“I COULDN’T imagine doing Glastonbury again without this,” I overheard one camper say to his friend as they left their tents, toothbrushes in hand.
That was on Friday morning at Holt Farm, a new ‘exclusive camping experience’ located just outside Worthy Farm, the home of Glastonbury Festival.
His sentiment is one I’m sure many others echoed when they left the site on Monday morning after five days at the world's biggest party.
But what exactly is Holt Farm?
The venue describes itself as the closest private campsite to the Pyramid Stage, and anyone lucky enough to get a festival ticket can book their plot from £50 per person, with a car parking space available for another £100.
There were plenty of benefits to choosing Holt Farm rather than camping at Glastonbury itself.
That included having a reserved plot for your tent, access to hot showers and clean toilets, a selection of food and drink stalls and a 24/7 security team.
There was even a wood-fired sauna and cold plunge you could pay to use, plus a cocktail bar that screened England’s dramatic Euros win against Slovakia.
A few months ago – after writing a story about the new campsite – I was offered complimentary access for duration of the festival. This is what I thought.
Inside Holt Farm – a new private campsite a stone’s throw from Glastonbury Festival
A few weeks before the festival began, I was emailed a car parking pass to print, which I used to access Holt Farm along with my Glastonbury Festival ticket.
The venue also provided some directions to the site, which was easy enough to find, firstly by following roads signs to the festival, then aiming for Sticklinch and finally turning onto Holt Lane from the A361 near Pilton.
Once I arrived, I was guided to a car parking spot that was conveniently located just outside the main entrance to the campsite, saving an arduous walk across the festival site with all of my camping gear and supplies.
I was then welcomed into the site by two friendly workers, who checked my booking confirmation and ID and gave me a Holt Farm wristband to make sure I could get back into the site easily after each day at the festival.
They also gave me a plot number (1217), which is where I would spend the next five days within Holt Farm's ‘quiet-ish’ campsite.
That’s the first – and perhaps most important – plus point of staying at Holt Farm.
Instead of traipsing through the entire Worthy Farm site trying to find a spot to pitch my tent, I was instead greeted by my own designated a five-by-five-metre space.
The pre-booking system also means people coming with their friends or family could choose adjacent plots that were marked out for them on arrival.
Having my car so near my tent (just 118 paces) was also bonus, as it meant I could safely store some of my belongings – clothes, camping equipment, cider – in a locked vehicle to clear some valuable room in my two-man pop-up tent.
I was also conveniently close to a recycling point and a drinking water tap and just around the corner from the showers, loos and other facilities.
They include a corner shop, which offered sweets, tobacco, milk, bread, bacon, sausages and cold drinks, plus air beds and toiletries; a cocktail bar with a television and fire pits, a pizza truck, two places to buy coffee and one to buy an English breakfast.
Buying a morning coffee at Holt Farm almost certainly gave me a shorter queue than any on-site options, and the Kitchen Garden Pizza Co. sold me one of the best pizzas I’ve had at Glastonbury (and trust me, there have been a few) for £13.
Cocktails in the spacious teepee set punters back £12. Cruzcampo and Thatchers cost £5.75, and Exmoor Ale was priced at £6.25 – pretty good for a festival.
I didn’t make use of the Wild Spa sauna or cold plunge area, but plenty of people did. They could use the cold plunge for a fiver or both for £20.
As good as the facilities were, there was one reason we were all there: Glastonbury.
To get into Worthy Farm, I had to leave the campsite and head to pedestrian gate D, go through a quick security check, and then enter the festival near the Dairy Ground and Oxlyers campsites (the nearest stages are Arcadia and Silver Hayes).
I was initially sceptical of the venue’s claim that it’s just a 15-minute walk to the Pyramid, but I found they weren't far off; it took me just under 20.
Entering and exiting Holt Farm every day did became slightly tedious, as there was often a queue to reach the pedestrian gate, and I had to collect and look after a ‘pass out’ slip every time I went back to my tent.
But this applies to all off-site accommodation options, not just Holt Farm.
The friendly security team were reassuring to see when I returned at night, and the footpaths were well-lit – useful, as some were on quite uneven surfaces.
When I got back to my tent to go to sleep, I found the ‘quiet-ish’ description was generally accurate, with some inevitable background hubbub and the odd sound of someone attempting to re-inflate their air mattresses in the middle of the night.
The only exception to this was Friday night, when loud dance music blared from somewhere I wasn’t able to identify.
I was relieved to get back to my tent on Saturday night to find a much more peaceful campsite, but Friday's noise would have been reduced or eliminated with a good set of ear plugs.
The portaloos were indeed clean and well-maintained, and there were a good number of showers.
There was something of a rush to use them at around 8.30am, leading to some queues, so I’d suggest getting up early or holding off for a bit longer.
After five nights, plenty of gigs and some time in the festival's press tent, Monday rolled around and it was time for me to leave.
As I queued for a cappuccino for the road after packing up, I asked the chap next to me what he thought of his stay at Holt Farm.
He was “really impressed” by the facilities – especially the “immaculately clean” toilets and the flat walk between the campsite and the festival.
When he booked, he felt like he was taking a gamble: after all, it was a brand-new site, and he was able to secure his space just a month before Glasto got under way.
But the roll of the dice paid off for him, and he’ll try and return next year if he can get his hands on a festival ticket.
Looking at the comments on their social media pages, it looks like plenty of others will be hoping to join him at Holt Farm in 2025.
A wonderful thing about Glastonbury is that you can turn the experience into whatever you want it to be.
Thanks to the convenience, and despite the extra expense, I would certainly be tempted by Holt Farm if the opportunity arose for me to come back to Worthy.
You can learn more about Holt Farm, its facilities and its prices at www.holtfarm.co.uk.
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