Camp Bestival 2018 Highlights

All I can really say about Camp Bestival this year is, “you’ve done it again”.

Despite being battered by 50mph winds and torrential downpours Camp Bestival still managed to keep shinning and gave everyone a weekend to remember.

I’m not going to give you a blow by blow account of the whole weekend, as to be honest there is way to much to cram into one post, so instead I will give you the highlights of my amazing weekend and will have more posts to follow.

Food Glorious Food – When we first visited Camp Bestival three years ago now one of the biggest surprises for me was how amazing and varied the food on offer there is.

The moment we leave the car Izzy is on a mission to have her first Nutella and cream cover waffle whilst Darren finds it hard to move away from the Paella UK stall the entire weekend.

I however like to try something new each time we visit and for me it was DJ BBQ that tempted me this year with his woody flavoured pulled pork, crispy rustic chips and of course the fab tunes blasting out whilst waiting for your order. You really do get a feast for all your senses when you eat there.

Absolutely every taste is catered for from delicious maki rolls that are perfect for vegan diets, crispy breaded chicken, amazingly creamy mac ‘n’ cheese, corn on the cobs as big as your head and so much more!

Music, Singing, Dancing – One of the main attractions at Camp Bestival is the music and in the past the boys were a little young for us to really appreciate it due to the fact they got a little restless. This year however they fully embraced it all and we couldn’t be happier.

It as actually my youngest that made my weekend when we when to see YouTube star HRVY take to the stage in the big top. Izzy had left us all and weaved her way to the very front of the stage to get as close to her teenage crush as possible, while Oscar waited patiently on Darren’s shoulders for him to take to the stage.

His little face lit up and he spent the entire set transfixed on the stage, singing along to his favourite tunes. It so amazing that children so young can get the opportunity to enjoy the wonder of live music in such a safe and friendly atmosphere.

Sarah Cox wowed the crowds with an outstanding set of all our 80’s favourites that we took great pleasure in dancing along to whilst embarrassing the kids. Basement Jaxx and Clean Bandit were as awesome as I expected and we were thrilled that the boys managed to stay awake long enough for the later acts this year…with the help of a little sugar!

Doing It For The Kids – Ultimately Camp Bestival is all about the kids and this year as always there was something for them to do around every corner. This year we didn’t watch so much on the main stage although Dinosaur World Live was pretty amazing. Instead we spend a lot of time in the Kids Garden where the children got their craft on in the craft tent, turned into little einsteins in the Science Tent, wurled around on the helter skelter more times than I can remember, dug away in the sandpit and created some brilliant sandcastles.

A big hit with us was the LOL Surprise stand that was a real crowd pleaser. Izzy and the boys are all big fans of these little collectables and as you can imagine a whole area dedicated to them went down really well. They got to hunt for prizes in the ball pit, get a glittery makeover and even take to the catwalk that Izzy relished in.

All Mucking In – Camping is bundles of fun but far from easy, especially when there are a few little ones to sort out. This calls for everyone to have their own little tasks which is something they don’t really get involved with at home. I’m actually my own worst enemy and take care of all the cooking and cleaning at home for a quiet life so I love that Camp Bestival allows me to relax a little and hand the meal prep baton over to Darren, the washing up and water runs to Izzy and the tent cleaning to the little ones.
A bit of responsibility is certainly good for them and something I love to see.

Good Friends – Over the past few years Camp Bestival has been a brilliant place to make new and meet up with good friends. The blogging world is a funny one with a lot of friendships being built online and I love that Camp Bestival gives me the opportinity to meet with them at least once a year and have a good catch up over a cocktail or two! Aby from You Baby Me Mummy and Caro from The Twinkle Diaries being two of the lovelies I can’t wait to see each year.

Back To Basics – Every year I say the same thing but it always has and probably always will be the most import thing about Camp Bestival for me – family time.
We all spend way to much of our live lost in our own little words and rushing around worry about the next thing, tied to our smart phones and computer screens and forget about the things in life that are really import.
The ability to really get back to basics and forget about everything else for a few days is the perfect way to draw closer as a family and just enjoy each other.

If this sounds like the kind of place for you, and lets face it why wouldnt it! take a look HERE and get yourselves booked in for more fun next year.

*I went along as an ambassador for Camp Bestival and here are all my own honest opinions.

Top Five Things We Are Looking Forward To At Camp Bestival This Year

With only a few weeks until Camp Bestival we are in full preparation mode with sparkles, glitter and face paint by the bucket load.

This is one of the most exciting times of the year for us and it looks like this year is going to be one to remember too!

Below I have left the top five things we are looking forward to this year and feel free to take a look HERE at all the other fun that is going to be going on.

