Festival season is fast approaching and all around the country, thousands of normally-sane parents are preparing to take their children to loud and expensive music events in difficult-to-find places, where it will probably rain, and no-one will get any sleep.
If you’re poised to load up the car and set off for a field of mud, what can you pack in your essentials kit that will help make family Festivals just a little bit easier? Based on the doorstep of the UK’s most iconic Festival venue, Glastonbury, Hippychick is well versed in festival know-how for families.
Tron – the Disposable, Potty
The trauma of festival toilets for adults is well-documented: a two-mile walk, queuing for 75 minutes and a smell that’s strong enough to knock you out.
And what about the children? Especially those who are recently potty trained? No toddler should be made to endure the hell that is festival toilets. Any parent who has been through potty-training knows this sort of situation has disaster written all over it (and all over you!).
Cue Tron – the disposable, folding, biodegradable, portable potty. Made from recycled cardboard, Tron lets you take your toilet-training toddler anywhere – including the Pyramid Stage.
Small enough to fit in your handbag, Tron unfolds into a robust and comfortable little potty, complete with its own absorbent and biodegradable, fully leak-proof pad. Once your child has performed, you can fold Tron up again and use its cleverly integrated handles to deliver it seamlessly and without odour or mess, to the nearest bin.
Tron Disposable Potty – £10 for a 3-pack
Hippychick waterproofs
Waterproof, cosy, snug and warm as toast, these all in one zip up toddler suits provide 24/7 emergency cover for when the going gets wet and muddy. Available in three different versions – fleece lined shell, shell and lightweight Packasuits, there’s one to suit the rain intensity that will almost certainly be part of the family festival line up. All you’ll wish is that these fabulously designed waterproofs came in adult sizes, too. Puddle jumping is always fun – even when you’re a grown up.
Kids Waterproof Suits – from £20.95
Hippychick Hipseat
Lugging a fractious child around a muddy festival site in a buggy is impossible, even with the most sophisticated all terrain versions. And they’ll probably clamour to be carried anyway. Slip a Hippychick Hipseat around your waist and carrying a toddler will be a walk in the park. It’s an ingenious back-supporting belt with a seat on which your toddler can perch, helping you to spread their weight evenly across your body and keep your spine in alignment. And the good news is that you’ll be able to keep one hand free to do the obligatory hand waving for Elton John’s finale.
Hipseats are available in a range of cool, festival-friendly colours including Denim Grey, Denim Blue, Pink and Navy.
Hipseat Baby Carrier – £39.95
Hippychick Waterproof Sheets
Though we can’t guarantee what happens outside the tent a Hippychick award-winning waterproof sheets will at least keep your toddler’s sleeping bag dry inside. Soft as silk for delicate skin yet tough and unbeatable when it comes to absorbency and waterproof capabilities. Why wouldn’t you?
Waterproof Flat Sheet – prices start at £23.50
