V Festival Tickets

V Festival 2010 is nearly upon us – and for those camping in Chelmsford or Stafford, it’s time to start digging out the tent from the cupboard and looking for that old sleeping bag.

We present 14 top tips to help protect you are thoroughly prepared for a incredible weekend.

1. Do not forget your ticket

Seriously, don’t! Duplicate tickets will not be issued under any circumstances. You eill need your car park ticket for Hylands too and your V Festival Information Booklet will also come in very handy – you should receive one along with your ticket.

2. Plan your travel

The official V Festival website has all the lowdown on how to get to Hylands Park, Chelmsford and Weston Park, Stafford. Take a minute to work out your route so that you do not waste valuable V Festival time getting lost on the way.

3. Fancy a drink?

Be aware that V Festival operates a token system in its bars.

You can buy your tokens from the token booths in the arena and then use them at any bar, other than the Bacardi Bar.

Tokens bought for Friday and Saturday can still be used on Sunday but refunds are only given on the day of purchase from the designated token booths during the last hour that the bars are trading.

4. Do not get dehydrated

You can buy bottled water on site, but there will be standpipes containing drinking water in the campsites and the arena. Bring with you some plastic containers that you can refill.

5. No glass policy

V Festival operates a strict policy – no glass. Any found will be seizured.

That does not mean you can not bring alcohol or soft drinks into the campsite – just make sure it comes in plastic, foil or cardboard containers.

6. Holes in the wall

Do not worry too much, if you run out of money. You will find cash machines in the arena but be prepared to queue – they are bound to get busy, indeed.

7. Erm, toilets

Commonly the most terrible part of any festival, but V Festival‘s toilets are emptied and cleaned throughout the weekend.

If we all make an exertion to keep them as clean as possible, everyone’s a winner. However long the queues get, please do not be tempted to go for a wee in the surrounding woods.

Get caught and you will be drive out instantly.

8. Take a shower

You do not get this at Glastonbury! V Festival has warm water showers in the campsites so you can wash off all that festival dirt. As you had await, the queues can get long first thing in the morning.

9. Do not bring expensive stuff

V Festival has a very good safety record but thieves will always find a way – so it is better to leave anything of value at home.

There will be a lock-up easily at the Welfare Tent that you can use, but it is better to carry things like mobile phones, money, cameras, credit cards and so on with you at all times.

10. Be prepared for the weather

Of course, this being England, it could be hailing one minute and bright sunshine the next so try to prepare for every eventuality.

Bring along both a waterproof jacket and light summer clothes, both boots and sandals/flip-flops, both a woolly hat and a sun hat, and so on – then you can enjoy V Festival, whatever the weather may bring.

11. No starting fires!

As much as lighting a little fire at night might feel cosy, local fire regulations do not permit fires anywhere on the V handy Festival site.

If you do get a fire going, it will be put out by some very disgruntled stewards or even the Fire Service… so best not do it.

12. Make a shopping list

You do not want to be sat frying in the heat, wishing you had remembered the suntan lotion. So, make a shopping list and get in some essentials: sunscreen and suntan lotion, toilet roll, wet wipes, disposable camera… that should get you started.

13. Leave your tent unitdy

As much as you might be a stickler for tidiness, leaving your tent in an unitdy mess in fact discourages thieves: it takes them too much time to find everything worth stealing.

Do not make it easy for them by leaving a bag in your tent with everything in it. When you go to sleep (if you go..) , hide all expensive things carefully and do not put everything together.

14. A few final no-nos

It’s much better to know early, so… no pets are allowed, except guide dogs for the blind and deaf – nor are candles, air horns, fireworks and anything that could be interpreted as a weapon.