Dingley Dell – The Dingley Dell….especially Lizzie’s Way is our favourite part of the festival. The laid back vibe and the chance for the children to really enjoy the natural surroundings are amazing.
The children use their imagination for hours in the role play style areas of Lizzie’s Way, learn woodwork skills in the National Trust area and get up close and personal to the cute little chicks at the farm corner.

Rob And Josie’s Gin Festival – With all the fun to be had for the children there has got to be a few things for the parents to enjoy and this year for me its going to be Rob And Josie’s Gin Festival. With over 50 gins from around the world and Rob And Josie’s very own one I’m hoping to sample just a few!

The Top Musical Lineup – Music is something we all love as a family and w all have such varing tastes, so Camp Bestival is great to explore new music as well as some old favourites…its always good to embarrass the teens by singing and dancing to some of the golden oldies from our youth.
This year we are going to be treated to some brilliants acts such as Rick Astley, HRVY, Clean Bandit, Basement Jaxx, Simple Minds, Orbital, The Undertones and so many more.

The Literary Institute – This is an area that we’ve not ventured in to before but with so much going on in here this year I will be making a trip or two. I am also a very excited as well as a little nervous to be joining the lovely Natalie from Style Me Sunday on stage to support her amazing Warrior Woman Project.

The Feast Collective – We are huge foodies and I hands down say we’ve not been to a festival that has such a wide range of amazing food. The Feast Collective is one of our favourite areas and is returning for its fifth year.
From DJ BBQ who pumps out amazing tunes whilst serving mouth watering meats to Zoes Ghana Kitchen who rustle up the most devious vegan food there really id something for every taste.

This really is just a snippet of the fun that is offer this year and there is still time to GET YOUR TICKETS now so hurry up and get booking!

We Are Camp Bestival Offical Rock Stars!

For anyone that reads my blog I’m sure that it hasn’t gone unnoticed that we are huge fans of Camp Bestival.

I have been getting so excited over all the fantastic acts that are set to hit this fantastic festival this year and with it being their 10th birthday it is sure to be even bigger and better than last year.

Last year I was asked to be an offical blogger at Camp Bestival and it was honestly the absolute highlight of our summer for so many reasons.

This is why I am delighted to announce that this year we have been chosen as Offical Rock Stars and can’t wait to get covered in glitter and rock out with everyone else at the best festival around!

Keep an eye out for updates on the ever growing acts that are coming through thick and fast and hopefully if you like what you see you can come along and join in the fun with us too!

           

Camp Bestival Is Going ‘One Step Beyond’

The excitement for this years line up at Camp Bestival came a few weeks ago now, and with the likes of All Saints, Louisa Johnson and Leftfield taking to the stage I was wondering who was going to top them as the Saturday night headliner this year.

Well it turns out we will be donning our baggy trousers and taking one step beyond as Madness come to Camp Bestival.


This Ska band were formed in the mid 70’s and were a huge hit with my Dad.
His passion for this lovable group was passed down to me and I have many happy memories of singing along to the likes of Our House and Baggy Trousers and of course trying to perform the infamous dance to One Step Beyond.

This is going to be the icing on the cake to  a line up that is set to rock Camp Bestival like never before!

Ticket Info:

Camp Bestival 2017 Weekend Tickets are on sale now via: Ticketline / 0844 888 4410
WEEKLY PAYMENT PLAN
The Camping Bestival 2017 Weekly Payment Plan is on sale now. Use our 25-week payment plan from £7 per week. Book online via Ticketline only.
CAMP BESTIVAL 2017 WEEKEND TICKET PRICES
Adult Weekend Ticket – £ £197.50*
Student Weekend Ticket – £185* / Age 13 to 17 Weekend Ticket – £125*
Age 10 to 12 Weekend Ticket – £98.75* / Age 5 to 9 Weekend Ticket – £45*
Age 4 & Under Weekend Ticket – £15*
Babes in Arms (1 & Under) – FREE (but ticket required)*
*All tickets include camping from Thursday / Please refer to the Camp Bestival Ticket Terms & Conditions below
Car Parking – £20 in advance / Campervan Ticket (Field A) – £95
Caravan / Trailer Tent Ticket (Field A) – £105
T&Cs here before booking
                  

A Festival For All:Camp Bestival 

Traipsing around a field for four days and sleeping in a tiny tent with a stroppy teen, three hugely excitable little ones and a mud fearing husband would easily of been my idea of the worst holiday for my family.  That was until our mind blowing stay at Camp Bestival.

This time last week we had just returned covered in glitter, a little smelly from the lack of washing but still walking on air from the fabulous holiday we had just been lucky enough to experience.

We had a good journey to Dorset and we’re really taken back with the vastness of the festival which covered the fields surrounding the beautiful Lulworth Castle.

I tried to be as organised as I could with the packing and we managed to get all our stuff down to the campsite in only two trips thankfully as the trip to and from the carpark is a bit of a challenge.

