The Ultimate Guide to Latitude

You would be very much mistaken if you thought that Latitude was purely a music festival. Of course there is always a plethora of musical artistes to suit all tastes from up and coming newbies to well-established favourites, but that’s only part of it! Latitude Festival prides itself on the fabulous variety of events, shows and activities adding theatre, art, comedy, cabaret, poetry, and literature into the mix!

The festival is super family friendly (in fact it was voted one of the Best Family Festivals by Mumsnet and The Telegraph) with something to please even the youngest of guests… Little ones will love the ‘Kids Area’ fabulous fun, packed with creative, wild and adventurous activities.

There’s everything here from puppetry and drama classes to pond dipping, astronomy and pizza making! Older children of 12 years and over (who want to be slightly ‘cooler’) can explore the ‘Inbetweener’s Area’ hidden away deep in the woods. Teens will lose themselves on the exciting assault courses of nets and zip wires high in the trees, learning wildlife survival skills plus music, media and technology workshops and so much more! 

From Blythburgh - 2 miles

From Southwold - 5 miles

From Halesworth - 6 miles

From Darsham - 7 miles

From Beccles - 10 miles

From Lowestoft - 15 miles

From Norwich - 26 miles

From Ipswich - 34 miles

By Coach Latitude has teamed up with Big Green Coach to run coaches from stations across the UK including Basingstoke, Birmingham, Brighton, Bristol, Cambridge, Chelmsford, Colchester, Coventry, Ipswich, Leeds, London (Victoria Coach Station), Manchester, Norwich, Nottingham, Portsmouth, Reading, Sheffield and Southampton. For more information and to book visit https://www.biggreencoach.co.uk/events/latitude-festival-tickets-coach-travel

By Train Train services are running from London to Diss, London to Halesworth, and London to Ipswich with ongoing routes from Halesworth to Lowestoft, Ipswich to Lowestoft and Ipswich to Beccles (all with return routes) Further information and how to book can be found on the Greater Anglia website at https://www.greateranglia.co.uk/

By Car If travelling by car, ensure you know which gate you need to go to to to access the site.

Please do not use a Sat Nav system to get to the festival as there are different routes into the site depending on which direction you are approaching from and whether you are being dropped off, a family ticket holder, a weekend camper, bringing a campervan, a day ticket holder or a guest. Instead, please refer to the temporary festival road signage on your way to the festival site.

If you want to avoid the queues, Thursday 12th in the afternoon and Friday 13th in the morning are known to be peak times for arrival. When leaving, Sunday 15th in the evening and Monday 16th are generally when the mass exodus occurs!

Car Share In keeping with Latitude’s green ethos, ride sharing has been set up through LiftShare, sign up and you can find other festival-goers who are travelling your way!

One of our favourite things about Latitude, the food and drink on offer is second to none, and you can sample a little piece of The Suffolk Coast and countries around the world all in one weekend.

Food on offer includes burgers, pizza, salad bars, tapas, doughnuts, coffee bars, burritos, BBQs, Chinese, Indian, Caribbean, Mexican and Thai.

Or if you want to head back to your tent for a snooze and snack, stop by the Village Shop or Tuck Shop (located in the Family Campsite) and pick up some local produce.

BBQs are allowed too, but be sure to recycle any packaging or food waste (for composting!) at the many recycling stations throughout the site.

Please note, glass is not allowed anywhere at the festival, so leave the wine bottles at home in favour of cartons!

If you are staying for the weekend and want to explore The Suffolk Coast, make a trip to one of the pubs nearby including The Ship at Dunwich, or The Westleton Crown (you can stay there too if camping is not your thing!)

The campsite opens on Thursday 12th July at 2pm and closes at 5pm on Monday 16th July. When booking your ticket you will have been allocated a camping zone (Yellow, Red, Blue, Green and Family) and told which car park to head to (Red or Green).

Each campsite is equipped with toilets, water points and fire towers, and there will be zone managers working 24 hours a day to offer any assistance you may need.

QUICK TIP: If you want to camp in a less crowded area, ask the gate staff on arrival and they will point you in the right direction.

There is no car access from the car parks to the campsites, but if you need help transporting your luggage, carts are available to hire along with a golf buggy shuttle.

QUICK TIP: Tie a flag or marker to your tent and take a note of a nearby fixed point to help you find your way back to your tent. Remember not to take any expensive belongings with you.

There are toilets located throughout the festival site and the campsites, disabled toilets can also be found in all areas. Showers are located in The Village but are only open from 7.30pm to 12.30pm on Thursday, Friday to Sunday from 6am to 12.30pm and on Monday from 6am to 5pm. Showers located in the family campsite are open 24 hours from Thursday to Monday.

If you've only booked a day ticket or the camping experience is not for you, we've a huge range of accommodation to choose from on The Suffolk Coast.

The nearby towns of Southwold, Halesworth and Beccles can provide you with a pitch for your tent or caravan, self-catering cottages, town houses and barns, inns and pubs and luxury hotels. But be quick, many fill up with festival-goers (and the odd performer or celebrity!) months in advance

• Your ticket and car park pass
• ID
• Money / cash
• Mobile phone
• Phone charger
• Torch
• Insect repellent
• Sun cream and a hat
• Bottles water (alcohol is allowed in the campsites but not in the festival site)
• Tissues and antibacterial wipes
• Sleeping bag and tent

So there you have it, we hope you are all packed and ready for a weekend packed with memory making experiences. Remember to send us your pictures by uploading them to our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/thesuffolkcoast, by Twitter @thesuffolkcoast or Instagram @the_suffolk_coast