Vanlife Festival 2023 – Review

It’s been a whole, long and dismal week since we sat in the blistering sunshine of Shrewsbury, surrounded by music, tie-dye, and hippie pants, living our best lives. Oh boy, how we wish we were back there. Join me in my review of Vanlife Festival 2023, in the eyes of a newbie Vanlifer who’s mid-converting.

Throwback to last year’s festival. This is where our ambition for attending the festival began. We heard about the festival the day before it happened and missed out on tickets, boo! We followed all the pages and heard all the stories of that weekend and we had never been so jealous and bummed about missing out! It sounded like the nicest, most chilled-out, community-based gathering and we wanted in. Keeping an eye on the posts and progress throughout the year and buying tickets as soon as they were released we were raring to go. Well, kinda…

After a frantic 2-3 weeks of power blasting through our Van conversion to get it to a usable state we were ready. We had a bed, that’s all that really mattered (and a few extras that really helped out, thank you Dad’s second-hand solar panels!) The time had come to set off on a beautiful Thursday in June. With the sun beating down on the van we hit the road. A 3.5-hour journey from the coasts of South Wales we were bouncing with excitement.

After some lovely ABS malfunctions jeopardizing our adventure, we finally made it to the front gates. A large queue of vehicles all sat patiently waiting to enter and set up camp. Initially, there seemed like a lot of stressed staff trying to organize the chaos of so many Vans so early on. I believe they were overwhelmed with the number of early birds that had arrived on Thursday, but honestly, the staff were incredible. Each and every volunteer had a smile on their face and would apologize for the delay. We had no complaints whatsoever waiting to enter and compared to numerous other Festivals, this was easily the best-planned entry. A side note to shame all those who turned up before gates opened after it was stated so many times to NOT do that. The festival and “Best pitches” weren’t going anywhere. Take a step back and relax and turn up after the gates are open, you’ll have a more pleasant entry.

Happily handing over our £15 extra nights fee (which is cheaper than any campsite or festival almost anywhere so I don’t understand the people who complained about this? Weird.) We were directed to our spot. We were plopped into general camping towards the back of the festival. At first, the space between the vans seemed a little tight for some and I can see why a few people had their concerns but after the dust had settled there seemed to be plenty of room for everyone. You weren’t skin to skin and had plenty of room for awnings and chairs and such. Again, a lot of moaners couldn’t get their 5 acres of space so made their thoughts obviously known. They also brought up the “Length of the grass” which honestly is laughable! I’m not sure what kind of Kardashian-level campsite they were expecting from a show-ground field, but they were clearly not happy about this. They had their tape measures out and deemed the grass to be too long! Honestly man it was too funny. I know some people enjoy their clean, facilitated campsites but if you are booking a FESTIVAL, which is in a FIELD, you cannot expect perfection, and complaining about it on social media is absolutely wild. The entitlement of some is incredible. In a community where we wild camp, celebrate the nature of things, and having the bare necessities there seemed to be an awful lot of complaining. (Look at me, complaining about the complainers lol how we’ve come full circle). I believe some people need to take a step back and breathe. There is more to life than the length of grass. Pour yourself a wine Karen, and just appreciate being able to relax and unwind in the sun in your van.

For us personally, we had no issues whatsoever on this first day. We remembered that the festival was open a day early. Not everything was set up and ready as it did not officially start until the Friday and this was totally okay, and I think some people forgot that. We had been given a chance to arrive and set up prior to the Festivities beginning. You could have given most of us an empty field with nothing in there and we’d have been happy! The organizers were quick to sort out any issues the minority had and that is also rare!

Friday – show me what you got! It was filling up now. Friday morning began with a bundle of anticipation. Eager to explore all the stalls, and food vendors, see other people’s vans and most importantly make new friends. We got dressed and skipped on over to explore. But first, a lovely morning row on the River Severn. Now this is how you do a morning right. Using the “hire a canoe” we got in our little boat and paddled along the river. What a beautiful, peaceful, relaxing journey we had. We played some calming music, took in the scenes, and even petted some cows. We could not have started the day any better than this. Absolutely fantastic!

After our magical morning, we headed back towards the hustle and bustle and started by exploring the Field of Dreams where a number of Vans showed off their builds and creations. My personal favourite was the Radagast Van. Absolutely incredible creativity and imagination with a truly fantastic skill to pull off such an amazing build. I can only dream of making something so amazing. There were a number of Vans that really were incredible. Tiny homes on wheels to huge RVs and horse boxes. There was every style, every idea, and every size you could imagine. I would love to sit inside the mind of some people and see how their creative brain works to pull off some jaw-dropping builds.

Taking lots of mental notes of ingenious ideas we ventured towards the stalls, in which there were lots. It was like a van lifers shopping dream. Having everything you could possibly want or need for your van. You had numerous clothing stalls, bright with colour and style. Gadgets and gizmo stores. Decoration stores. Conversion stalls. New wheels? Sure you can get them. New fancy electrical system? Got you covered. Anything you needed for anything Van related, you had. I really don’t think anything was missing! My only suggestion for stalls would be maybe 1 or 2 different food stalls offering something slightly different (Chinese, Indian, Japanese, etc) and a Slushy stand. In the hot weather, I think a slush stand would have gone down a treat with kids and adults alike. But alas, there were no issues with the amount on offer already and every aspect was covered and plentiful. We spent way more than we ever intended on all that was on offer and had a great time doing it!

Entertainment – Fantastic. Now we didn’t manage to see as many acts and bands as we would have liked but what we did see was just perfect for the festival. From some chilled acoustic sets from some brilliant artists to party-pumping reggae and a whole evening of pure 90s throwback there was something for everyone. The atmosphere was perfect and it really provided the vibe you’d expect from a Van Festival. My personal favourites were the acoustic stages for the ultimate chill-out session and more notably the open mic! I don’t think I have ever been to a festival that gives people a chance to show what they really have! This opportunity could be the shot someone needs to achieve their dreams and get noticed doing something they love, and to me was fantastic and I hope it’s something that remains a feature year on year. Other Festivals take note!

Now for an honourable mention to the staff and especially the man in charge Damo. All weekend the staff and volunteers were on hand, clad with smiles and helpful personalities. But Damo was next level. After levelling up the festival by a country mile and only having done this for its second year it was amazing. He was always present and visible around the site. He took any complaint on the chin and aimed to fix it no matter how big or small, all whilst keeping a smile on his face and having enough time to talk to anyone he passed. I personally did not speak to him as I have crushing social anxiety and am incredibly introverted until I settle, but if I did I would have said the same thing that everyone else had been saying to him, “What a fantastic job. What a fantastic Festival. What a fantastic weekend!” You really will not see many other festivals of that size where the person in charge is running around to please every single person. Cannot speak highly enough of that.

The weekend ensued with lots of laughter and fun and a whole lot of sun! Overall Vanlife Festival 2023 was a roaring success. We saw no problems or trouble or anything remotely negative all weekend. We met some amazing people and enjoyed every second of it. The only downside was we had to leave! I would highly recommend going next year for anyone who wants to experience an amazingly friendly and welcoming environment surrounded by a fantastic community all there for a good time. Hell, it was even dead silent after 11. Yes, there were small groups still chatting the night away around a fire but it did not disturb anyone else and they had the best nights! Everyone was respectful of each other. The facilities were the best I have ever come across at a festival. I never had to queue for the bog once! My only other recommendation would be a super chillout area for past curfew. Somewhere people can bring a chair, have a fire and enjoy the night into the early hours away from the sleeping campers. Nothing too extravagant, just a spot away from others.

We cannot wait for next year!