Glastonbury: The family food guide

So, you’ve got your Glastonbury tickets safely tucked away, got permission to take the kids out of school for a couple of days during term time, sorted out your travel arrangements and replaced the tent. Despite all the pre-festival planning, one thing you can’t really prepare for in advance is how to keep the family fed and watered during what can be a very gruelling and simultaneously enjoyable long weekend.

Spongebob Squarepants was right when he declared breakfast to be the most important meal of the day, and with a helluva lot of walking across fields ahead of you, the golden rule of each Glastonbury day is to have a hearty breakfast that contains plenty of slow release carbohydrates (porridge is ideal), some fruit to keep vitamin C levels up (which will help prevent colds and sniffles if it rains or gets cold overnight) and plenty of water or juice, especially for the children. Thirsty kids can be notoriously grizzly, so if they won’t drink their water or juice at breakfast, make sure you take it with you. Glastonbury isn’t one of those festivals where stewards confiscate any drinks you bring yourself, and when the weather is good, the searing Somerset sunshine can quickly lead to dehydration.

Being out in the open air, chances are that all the family will be peckish by mid morning….and this is about the time that a lot of the food stalls start opening for the day. A round of coffees and pastries, or some healthy flapjacks from the fab stalls leading up to the Green Fields area will usually be enough to keep everyone going until lunchtime, which is always a dilemma of choice at Glastonbury.

Most families will find that there is something for everyone’s taste given the sheer size of the festival, and with the clustering of food stalls at several locations across the site, you can have lunch at a different area every day and never be stuck for choice. The track that runs from alongside the Circus Field usually hosts some of the more diverse and interesting gourmet-friendly caterers, whilst the track leading up to the Green Fields is where you can find healthy, less crowded stalls and cafes which are more suited to family lunches.

By late afternoon, you’ll be ready for some hearty fare to keep your energy levels up, as either staying out to see bands or trudging miles back to the tent will burn up calories. Try to use the time between bands to indulge the kids food-wise. If they want say, pizza, then it’s better to walk the extra few hundred yards through the crowds to the nearest pizza stall to keep the kids happy rather than persuade them to have something they’re not happy with. Otherwise the band you’ve waited months to see might be drowned out by the squabbling of overtired and unhappy kids.

Most stalls serve good sized meals for about £5 or £6, which means that a family of two parents with two kids will need to take at least £180 if having lunch and dinner out for four days. Add in drinks, snacks and treats and you should budget for around £250 to keep everyone nourished when out and about. Add in another £100 for all the breakfasts and late night snacks and nibbles you’ll have in your tent. Also, remember, most food stalls take cash only so make sure you’re prepared before arriving at Glastonbury. There are cash machines on site, but the queues are rarely short… and kids’ appetites mean that they can’t wait hours while you queue up to withdraw cash.

Glastonbury’s site is big enough to have late night cafes and bars dotted around near the camping areas. Little kids will happily sleep in their push chairs or in child carriers while parents enjoy a late night drink in the more relaxed places. Just remember though….unlike being at home, your tired children will invariably doze off without having gone for a wee first, so chances are they’ll wake up in the night and need the loo, which means Mams and Dads will have to stay clear headed. Compromise is essential – you can’t end the day at a festival with several double brandies if you’ve got kids to look after, so its generally best to eat, drink and be merry but in enough moderation so that you can help out family members when they need it.