Glastonbury is upon us, and this year the UK’s biggest music festival welcomes more of the world’s hottest performers than ever before. Thousands of fans will be packing their bags and pitching their tents – but will they need to stick on sunnies or whack on their wellies?
With the UK weather known for being unpredictable, a new study has calculated the chance of rain at the biggest UK festivals including, Glastonbury Festival, Kendal Calling and Bestival.
Accessorize have analysed 87 years of Met Office data to work out the chance in percentage of rain at each festivals, and it actually isn’t too bad… though we wouldn’t ever advise not taking your waterproofs.
Glastonbury-goers can breathe a sigh of relief, as the festival has been given 31.30% of rain.
So which festival is set to be the wettest? Right at the top of the charts is Kendal Calling, which has been given 46.34% chance of rain this year.
Kendal Calling takes place on 25-28 July at Lowther Deer Park in the Lake District. This year, it’s headlined by The Courteeners, Manic Street Preachers, and the legendary Tom Jones.
In second place was last week’s We Are Festival, which is followed by Bestival – with a 41.51% chance of rain. Bestival will take place on 26-28 July this year and welcomes the likes of Jess Glynne, Lewis Capaldi and Annie Mac. Everyone likes to dance in the rain though, right?
Some of the festivals where it’s least likely to rain this year are Field Day with 12.5%, Reading Festival with 22.92% and British Summer Time with 23.68%.
Field Day Festival isn’t far away, either, as it will commence this weekend at Meridian Water in North London. With the weather set to stay dry, it seems the study could be spot on with this one.
Reading Festival is amongst the most popular festivals in the south of the country, whilst northerner’s looking for it’s equivalent are more likely to head to Leeds Festival. Happening on August Bank Holiday weekend (26-28) the festival will be The 1975 and The Wombats take the main stage.
Speaking of the north, Manchester’s very own Parklife festival in the popular Heaton Park will go ahead on June 12, coming in as the 7th driest festival on the list, with a historical rainfall of 14.65mm and a 35.29% chance of a downpour this month.
If you don’t want to get stuck in the mud, and are still trying to snag a weekend ticket for a fabulous festival – check out the full predictions here.
Top Tips to Surviving a Rainy Festival
If it does rain on the parade, you don’t have to let a bit of damp spoil the weekend. The key is to be prepared! If the weather is looking grim, you’re going to need more that just your wellies and rain coat. Make sure you buy your extras before hitting up the festival because if you try to buy them at the festival, you’ll end up paying a fortune for something that would cost you pennies beforehand.
Packing essentials for rain gear include:
- Light rain jacket with a hood, NO PONCHOS–let’s face it: they barely work
- Water/mud proof rubber rain boots
- Sweat/water proof high socks
- 3 or more heavy-duty tarps
- heavy-duty trash bags (keep one in your festival bag to protect it from the rain)
- Plastic ziplock bags for your electronics
- Extra tent stakes incase of high winds
- A few sheets of newspaper to help soak up moisture in your shoes/boots
- Extra towels and clothes
- Extra babywipes, soap, shampoo
