. My 3 yr old son and I once again enjoyed listening to Morris and his reggae nursery rhymes, and the Punch and Judy show.
My highlight would be that we got to see John Grant up close and personal late Sunday, one of those moments that will stay with me for a lifetime.
Croissant Neuf Summer Party 2011 Review
2011 Croissant Neuf Summer Party Weather: Cloudy most of the time, one or two light drizzles.
Review by: Nonny Kinchin-Smith (with 2 kids: aged 5 and 4)
Getting to the festival and setting up camp:
The festival is situated in a beautiful wooded valley in south wales, accessed by very narrow country roads. Stewards were at junctions in the approach to the site to ensure that no vehicles tried to drive the wrong way (limited passing places). Once on site we queued for 15 minutes in the car before being able to go to the ticket office to get our wrist bands. So, in less that 30 minutes we were already parked and unpacking our gear.