Get back to nature on a 'glamping' break that guarantees comfortable nights, and days that refresh mind, body and soul
FOR A GIRLS WEEKEND
Emily Miles finds festival mud-fests are a thing of the past in a gypsy caravan
Last year, I decided it was time to hang up my hot pants, pack away my wellies and consign my festival-going days to the past. No more damp clothes. No more frizzy hair. No more muddy fields. But that all changed when I heard about the Guardian Hay Festival in the Welsh Border town of Hayon- Wye - a bookfest brimming with literary stars and celebs, without a mosh pit in sight. With festivals back on the agenda, although of a very different sort, my friends and I stock up on improving books to make sure we don't slip into old ways, and put our names down for a gypsy caravan in the Tangerine Fields campsite, minutes from Hay town centre. This purveyor of posh camping has private fi elds at many UK summer festivals, plus VIP facilities such as healthy food tents and showers. We arrive at the wood-clad caravan and unpack our bags, pleasantly surprised by the setting. Thankfully, there are no doilies or fringed red velvet curtains in sight - our home is a modern take on vintage style with its double bed and roll-out mattresses. We pitch a tent near our caravan to save on valuable luggage space, unpack our picnic and pour glasses of Champagne. Dusk falls and drinks flow. The next morning, awake bright and early, we head to the festival. A packed schedule of talks - delivered by everyone from Richard Madeley to the Lib Dem's Vince Cable - gives our grey cells a workout, while the poetry readings and interviews with writers such as Sarah Waters get me revved up to start that much-vaunted first novel. Then it's time to check out The Beauty Tent. Yes, that's right, a beauty tent that's fully equipped with hair-straighteners, dryers and tongs. The showers even have a plentiful supply of hot water. This is glamping at a whole new level. I feel clean, fresh and groomed with no chopping, fi re making or other Scout activities required. Bliss. Oh, and the Tangerine Café serves coffee and local food (such as bacon sarnies and cloudy apple juice) from day-break. When the sun starts shining, and our brains need a break from all the inspirational ideas the speakers are planting, we charge out for a ramble around the stunning countryside - safe in the knowledge that we can wash the mud off later. On one evening, we stop off in pretty Hay for top-quality gastro-pub dining at The Three Tuns. OK, it's not very rock and roll, but there's a lot to love about a festival experience that leaves you feeling clean, coiffed, intellectually challenged and full of energy after a good night's sleep. After years of experimenting, I think I've finally found a truly mind-expanding way to embrace festival going!
The facts
Emily went to The Guardian Hay Festival (www.hayfestival.com), but Gypsy caravans are available to hire from Tangerine Fields at festivals nationwide for £120 per night. They sleep two adults and two children (www.tangerinefi elds.co.uk, 020 8943 0700). The Three Tuns, Broad Street, Hay-on-Wye (www.threetuns. com, 01497 821855)
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