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Wellies, whisky, wet wipes: 20 fun-filled family festivals

Natalie Paris rounds up the summer events that put children, nature and memorable experiences centre stage - Andrew Allcock
Natalie Paris rounds up the summer events that put children, nature and memorable experiences centre stage - Andrew Allcock

Festival season is upon us and, alongside the old favourites for an open-air jamboree, there are some exciting new events to suit all ages. Go down to the woods in the Midlands this summer and you will find the UK’s first festival set completely in a forest. Timber has been created on behalf of The National Forest charity, and all the action will take place in dappled light among the trees. Rather than putting music centre stage, it invites families to reconnect with nature and think about the environment.

“I want to give a child a sense of wonder about the natural world,” said Sarah Bird, Timber’s artistic director. “Music festivals are not all about ­nihilistic 20-somethings over-indulging any more.” One of Timber’s highlights will be the first theatrical adaptation – along a woodland trail – of The Lost Words, a bestselling poetry book by Robert McFarlane and Jackie Morris, which celebrates nature words that have been retired from children’s dictionaries.

Putting high-quality art in a natural environment makes it more accessible to families who can be creative without being intimidated

Other highlights involve Luke Jerram’s giant moon installation; a stage raised between the trees; guided dusk runs and a woodland spa. “Putting high-quality art in a natural environment makes it more accessible to families who can be creative without being intimidated,” Bird explained. “We take our kids to the theatre a lot but afterwards you are straight in the car and back into daily life. At a festival you are immersed for the whole weekend and more open to new possibilities.”

Camp Bestival in Dorset - Credit: Adam Weatherley
Camp Bestival in Dorset Credit: Adam Weatherley

This latest addition to an already jam-packed festival season is part of a trend that has seen family-orientated events focus less on music and more on memorable encounters. The Good Life Experience, part founded by the singer, songwriter and broadcaster Cerys Matthews, is in its fifth year and was one of the first to take this path.

“We put a huge emphasis on the great outdoors, nature and physical activities, along with the more normal fare of literature, music and food,” Matthews said. “Having the chance to be safe but run wild, get dirty, be physical and forget about the pressures of how you look is about the best tonic for the Snapchat generation – and the rest of us, I reckon.” The festival hosts masses of craft workshops as well as abseiling, archery, axe throwing, black smithery, cooking on open fires and wild swimming.

Just So Festival in Cheshire
Just So Festival in Cheshire

There is also a drive among family-friendly festivals now to try to make activities as inclusive as possible. The organisers of Timber also run the popular Just So Festival, which encourages families to dress up as animal tribes, partly because, rather than having Dad grooving at the main stage while Mum sits in a tent helping to make sock puppets, they can all be silly together.

Furry ears and tails aside, it is still the chance to hear great music that gets most of us shaking out tents and bulk-buying (eco-friendly) wet wipes in anticipation of the summer ahead. And there is plenty to get excited about, even with children in tow. Green Man is an excellent place to catch newer bands on their way up (especially with their afternoon billings), as is Latitude, which remains top-drawer for the spoken word. The line-up at Camp Bestival will make you nostalgic for pop and rave tunes of the Nineties, while Womad’s medley of world music offers sounds that are completely different.

Here are our favourite 20 festivals for families in the UK (weekend ticket prices are for one adult with camping, unless stated otherwise).

Best garden party

The Great Estate, Cornwall

June 1-3

An eclectic affair with affordable tickets, this festival embraces wackiness and will be attempting to set a new world record with the world’s biggest cream tea party. Styled after a garden fête, the weekender is held in the grounds of Scorrier House and features hidden stages, Cornish and West Country food, a classical corner, a tattoo parlour, dazzling burlesque shows and medieval jousting in the meadows. Traditional fun for children includes fairground rides, bouncy castles, craft workshops, skate ramps and hula hooping.

Weekend ticket £90 

greatestatefestival.co.uk

Best for younger kids

Wychwood Festival, Gloucestershire

June 1-3

Now in its 14th year, Wychwood is a real crowd-pleaser, welcoming both newcomers and old hands to Cheltenham Racecourse. The Gipsy Kings, Shed Seven and Baxter Dury headline the musical offering.

For children, there’s a carnival parade to prepare for, circus skills, a silly sports day, majorettes, Dick and Dom and a mini-literature festival. With breastfeeding and nappy changing facilities in a tepee tent, little ones will be well looked after, too.

Weekend ticket £147.50

wychwoodfestival.com

Best for older kids

Black Deer Festival, Kent

June 22-24

This brand-new festival celebrates Americana and custom motorbikes in Britain’s oldest deer park. Woodland Tribe is a touring woodwork project that puts tools in the hands of children and lets them build their own adventure playground. Growing musicians, meanwhile, can get a taste of the limelight at the Young Folk stage, where local children will be playing alongside the main acts. Iron and Wine and Passenger headline.

