The most important thing to create the best memories and have the best experience ever at a festival, is feeling safe. Safety is always my number one priority, and not only my own but also the safety of my friends I'm with. Unfortunately, there are quite some "horror" stories, but I'm here to make sure your experience doesn't end like that! So if you want some tips, keep on reading!
Tip #1 - Don't take anything from anyone
It may seem innocent when a stranger comes up to you and offers you a drink, you might even be thinking "wow, that's nice!". But please, never accept the offer! You never know the person's full intention when they offer you something, they might have drugged or done something to the drink or food item that can't be seen with the blind eye. For you're own safety, please do not take it!
I've luckily never had a bad experience, because I don't take anything from anyone. This year, I had the same thought when someone offered me a "brand new bottle of water", I took it because I didn't really realise what was going on and the person was long gone before I could formulate a real answer haha. I was just standing there with the bottle but ended up setting it on the ground, because you never know. I'm not trying to scare you, there are some good people out there, but I won't suggest taking the chance.
Tip #2 - Leave if you have a grim feeling
With this I don't mean the whole festival, I just mean the place or stage you are at that time. Sometimes the atmosphere around you can tell a lot about what might have happend or is about to happen. Some people go to festivals for the wrong reason, like picking fights with random people around them over the littlest things. If you have a feeling or you see something like this, please don't interfere and just leave! You don't want to get injured in the process and there are plenty of security guards present that should resolve these issues. Also, you never know the state (of intoxication) of the person throwing the fit, so please for your safety, just leave or at least do not interfere.
Unfortunately, I've been close to these situations. My friends and I just took our own safe space untill we were able to walk past the fight safely. And while we passed them, at least eight security guards came running to break up the fight. A little later we even saw the person escorted off the festival grounds! Like they should haha. Although you might want to help, please don't because you might ruin your own experience.
Tip #3 - Have a support system in place
The "title" of my tip may sound a bit heavy but it just comes down to do what makes you feel safe and talk about that with the friends you're going to the festival with. For example, if you don't want to go to the bathroom alone, introduce a buddy system or have a meeting spot after everyone has gotten their food. It is understandable to want things like these, there are so many people on a couple squared meters at all times and feeling safe and comfortable is very important. This does go two ways, so if you ask something of a friend, make sure you do something for them in return. You both are part of each others experience, so make sure both have a great time!
Since I have been going to festivals for a while know, I might not always need a bathroom buddy or any of the other things, but most of the times we'll have a meeting spot for various things. We do talk about these things to make sure everyone is safe! It's not weird, you just care about people. I once had this experience where I went to the bathroom alone and I would meet them back at the stage, however their plans changed but I did not have any service to reach them. I couldn't find my friends, so I, on my own, went to a place where I would hopefully have reception and be able to communicate. And I ended up finding them, and I did tell them to not do that anymore since I didn't have any service; they didn't and we went on having fun!
Okay, I know this post might feel a little heavy but as I have stated multiple times already: YOUR SAFETY IS IMPORTANT!! I'm not trying to scare you or anything like that. I just feel like this topic might be a taboo to talk about, and I want to break it haha. After this I will continue with more "positive" content, don't worry haha. Safety is a big part of creating the best experience ever, that's why I wanted to share some tips as that's why I started my blog. Love to read you're tips in the comments! I'll see you on a happier note in the next one.
xx Myrthe
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