The UK’s top family festival celebrated its tenth birthday in style… Camp Bestival 2017 wasn’t one to miss.

Ok, so I’ve been meaning to write this for a while, but the summer had us super crazy busy. Back to July and we turned up to Lulworth Castle’s grounds giddy and covered in glitter. I’m not the camping kind, I’m the kind of bouji mum who likes cocktails by the pool and House jams playing proper choons on blast. It’s cool though, I braced myself and knew this one was purely for the kids- and they have plenty of vendors serving alcohol. Sweet.

I mentioned in my last CB post that I intended to book dinner at Zoe’s Ghana Kitchen, yeah, remember that? Admission… because I procrastinate a hell of a lot, I left it way too late and there was only one ticket left. Face Palm. Since I don’t usually mind dining on my own and I pre-empted my ratty mood after being stuck in the car for hours, I went ahead and grabbed the last one. Dinner was amazing, so I’m glad I did. I seemed to be the only one on my own, sitting next to families with children who had never had Ghanaian food before. I was a little quiet to be honest and kept myself to myself, but warmed up when the food came out. Fried Okra being the main topic of conversation; everyone at my table loved the food. Obviously, me being me, I didn’t pluck up the courage to have a chat with Zoe herself, but the other half did and got her to sign my book. Apparently, he’s not good for nothing.

There were so many familiar faces at this festival, not only did I spot fellow bloggers Natalie (Style me Sunday) and My Two Mums, Kirsty and Clara, but Mr Tumble and All Saints were there too lol. Obviously I wasn’t hanging out with the celebs, I am cool enough to do that guys, but not cool enough to get VIP backstage access. I did however manage to grab Brian Wilson’s set list and meet Matt Jardine (Al Jardine’s son) on our way to the loos… pretty epic as my eldest would say. This is where I should insert some kind of witty Beach Boys pun or something right? I’m just not that clever. Soz.

Unfortunately, the skies did open, come on, it was to be expected, we do live in England. To be fair, the only thing the weather affected was our choice of clothing. We planned lots of fancy dress outfits, but it was pointless under coats and raincoats. We had glitter though, lots of glitter. Folks, glitter gets you through everything and is a good conversation starter. I’ve learnt from experience.

Camp Bestival 2017 was a lot of fun like I said, Camping isn’t my first choice for mini-breaks, but it really was a laugh. So many friendly people and the kids had an amazing time. There were so many activities aimed at little ones, they were well entertained. The big kid (aged 11) wasn’t into dressing up, but as you may know, if you have a pre-teen, mobiles and strutting around talking to other pre-teens is good enough for them.
Family orientated festivals enable you to stay out late and not worry about your kids annoying other people whilst you have a boogie and a drink. Handy that.

My favourite little spot ended up being a cute vintage fairground set up. Up-cycled caravans, Waltzer cars and a Circus tent blasting absolute choonage… again it was raining, but you could take shelter in any of these places. I reckon they were serving the best Mojitos in this bit too.

Basically, I had a brilliant time if you didn’t gather that for yourself. Literally, if you have kids, don’t mind a bit of mud and you like to get to chat to fellow cool adults with kiddies then this is the place to go. Good food, good vibes and amazing entertainment. It’s the perfect way to start your summer break. Maybe see you there next year for a lil boogie and a chat?… Oh and don’t forget the Mojitos.

*Early Bird Tickets are now on sale (* as of 12th July 2017) www.campbestival.net/tickets