Weekend ticket £150

blackdeerfestival.co

Best for naturalists
Timber
Timber

Timber, Derbyshire

July 6-8

Incorporating art, music, philosophy and sustainability, there will be lots of time to ponder man’s relationship with the forest over a weekend, while admiring show-stopping art. Children will want to strap on a virtual reality headset that lets them become a woodland animal and ride the bicycle-powered carousel. Expect debates on country issues as well as more light-hearted talks – Stuart Maconie on his love of rambling, for example.

Weekend ticket £130

timberfestival.org.uk

Best for comedy
Latitude
Latitude

Latitude, Suffolk

July 12-15

On top of a musical line-up bursting with new talent, add a reed-fringed lake stage for dance performances; the biggest comedy programme of any UK festival; forest theatre; a cabaret stage; poetry stage; a late-night dance tent and a deck for lake swimming. Children are catered for across three areas that include a special inbetweeners space with woodland assault courses, family-friendly comedy, fashion, wildlife survival skills and award-winning authors. The Killers, Solange and alt-J headline, while Harry Hill and Dylan Moran bring the laughs.

Weekend ticket £197.50

latitudefestival.com

Best for urbanites

Citadel, London

July 15

Don’t think that city festivals are just for adults. Citadel is a single-day event and a proven hit with parents, thanks to its relaxed atmosphere and Sunday hours – it’s all over by 10.30pm. This summer the festival moves from Victoria Park to Gunnersbury Park, where Tame Impala’s psyche-rock will round off sets from Chvrches and Fat White Family. Children’s activities include puppet-making, costume-making, soft play and storytelling.

Day ticket £49.50

citadelfestival.com

Best for scientists
Bluedot
Bluedot

BlueDot, Cheshire

July 19-22

Astronomers should gravitate to the Jodrell Bank Observatory for an awe-inspiring slice of science and music programming. The action starts on Thursday this year, with a screening of The Blue Planet in concert with the Hallé orchestra. What follows is a mix of dance acts performing beneath the Lovell telescope, talks from scientists, stargazing sessions and exhibitions and workshops on space exploration. The Chemical Brothers, the Flaming Lips and Future Islands headline.

Weekend ticket £169

discoverthebluedot.com

Best for a spa

Larmer Tree Festival, Wiltshire

July 19-22

Larmer Tree is back after a year off. This small family favourite welcomes mainly indie bands to stages set among genteel pleasure gardens within Cranborne Chase. Public Service Broadcasting and First Aid Kit headline, while Tune-Yards play and also curate a section. There’s comedy from Sara Pascoe, plus the festival brings with it a new woodland spa featuring hot tubs, a sauna yurt and a Bedouin-style lounge, complete with therapists and holistic workshops.

Weekend ticket £179

larmertreefestival.co.uk

Best for arts

Curious Arts, New Forest

July 20-22

All activities are free at this festival, which includes dedicated children’s comedy shows and a 90-minute film workshop with Ridley Scott collaborator Wojciech Duczmal, to get children shooting smartphone films. Space and mythology-themed poetry sessions take place daily, too, along with insect walks, foraging and snail racing. Gareth Malone will be popping in on Sunday to try to scrape together a choir for a final afternoon performance. Music-wise, expect John Newman and Milky Chance.

Weekend ticket £128

curiousartsfestival.com

Best for indie kids

Deer Shed, Yorkshire

July 20-22

This northern gem does its best to keep the whole family entertained and claims to have a 50:50 parent to child ratio. The line-ups certainly please adult punters, with Drenge, Goldfrapp and Field Music headlining this year. 2018’s theme is “making waves”, encompassing water (with hot tubs, canoeing and marine forensics in the science tent) and sound waves (featuring synthesiser and music production workshops). Sporty children are in luck, with BMX and skating areas, tree-scaling, football training sessions, tag archery and even parkour.

Weekend ticket £145

deershedfestival.com

How to survive a festival with kids | Ten top tips for parents – from the experts
How to survive a festival with kids | Ten top tips for parents – from the experts
Best for bookworms

Port Eliot, Cornwall

July 26-29

This literature festival on a country house estate has expanded in recent years but still attracts some of the best children’s authors to read bedtime stories. New for this year is the Wildlings Wood, set in a glade with its own stage. Costumed characters lurk during the maze treasure hunt, there’s a Viking re-enactment, plus archery and wild swimming in the river. Adults head to a big round tent to see DJs after dark. Gaz Coombes and Teleman play.

Weekend ticket £170

porteliotfestival.com

Best for world music

Womad, Wiltshire

July 26-29

With delicious food and sounds from all corners of the globe, Womad is a real melting pot, guaranteed to leave you fuzzy with its hippy, laid-back atmosphere. This year you could be listening to anything from Punjabi singing to Turkish avant-garde pop, with Amadou & Mariam and Django Django also playing. Everything is free for children, the highlight being the Sunday parade, but there is also a storytelling tepee, family Zumba and tents for different ages. Be sure to check out the spa, which has become more luxurious.

