Tickets to go to Glastonbury Festival often sell out in less than an hour each year and the standard ticket costs a whopping £355 plus a booking fee. However, Ellen Jenne at MyLondon has shared how she got into Glastonbury for free, completely legally.
Having never been to a festival before her inaugural 2016 trip to Worthy Farm, Ellen was keen to experience the unique atmosphere of the Somerset event. But without paying, and avoiding the sometimes lottery-esque ticketing system, which means you aren't guaranteed a ticket.
Instead, she says: "I managed to get my entry into the personified Garden of Eden for absolutely nothing, as well as two other festival gigs. Yes, You did read that correctly, and no it isn't a con."
How did she do it? By simply volunteering as a Glastonbury Festival steward. She wrote: "It'd never crossed my mind until my best friend suggested it to me at the beginning of 2016, when she shared an extensive list of festivals offered by Oxfam.
"Being one of the charitable partners of the iconic Somerset festival, alongside WaterAid, Greenpeace and Shelter, Oxfam provided support staff manning the gates for traders and attendees. The charity offers music fans the opportunity to mingle amongst the golden ticket holders by paying a refundable deposit."
Oxfam volunteers aren't limited to just the one festival either, as you can choose as many as you want to action pack your entire summer. Ellen followed up her first 'Glasto' with a trip to Boardmasters in Cornwall, then up to Reading Festival.
Then, after you finish volunteering at your last festival of the summer, your deposit is given back to you. Describing the experience volunteering for Oxfam, Ellen said: "You're given an arrival date and a place to camp in their own field.
"Also a car parking pass for Oxfam's own separate and much less busier car park, access to the charity's own toilets and showers... In comparison to pleb camping, it's luxury. You're fed, you're watered, what more could you ask for?"
In her second year, Ellen took up the chance to work on one of the 'pre-festival' shifts. This meant arriving at the festival a whole five days before it started, but her shifts were be done and dusted by Tuesday.
She added: "So we were to enjoy the festivities like every other punter who'd flocked to the farm." However, it isn't all fun all the time, you do actually have to work, helping people with directions and getting stuck in with festival organisation.
As Ellen puts it: "No one likes that festival knobhead who ruins it for everyone else." For more information about volunteering with Oxfam, visit here.