After struggling more than a little to set up our tent for the first time, my husband sheepishly asked two ladies that seemed experts in the field to give us a hand!

With his masculinity crushed we got everything in place and set off to investigate.

Although not everything is open on the Thursday it is the perfect opportunity to grab a bite to eat and get your bearings before the madness starts.

Tired from the drive we all got a surprisingly good nights sleep and were raring to go the next day.

With our timetable in hand we decided to take the next few days as they come and not stick to set routine.  The inner hippie in me was out in force and routine was out the window!

We wanted to experience everything and with so much going on we didn’t know where to start.  Yet we soon found some firm favourites we went back to time and time again.

One of which was the Dingly Dell, a little bit of magic in the woods that was perfect for the little ones to create lanterns between the trees, take part in as scavenger hunt or explore the adventure playground.


It is also home to the stupendous Lizzie’s Way  where kids can really be kids and follow colourful ribbon covered pathways that lead you to a host of activities where they can create concoctions in the ‘mud kitchen’, dress up and give a performance on stage or hide out in the mini tipis.


The National Trust also had a great area where they had the ’50 Things To Do Before Your 11 3/4 Medow’.  The children loved picking their own tools to add wood to the huge structure that was being created, climbing trees and having hill rolling competitions.

The big top was a great area to shelter in from the sun to listen to some great music or relax in front on the huge cinema screen.  Mine all loved a bit of quiet time to sit and watch the fantastic new film Pete’s Dragon.

There were fairground rides aplenty from the traditional carousel to something a little different with the addition of the worlds biggest bouncy castle that my oldest two absolutely loved!

The main stage had something for all ages.  The little ones were in complete awe when Mr Tumble took to the stage and sat captivated watching Aliens Love Underpants, the older ones danced along to Reggie and Bowlie and made me push my way to the front when Jess Glynne took to the stage.


The highlight for me was reliving my youth when Banannarama came on stage. I felt like a teenager again singing into my hairbrush!

My husband was excited all weekend to watch the legend that is Fatboy Slim. Unfortunately the youngest two were less then impressed so I moped back to the tent while I left my husband to enjoy the spectical.

I’m sure we didn’t cover everything but there was not a point in the day or the evening the children were bored.  They went from dancing on stage with Big Fish Little Fish to creating  masterpieces in the art tent, to honing their circus skills, running through bubbles and playing in the sand until dark.




My tummy is always a priority and food was on my mind long before we left.  I wanted to save some money and enjoy the experience of cooking outdoors so we took lots with us to make a good breakfast to set us up for the day and then either had lunch or dinner back at the tent so we could take a bit of time out and enjoy the campsite as well as the festival itself.
The choice of food is immense and you are really spoilt for choice.  We had traditional Spanish paella cooked in huge pans right in front of you, juicy beef burgers, ice creams a plenty and the best waffles I’ve ever tasted and believe me I’ve had a few!


All of this was washed down with fresh lemonade and a few to many G and T’s from the gin truck.

There was a surprise around every corner from cute characters to meet and great to elaborate parades.

Just when you thought things couldn’t be topped the most spectacular firework display lit up the entire castle for the grand closing ceremony. It was a real sight to be seen and such an apt ending to a truly fabulous weekend.
Camp Bestival was more than we could ever have expected and I will have more posts to follow as I have far to much to let you all know about in just one post.

If you are looking for a holiday that will have something for the whole family to enjoy, a place where you can try out countless new activities, listen to fantastic live music and just enjoy each other’s company in the most fantastic setting then this is the perfect trip for you.

Don’t waste time on thinking about booking for next year as there is the opportunity to pick up early bird tickets as of today!

Camp Bestival 2017 Early Bird Weekend Ticket Prices:

Adult Weekend Ticket – £175*
Student Weekend Ticket – £165*
Age 13 to 17 Weekend Ticket – £105*
Age 10 to 12 Weekend Ticket – £80*
Age 5 to 9 Weekend Ticket – £30*
Age 4 & Under Weekend Ticket – £10*
Babes In Arms (1 & Under) – FREE (but ticket required)*
All tickets include camping from Thursday or Friday.
Weekly Payment Plan:
Use our 30-week payment plan to purchase your tickets meaning that an adult ticket can now be bought at a payment of around £5 per week over 30 consecutive weekly payments following your initial deposit payment. Book online via Ticketline only: select ‘Camp Bestival 2017 – Weekend Payment Plan’. Once you have signed up to the payment plan, which basically means giving your agreement by ticking the bank mandate form on Ticketline’s website, they will automatically debit your card on a weekly basis. NB: Booking fees and a deposit (£25 per adult ticket) will be charged with your initial transaction.
*we were given tickets to Camp Bestival for the purpose of this review and they are all my own honest opinions.

Country Kids from Coombe Mill Family Farm Holidays Cornwall