Weekend ticket £185

womad.co.uk

Best for a holiday
Camp Bestival
Camp Bestival

Camp Bestival, Dorset

July 26-29

You’ll need your dancing shoes for Camp Bestival, which promises to be a riot, with acts such as Orbital, Rick Astley and Altern-8 sharing the bill. One of the more lively family festivals, expect beard, moustache and trolley decorating competitions, while little ones are kept busy with den making, a big sand pit, soft play and science tents. Set on the beautiful Jurassic Coast, it is also a place to linger. Walks along the coastal path are nearby, plus Corfe Castle, Durdle Door and the beach at Studland Bay.

Weekend ticket £197.50 

campbestival.net

Best for animals

Lunar, Warwickshire

July 27-29

Although it’s an intimate music festival at heart, Lunar is also a happy place to be for the early-to-bed set. Umberslade Farm Park is next door, where pony rides, animal petting and adventure playgrounds beckon. There is also a skate ramp and a range of classes – peer under a microscope with the National Space Centre or act out a fight scene with the Royal Shakespeare Company. Parents can tap a foot to Goldfrapp, the Stranglers and the Go! Team.

Weekend ticket £125

lunarfestival.co.uk

Best for swimming
Wilderness
Wilderness

Wilderness, Oxfordshire

Aug 2-5

Cornbury Park, with its deep, clear swimming lake and gently sloping, wooded fields, is the scenic location for one of the most organic festivals around. The balanced programme means it’s best to just turn up and see what takes your fancy, unless you want a seat at the popular banquets, which should be booked in advance. Children might like the art school, forest overnight camp and film-making with the British Film Institute. Nile Rodgers & Chic, Jon Hopkins and Kamasi Washington play the main stage, while The Valley is where to head for after-hours beats.

Weekend ticket £179.50

wildernessfestival.com

Best for new music
Green Man
Green Man

Green Man, Brecon Beacons

Aug 16-19

Offering consistently great music and its own beer festival in a spectacular setting, it is easy to see why people love Green Man and stay on to see its effigy go up in flames. Last year saw laudable sets from Shame and the Orielles, so it’s a good bet for new music. Einstein’s Garden is a brilliant science camp that attempts to explain the universe’s bigger ideas through games, plus there is a big kids’ field adjacent to the main stage, with all the usual crafts and morris dancing. Fleet Foxes, Joan as Police Woman and Teenage Fanclub perform, among others.

Weekend ticket £180

greenman.net

Best for the whole family
Just So
Just So

Just So, Cheshire

Aug 17-19

With international editions now in Brazil and New Zealand, this boutique arts festival knows how to keep families happy, with regular events such as a massive pillow fight, a midnight feast with storytelling and a tribal tournament that runs over the weekend. Realising how much children enjoy familiarity, the festival sends out mixes of the musical treats in its line-up weeks beforehand, to increase the likelihood of little ones getting on down when the time comes.

Weekend ticket £145

justsofestival.org.uk

Best for foodies
Big Feastival - Credit: Jenna Foxton
Credit: Jenna Foxton

The Big Feastival, Cotswolds

Aug 24-26

Michelin-starred chefs and purveyors of award-winning street food will set up their stalls on Alex James’s farm once again. Banquets are organised, chefs lead hands-on demos and boutique bars consign weak lager to festivals past. Children will find games on the Village Green and plenty of television stars to entertain them, from Peppa Pig to Justin Fletcher and the Gruffalo. Basement Jaxx, Craig David and the Bluetones perform.

Weekend ticket £189.50

thebigfeastival.com

Best for bushcraft

The Good Life Experience, Flintshire

Sept 14-16

A carefully curated mix of music, creative workshops and outdoor activities, this festival is a blend of everything families like doing, set beside a pretty lake. Those wanting to get crafty can try lino prints, metal pressing, spatula making or play bow and arrows. By the campfire, cooking workshops will be led by everyone from foragers to top chefs. The vintage fairground is free all weekend, as is entry to the festival for all under-12s. Expect a soundtrack from Trevor Nelson and Norman Jay.

Weekend ticket £149

thegoodlifeexperience.co.uk

Best for campfires

Into the Trees, Sussex

Sept 14-16

Run by the people staging Elderflower Fields – a family-festival gem happening this weekend – Into the Trees has been building a steady following and this year offers on-site camping for the first time. Set in Ashdown Forest, pitching up among the early autumn colours should be special. The trees become a playground for rope swings, mountain boarding and zip wires, plus children can go foraging or exploring a muddy arts trail, with everyone settling down in the evening for a performance at the nightly communal campfire.

Weekend ticket £35

into-the-trees.co.uk