A perfectly formed festival for party parents. Chilled in a Field proves that the best things come in small packages and that festivals with kids really can be relaxing.
We’re lucky enough to have visited some of the biggest festivals in the UK as a family, so when we were invited to Chilled in a Field with our six and ten-year-old I worried that our eldest might get a little bored at such a small event. Daisy has been totally spoilt with so many amazing experiences that I couldn’t even have dreamt of as a child. After trapezing at 40 foot and appearing on stage in front of thousands, it sometimes takes a lot to impress her. We needn’t have feared – all the excellent things I’d heard about Chilled in a Field were totally true.
The fifth Chilled in a field Festival was set at The Hop Farm Country Park in Kent this year. The venue offers camping all year round so added luxuries such as proper showers, toilets and even electric hook-up for campers really did make the difference. The campervan field was spacious with marked our pitches and general camping was split in the early risers (those with kids mostly), and late night owls.
We went with friends which made the weekend even more relaxing as there was always other small people for the kids to hang out with. The festival is predominately populated by ex-ravers and their kids, who all create a real party vibe. Even though there are hundreds of kids running around all day and night, the festival is reminiscent of the free parties we used to visit in the 90’s. Just without the riot vans and dogs on strings!
So here’s Daisy’s Chilled in a Field review:
Chilled In A Field is a very child-friendly festival all in one big field with some crazy stuff and a little stage in the woods. This was really good for me because I was allowed to roam around all day by myself and could do whatever I liked. Even my sister was allowed to go in and out of the festival from the campervan field on her own cos mum got us special purple bands so we could go in and out. If you didn’t have the bands on kids got stopped by the security so you couldn’t escape.
There was a main stage in the field with some very good bands on for me and my parents to enjoy. We liked it because there was some food stands right near the stage and also a fire in the evening where the helpers gave you marshmallows to toast while the grown-ups were doing their weird dancing. The stage wasn’t busy and even little kids could get right to the front.
The best food at the festival was the herby chips (£3) and the hot churros (£4). We also loved the smoothies which were supposed to be £3 each but we kept asking if we could split them and they gave us both almost full ones for £1.50 each. In the morning me and my friend went in the festival on our own and bought a kid’s full English breakfast for £2.50 and another smoothie while Dad was still in bed.
camping mud pies!
We thought the shop at the festival was really good because you could get all sorts of sweets and they had some nice jewelry. I got some earrings for £3 and my friends both bought necklaces. The shop also sold ice lollies which we don’t usually get at festivals because they are a ripoff but these were only 80p, so mum let us. There were a couple of other shops and we bought some blue hairspray but that was £5!
One of my favorite things was the free glitter shower. You got to go in a shower and glitter came out which you could spray all over yourself. There were lots of other free craft activities in a couple of tents and another with a kids chill out area and table football. There was also a unicorn you could sit on and a really massive wooden marble run under the big tree in the middle.
There was a bouncy slide there but it wasn’t very slippery at all until it rained then it was super-fast but you did get a wet bum! My sister spent most of the weekend on the bouncy slide and in the sandpit.
The best thing on Saturday was the glitter wrestling. You had to get a sock off someone’s foot when you were wrestling in a pool full of glitter. On Sunday it was only for grownups and my mum and her friend had a go.
I think my parents liked the Dance tent most. Lots of silly dancing and everyone was dressed in fancy dress. They put all these funny masks out with celebrity faces on so we all wore them and I was Mr Bean.
The toilets at this festivals weren’t the blue portaloo ones but proper ones you walked into with sinks and mirrors and there was always loo roll. They even had posters on some of them saying ‘kids only’ but we never had to wait for them anyway. There were no toilets in the woods but the main ones weren’t that far away.
At night there was a silent disco in the woods but we didn’t like the music cos it was just ‘bang, bang, bang’. There were some cool decorations in the woods and it was a nice place to relax. We went for an explore and discovered a crashed plane which our friend’s little boy loved. We did like the music in the dance tent and had a dance. Mum and Dad spent most of their time in the dance tent as that’s where the bar was and they said the beer and cider was really cheap.
We had a massive water fight on Sunday with loads of kids and our parents joined it. We all got soaked and she ended up crying.
Everyone at the Chilled in a Field festival was really nice and we had an awesome weekend. I would defo go back.
Daisy – aged 10
x
And from Hunny – aged 6
‘It was mega!’
Chilled in a Field is one of our Best Family Festivals recommendations. Read more suggestions of the best festivals with kids here.
a field somewhere 
Excellent review! You should go for a job at the N.M.E. as junior correspondent.
Yes dance music is a bit “bang bang bang”, I’ve been telling them to put on Simon and Garfunkel at the silent disco but they won’t listen 😉
Ahh so *that’s* where my Mr Bean mask ended up! I recognise the lady with the hat who asked to borrow it to show her children and never saw it again!
Glad it went to a good home 🙂
Rumbled! Ha Ha. I actually did return it to the desk but when the kids found out there was loads of masks on there they all went a little crazy for them. Heaps of fun with it though and Mr Bean had one of the best nights of his life. I assure you!