It’s officially only a matter of days until the biggest festival of the year, and it’s time to start getting excited.
And it’s not just the big acts ramping up the anticipation. Alongside the headliners (Dua Lipa, SZA, and Coldplay) and a legend’s slot from Shania Twain, part of the joy of Glastonbury is discovering its secret areas, tiny stages and hidden bars, which host everything from talks to musical performances.
Glastonbury promises this year will be one of ‘renewal’ – and in that spirit, things are getting a bit of a shakeup around the festival, with eight brand-new spaces for festivalgoers to enjoy.
Here’s our roundup of the new additions to look forward to.
The Tree Stage
Pounding bass is so last year: for those in need of a little relaxing down-time, then head to the brand new Tree Stage near Woodsies (the renamed John Peel tent) for a sonic experience like no other. Built around the remains of an old tree trunk, it features the festival’s first-ever quadrophonic ambient sound system, with four speakers placed at intervals around the edge of the stage, all pointing inwards, to make it feel like you’re being surrounded by music.
“What we want is a place for people to come to... and marvel,” says Jamie Harley, who helped create it.
“The Glastonbury experience – and I've been going for a very long time – is that of being an explorer, really. Glastonbury has had a long history of cosmic explorers in the arts, and in thinking, and it’s just great to create a stage where you can come and have a sense of wonder.”
“It’s going to be a great space for those people late at night who basically just stumble upon an area and go, ‘oh my goodness, what is this?’ This is something very fresh and open.”
Accordingly, the stage will be open long after the other venues in that corner of the festival – the Pyramid Stage and Woodsies – close, making it the perfect place to drop by and unwind at after dancing along to Dua Lipa. Pop along to listen to ambient sets from Max Cooper and Youth, as well as being among the first to hear Jon Hopkins’ new ambient music album.
Peace
Welcome the newest addition to Shangri-La. This one-off stage will only be here for 2024, but it’s on a mission to spread love and unity throughout the festival and beyond through a combination of art interventions, speeches and performance.
With artists including Lambrini Girls, Fat Dog, Bob Vylan, and Kneecap due to make an appearance, in addition to The Tolerance Project, Anish Kapoor (formerly known as Stuart Semple), and Shade Cartel, it’s well worth making the time to swing by during the festival and see what’s on.
The Wishing Well
One of two new venues to appear on the site of the old Rabbit Hole venue after 17 years, The Wishing Well will be based in the Park and has been described by Glastonbury as "a place in which to ignite your deepest desires and unfurl your wildest wishes".
Colour us intrigued – and the lineup features a fun mix of artists and performances, with appearances Moonchild Sanelly, Tors, Stornoway, Ustad Noor Bakhsh, and many more.
Scissors
Further around the Park waits Scissors, a brand new LGBTQ+ venue that has been described as “a queer wonderland.” There’ll be a place to get haircuts and play pool, along with a beer garden and the Flick Shack cinema.
There’ll be talks and workshops (including a Q&A with Sophie Ellis Bextor), and of course, when nighttime comes, there’s also Kiki’s nightclub, which boasts a lineup including Porij, Pxssy Palace, Queer House Party and Cocoa Butter Club.
Arrivals
We don’t quite know what this will look like yet, but Arrivals has been billed as Glastonbury’s first ‘space’ dedicated to South Asian talent. A collaboration between cultural organisations Dialled In, Going South and Daytimers, it has been completely designed and built (as well as decorated) by a South Asian team.
According to the festival, visitors “will be transported through a portal to an alien jungle planet, immersed by an audio visual world coded in solar punk, carnivorous plants, cyborg beasts and space pirates.” And with performances from 90s icon DJ Ritu, as well as Manara and Nabihah Iqbal, it promises to be a party to remember.
Terminal One
At last year’s festival, the Williams Green stage was sorely missed – particularly its traditional, Thursday night secret set. With one less destination for punters to enjoy, the tents that were putting on music ahead of the main festivities felt overly crowded. Thankfully, there’s now a new kid on the block to take over; it’s being replaced by Terminal One.
The area has been described as a repurposed airport that will celebrate migration – and in its introduction on social media, Glastonbury added that “no human is illegal.”
The social media announcement also cheekily added that “to gain entry all British citizens must successfully answer a question from the UKGOV citizenship test” – but fortunately people from all over will be able to enjoy the music, which features a lineup of visual and digital artists and creatives, including Love Watts, La Linterna and Yoshi Sodeoka.
Alchemist’s Playground
To all the parents taking their tots to Glasto – firstly, you’re brave. Secondly, swing by the brand new Alchemist’s Playground area in Arcadia for a space curated entirely for the younger Glastonbury-goer. Designed in collaboration with constructive play specialists Woodland Tribe, the space aims to celebrate Arcadia’s tradition of engineering, repurposing and performance.
There’ll be recycled metal toys to play with, circus skill workshops to attend and even the chance to build their own adventure playground with some custom Arcadia hardware. Plus, on Saturday, why not come over for the Junior Jungle party and get them raving responsibly?
Arcadia... version 2
This year, Arcadia’s centrepiece and famous giant spider has evolved into a beautiful dragonfly. That’s right, the late-night dance destination is getting a glow-up, and aren’t we excited.
This is the second time since 2007 that the spider has been replaced by something else – 2019 saw the Pangea crane make its debut – and the new stage has been made from an ex Royal Navy helicopter, turning a "weapon of destruction into a unifying symbol."
It’s being run from batteries charged off-site using wind and solar power, and boasts a killer line-up, including Fatboy Slim, Amelie Lens, Barry Can’t Swim, Joy Orbison and HAAi b2b Ki/Ki.
