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Glastonbury Guide: Avoiding Festival Mishaps Glastonbury Guide: Avoiding Festival Mishaps

AA Roadwatch

Glastonbury Guide: Avoiding Festival Mishaps

Published 14th June 2015Read Time 7 min

When heading to a major festival such as Glastonbury, there is no such thing as being 'too prepared'. Unfortunately, accidents and mishaps do happen. We want you to enjoy your time at Glastonbury as much as possible, so we've put together this quick guide of what to do if you find yourself in one of these tricky situations:

What happens if I...

Lose my passport?

You’ve enjoyed the last few days singing along to the likes of Kanye West and Hozier. You’ve just spent the last three hours bundling up the tent and you’re set to make your way to the airport with dried mud in your hair. Finding out you’ve lost your passport in the middle of all this can be a real nightmare. There’s no need to panic though, we have a handy step-by-step guide of what to do. Before you go:
  • Bring one or two photocopies of your passport. Keep one in a handy place for yourself and give another to a reliable friend of yours who’s travelling to Glastonbury with you.
  • It might be a good idea to also save a picture of your passport on your phone, should you need the details.
I can’t find my passport! What now?
  • Report your lost or stolen passport to the police within 24 hours. During that time frame, make sure to do whatever you can to retrieve your lost passport. Report it to the festival’s information centre, retrace your steps and double-check your tent and bag. Failure to do so may affect your travel insurance claim.
  • When you’re at the police station, get a written report from the authorities. Take the time as well to make some extra copies for that peace of mind. When you receive the police report, immediately contact your travel insurance provider, and quote your policy number if possible.
  • Get in touch with the Irish Embassy in London. Their number is +44 20 72352171. You’ll need to produce your police report in order to obtain a replacement travel document from them.
  • After submitting the police report to the Irish Embassy, they will then work to provide you with either a replacement passport for the rest of your time in the UK, or an emergency travel document if your departure is imminent.
Losing your passport can really put a dampener on your festival experience. With AA Travel Insurance, you’re covered up to €350 for reasonable additional travel and accommodation to obtain an emergency passport. The policy also covers reasonable additional transport costs if you are unable to make your pre-booked return flight home following the loss or theft of your passport.

Miss my ferry/flight?

If you think you’re going to be stuck for time, the best option would be to get in contact with your airline in advance. The earlier notice you give, the better chance you’ll have of avoiding the more pricey cancellation fees. If you’re travelling with Ryanair, flights can be rescheduled online up to 4 hours before departure. Aer Lingus offer a ‘Flex Fare’ option which means you can change the date and time of your flight up to 2 hours before your departure without incurring any additional fees. If you’ve just missed your flight by the last minute, then you may face a Missed Departure fee of between €75 and €100, depending on your airline. If you miss a flight departure, your AA Travel Insurance does, however, cover extra fees of up to €1, 000. If you’re using the ferry, both Irish Ferries and Stena Line offer to book you a place on the next available sailing. You may be charged an amendment fee though, depending on your ticket type plus any difference in the fare.

Fall ill/ have an accident?

Picking up an injury or contracting an illness throughout the four-day event is a real possibility. Luckily, there are a number of medical and first-aid facilities dotted around the festival site. It’s a good idea to check out where your nearest medical centre is on arrival – just to be safe than sorry! Keep your insurance details on hand throughout the four days, should you need them. Depending on your cover, AA Travel Insurance covers emergency medical expenses up to the value of €10m. The Big Ground Medical Centre in Glastonbury has an Accident and Emergency department, X-ray facilities, doctor consultations as well as a pharmacy. There are also specialist medical teams and ambulances on hand in front of the main stages during performance times. If you do encounter an emergency, make your way, if you can, to one of the medical facilities. If this isn’t possible, organisers at Glastonbury would advise you to notify a steward, a security person or a police officer who will be able to summon assistance for you. Only call 999 from your mobile if you have to, as a last resort.  At a big festival such as Glastonbury, this might not be the most effective means of getting help. Never attempt to make your own way from the festival site to a hospital. Large volumes of traffic in the surrounding areas may result in very long delays in getting treatment.

Lose my valuables?

If you’re the type of person who’s always losing their phone on a night out, then you’re in luck. Glastonbury has lock-up facilities scattered all around the site. These locations are easy to spot and are marked on Festival maps by a keyhole logo. You can leave all sorts of belongings, however large or small, for as long as you’d like. The property lock-ups are open 24 hours a day, and are free of charge to use. Soap and toilet rolls will also be available free of charge from the lock-ups. They open on Wednesday and close at 12 noon on Monday so make sure that you pick up your belongings before then. If you end up losing something important during the festival then make your way to Lost Property near the farmhouse (behind the Worthy Farm neon sign) and report/ collect your belongings from there. If your belongings haven’t been handed in at that stage then you can send an e-mail with the details of your lost item to lostproperty@glastonburyfestivals.co.uk.  Make sure to give as much details as possible about your missing item(s). If you have a picture of the item too, send it on. The more information, the more chance you have of finding it. Main Image Credit Peter Burgess. Used under CC License.

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