Put your phone in a ziplock bag and never wear jeans: six tips for surviving wet summer festivals

Here’s a festival tip: don’t do what this guy did at Splendour this year. Photograph: Matt Jelonek/Getty Images

With at least nine major Australian festivals cancelled or postponed due to extreme weather this year, two consecutive years of negative Indian Ocean dipole events, and three years of La Niña, heading to a festival requires a bit more planning than past summers. But never fear: our team of writers has been trampling through muddy fields, suffering in wet jeans and dealing with “aggravated fat pads” (you’ll understand later) to provide you with their best hard-won tips that might help you have a nicer time. And there’s some sunshine on the horizon: the Bureau of Meteorology forecasts that the La Niña will end by February.

1. Put your phone and cables in a ziplock bag