27 August 2015

WILDERNESS FESTIVAL WITH KIDS


You might have guessed that we're HUGE festival fans and every year we try to attend at least two with our boy in tow, in the hopes to create hazy summer magical memories that last a lifetime. A few weeks back we had the pleasure of attending Wilderness Festival as guests of Mamas & Papas as part of their #Shareoursummer campaign. We normally attend End of the Road and Just So Festival, so I was excited to see what Wilderness had in store for us.


We pitched up in the family camping area located away from standard camping, allowing us to be in a total kid friendly zone while still being very close to the main festival area and have easy access to our car – which is soooo handy when travelling with kids as you can leave spares of stuff in the boot rather than all in your tent. At night the campsite was quiet, perfect for little ones sleeping, and it was amazing to see how many families were there with tiny babies or young children running around making friends. Although no matter where we pitch I always seemed to loose our tent *note to self invest in a bell tent! The weather was so warm the whole weekend meaning I could wear my new gorgeous Esme Denim dress c/o Joules Clothing.

As with all festivals one of my favourite pastimes is the food and there was no shortage here! I've never seen such a variety in one place, from F's favourite Mac 'n' Cheese – let's take a minute to acknowledge his cuteness in the below pic –  to gluten free specialists, burritos, Bhangra vegan American school bus cafes, fresh lobster street food, multi-coloured candyfloss carts, grilled and smoked meats, breakfast clubs, organic ice lollies and that's just the food stalls. If you fancy something a little more upmarket you can book a meal at one of the many banqueting tents, where fine dining and candlelit suppers are available. The Laurent-Perrier Champagne bar was certainly a big hit with me and I would loved to have tried an evening enjoying food prepared by one of the many award winning chefs but with a wriggly four year old we stuck to lounging on hay bales to enjoy our bites.  


Situated on a larger site than we're normally used to it still felt quite small and not too busy and it was quite easy to navigate once you'd got your bearings. You can buy a guide when you arrive, which I would say is an absolute must as there is soooooo much to see and do and you can find all the timings and listing for everything over the weekend such as: music and live performances,  theatre, talks and debates, workshops, shops, bars, cinema, disco tents, the hilarious sports area and the best commentator in town, well being fields and holistic tents, food stalls and restaurants and so much more. 
We spent a lot of our time during the day at Family Fun area. A whole section dedicated to making your child giggle in delight, with mini big tops, cafe and kids pack lunch boxes, face painting, crafting, movement workshops, pirate shows and a whole load of bubbles. Each minute of the day is packed with fun activities to get involved with and my favourite evening was spent settling down with F to watch Labyrinth at the open air cinema with a bubble disco afterwards... apparently the goblin king is not so scary after all.


I loved all the market stalls and bizarre shops and oh my the GLITTER! What better way to hide those tired eyes and dark circles than glitter concealer, maybe this is the way forward. We also enjoyed lounging in the Canopy & Stars story tent where we filled bottles with dreams and lay on beds while stories unfolded around us in a theatrical performance.
 
 How cute does F look in his cosy limited edition knitted cardigan c/o Mamas & Papas


Apart from seeing Bjork headline, which was quite frankly brilliant, my other highlight of the festival was taking F wild swimming in the lake, last year that I wouldn't have dreamt of swimming amongst reeds, but as I push myself to be brave and try new things I found the experience completely thrilling and even though it was a little cold it was such an amazing memory.

We had such a fab time and it's such a great family friendly festival that I'm know we'll be back again next year with friends. I mean it's not often you get to see a giant performing puppet with an opera singer attached at a spectacular nght light show is it? This is where magical memories are made! 

Do you attend any festivals? I'd love to hear your favourite kid friendly weekend away.

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7 comments

  1. It looks absolutely amazing, you have really captured the atmosphere with your photos, it all looks so happy!

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    1. Thanks it was such a great festival I would definitely recommend it! x

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  2. Love this post so much, these photos are totally stunning! I was really put off going to festivals after some horrible experiences at Glastonbury as a teenager (knee deep mud; not fun). But this has really tempted me for next year...x

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  3. I loved reading this review especially as Wilderness has been on our list of festivals to go to for a while and this looks fab for kids - I love that you also have the chance to do a bit of wild swimming - amazing

    Laura x

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  4. Wow it looks absolutely awesome!! Especially with that river running through it. Definitely going to check it out for next year x

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  5. beautiful photos - looks amazing!

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  6. ah looks like you had a great time and you were so lucky with the weather, amazing to be able to sunbath and swim in the river! x

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